Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Virtual Place-Based Learning

This book explores how virtual place-based learning and research has been interpreted and incorporated into learning environments both within and across disciplinary perspectives. Contributing authors highlight the ways in which they have employed a variety of methodologies to engage students in the virtual exploration of place. In the process, they focus on the approaches they have used to bring the real world closer through virtual exploration. Chapters examine how the resources of the urban environment have been tapped to design student research projects within the context of an interdisciplinary course. In this way, authors highlight how virtual place-based learning has employed the tools of mapping and data visualization, information literacy, game design, digital storytelling, and the creation of non-fiction VR documentaries. This book makes a valuable contribution to the literature, offering a model of how the study of place can be employed in creative ways to enhance interdisciplinary learning.

Table of Contents:
1. Situating Interdisciplinary Place-Based Learning as a High-Impact Educational Practice.- 2. Virtual Place-Based Learning in Interdisciplinary Contexts: A Psychological Perspective and a Review.- 3. Virtual Reality as a Pedagogical Tool for Interdisciplinarity and Place-Based Education.- 4. Information Literacy in Place-Based Interdisciplinary Teaching and Learning.- 5. Visualization and Analysis of Environmental Data.- 6. Mapping Urban Performance Culture: A Common Ground for Architecture and Theater.- 7. Using Virtual Reality as a Tool for Field-Based Learning in the Earth Sciences.- 8. Non-Fiction Virtual Reality Stories of Emigration: Points of Viewing and Creating for the Classroom.- 9. Computational Thinking and the Role-Playing Classroom: A Case for Game-Based Learning in an Interdisciplinary Context.

About the Author :
Reneta D. Lansiquot is Professor and Founding Program Director of the Bachelor of Science in Professional and Technical Writing and Director of the Honors Scholars Program at New York City College of Technology, The City University of New York, USA. She has published widely on interdisciplinary studies and educational technology. Sean P. MacDonald is Professor of Economics at New York City College of Technology, The City University of New York, USA. She has published on the 2008–2009 financial crisis, the housing market, and interdisciplinary pedagogy. She has also served as a fellow and as contributor on interdisciplinary grant initiatives.

Review :
“This book is essentially about new directions for teaching the arts, humanities, and sciences … . Most intriguing about this book is the strong implication that virtual exploration exercises, even in primary grades, will help to train our future scholars and experts to focus on fuzzy details—which today only geniuses of rare insight notice. If you are looking to think out-of-the box in your field … then reading this book can be a very worthwhile experience.” (Chaim Scheff, Computing Reviews, July 6, 2022)