Replicating Lecture Hall Interactions Using Metaverse Pedagogies

Abstract

There have been various instructional shifts in the tertiary education sector due to the pandemic. Legal academics have been gently forced to move beyond their primal instinct to teach face-to-face. Instead, they had to become innovative and integrate technology to make the teaching and learning pedagogy more engaging on a virtual platform. The pandemic has enabled law academics the fortitude to explore creative teaching pedagogies in order to replicate the conventional lecture hall interactions on a virtual platform. Various online teaching pedagogies have been incorporated into law schools in Malaysia, including the adoption of Gamification, Augmented Reality, Neuro-Linguistic Programming and Virtual Legal Practice experience, etc. However, law schools are sceptical and partially resistant as to which Metaverse pedagogy can be incorporated into the law programme post-pandemic. This research will examine the possible manner of integrating Metaverse pedagogies in legal courses including lectures and seminars, mooting and advocacy courses, legal attachment modules, and virtual libraries. It is submitted that law schools can leverage the collaborative capabilities of virtual worlds -from enabling virtual class collaborations and practising advocacy skills using simulations, to the interactive use of virtual libraries for research and enhancement of legal knowledge. The paper will specifically map the face-to-face teaching pedagogy with the Metaverse equivalent. It will contribute to the existing body of literature as it broadens the understanding of the available online teaching pedagogies and usage of Metaverse in legal modules. This research will be beneficial to law academics and students, educational institutions and educational technology providers.