Supporting design education in 3D virtual worlds: a case study

The higher education sectors of architecture, engineering and construction management are among the first to utilise IT to full advantage with a wide range of CAD and project management software, as well as e-learning technologies. What the future holds for design education is further changes as such technologies loom on the horizon. Within this context, the paper presents a case study in which 3D virtual worlds - a type of virtual reality (VR) and social network technologies - are adopted as a collaborative design and learning environment for architectural education. Based on the outcomes of the course and the students’ collaborative learning experiences, the paper discusses the potential of adopting 3D virtual worlds in design education, in terms of distance learning, collaborative learning and problem-based learning.