Crafting Teacher Identities through teaching in a 3D Virtual World

This study explores teachers’ perception of their professional role when teaching in virtual three-dimensional environments. Few studies have examined how virtual spaces impact perceptions of teaching and learning roles. Such gap in the literature is problematic since these environments may serve as a means of engaging students who cannot attend school for health, environmental reasons, or remoteness concerns. This study contributes to the urgent need for an evidence-based understanding of virtual-enhanced education. A non-immersive virtual world (iSeeVC) was used in a 30-hour preservice teacher workshop on instructional design with 30 participants from a European university in 2023. The workshop included collaborative mock lessons and team-based exploration of educational technology tools. Qualitative data collected using interviews and focus groups were employed. Findings indicate a nuanced perception of teachers’ role in the digital age. Preservice teachers identified effective teaching to be characterized by reasoned, ethical uses of technology to the service of learners’ creativity and personal growth in-and-outside schools.