How to create a virtual field trip

Virtual field trips solve an experience-priming problem; students learn about a location before they arrive at a real-world location. After engaging with virtual content, they report feeling less anxious and more prepared for fieldwork. Virtual experiences offer a boost to confidence that is particularly valuable amid post-Covid uncertainty around travel.

Virtual field trips are complex undertakings, however, involving media production skills, such as filmography, photography and immersive technology. Each trip typically combines short filmed introductions with interactive 360‑degree views of field locations and accommodation, enriched with embedded media such as videos, images and activities aligned to module learning outcomes. 

Through trial, reflection and iteration, we’ve been redefining how students prepare for, and engage with, field-based learning entirely. Virtual field trips have emerged as a way to enhance the student experience. These tips look at considerations and expertise required, from project management and collaboration to ways to measure success.

Start with learning goals to map the virtual experience

Creating virtual trips that meet learning objectives requires a systematic approach. At the start of every project, the learning designer and academic should review the learning outcomes and course deliverables, and how these are evidenced in physical field sites.

To start, ask these questions: 

• What’s the purpose of the in-person trip?
• Why do students need to be there (to collect samples or practise workplace skills, for example)? 

Once you know this, consider how the knowledge, skills and practical abilities can be represented in virtual activities. For instance, an explainer video by an expert can be valuable, reusable and embedded into a 360-degree image of the environment in which an activity takes place.

Thoughtful translation between physical and virtual activities strengthens engagement and supports both preparation and on-site learning. Consider engaging activities such as writing a physical diary alongside their exploration of the virtual trip. Asking students to use this diary later for in-person site visits can extend learning beyond the virtual resource. Your aim is to share a virtual experience that builds emotional connections between the location and the student, meeting learning objectives for their academic course.

Getting permission to capture

Cross-functional collaboration is one of the most powerful elements when creating a virtual field trip. Successful virtual field trips integrate regulatory and media expertise and human interaction to provide authentic student experiences. And these aspects should be present from the earliest planning stages.

• Embracing co-creation through experiential learning
• How virtual field trips can benefit student learning now and in future
• The transformative power of immersive field studies

For anyone managing a project of this nature, securing permissions is often the longest lead-time risk. This can cover filming environments, buildings, drone footage (where applicable) and any people appearing in the resource. Acquiring the necessary permissions might involve external legal teams and can take months, so this task must be addressed early. Practical steps, such as carrying printed release forms on filming days, help mitigate last-minute permission checks on the day. 

Accessibility from day one

Students access the multimedia elements of virtual field trips through a web browser on a device of their choice. 

If you are sharing virtual field trips using browser-based technology, you need to consider web content accessibility guidelines from the beginning. Building in accessibility from day one avoids the need to retrofit content and reduces barriers for students. High-contrast visual elements, keyboard-only navigation, closed captions and downloadable transcripts will create a more inclusive experience. Check what features are built into your 360-degree platform and the best way to use them to help students meet their learning outcomes.

Measure what matters

How do we know if the virtual field trip is a success? What student responses should we measure? 

First, before you capture feedback, you need to check ethics approval requirements at your organisation. The course might already have working feedback mechanisms that you can leverage, and so an embedded link within the virtual trip is a quick win. We’ve had some success with this approach, although more focused alternatives will give richer data.

If virtual field trips will be part of an ongoing programme, consider how students can give you valuable insight for year-on-year improvements. For example, can you invite students to focus groups early in the project and use their feedback to design content? Can you sense-check with students post-delivery? Does their experience meet what’s required? This approach can be used to make incremental changes in response.

Build on existing content

You might not need to start from scratch each time; use previous projects to inform current and future efforts. Our virtual field trips evolved from earlier digital projects developed during Covid, with each iteration informing improvements in design, delivery and reuse. Each iteration has taught us something new about what works and what doesn't.

Project management is a critical part of success. You need a workable approach to track the media to capture, and where it’s used virtually. You might have resources that can be repurposed to save time and cost. The purpose of the virtual field trip also needs to be clear up front; you could reuse wording from course content. 

Has someone in your team already been on location? Ask them about potential problems.

What you need to know about virtual field trips before doing anything else

Successful virtual field trips aren’t about replacing traditional field experiences; they’re about making field-based learning more inclusive, less anxiety-provoking and more effective for all students. The future will see thoughtful integration of the virtual and physical to maximise learning outcomes and support student well-being. This is about using education technology to solve learning problems and improve the student experience.

James Edward Allen is senior learning designer leading a team of designers at the University of Southampton.