Perception of Space in the Traditional and Virtual Classroom

The paper presents the study of the educational context and its characteristics to achieve the most effective learning process.The aim of the research is to examine the perception of physical space in the traditional classroom and virtual space in online learning. The study of this issue is based on...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: T. G. Nikitina
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Plekhanov Russian University of Economics 2023-11-01
Series:Открытое образование (Москва)
Subjects:
Online Access:https://openedu.rea.ru/jour/article/view/967
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849241282407301120
author T. G. Nikitina
author_facet T. G. Nikitina
author_sort T. G. Nikitina
collection DOAJ
description The paper presents the study of the educational context and its characteristics to achieve the most effective learning process.The aim of the research is to examine the perception of physical space in the traditional classroom and virtual space in online learning. The study of this issue is based on the psychological approach to the perception of virtual space as a model of physical space and on understanding the importance of this research area due to the development of distant forms of learning: though, the problems of virtual space functioning in the perception of students and its impact on learning efficiency still remain unexplored. Meanwhile, understanding the mechanism of space perception can help to adapt the learning process to the form of learning in choice: learning in a traditional classroom, where students work in a real physical space, learning in a virtual environment or in a hybrid form.Materials and methods. The theoretical basis for comparing the characteristics of physical and virtual space is the studies that focus on the importance of spatial organization in the process of learning. The psychological approach to the perception of space makes it possible to rely on the mechanism of transferring the physical characteristics of space into a virtual environment and to determine the possibility of comparison, primarily in an axiological sense. The study was carried out in the context of university education. Students of a higher educational institution were offered a questionnaire, the results of which were processed using a statistical method. Quantitative trends were then interpreted in the application to the learning process. The experiment was carried out in three stages (questionnaire, statistical processing, interpretation of the results), each of which revealed new aspects of the problem under study.Results. The study shows that there is a metaphorization mechanism that allows the learner to perceive the space of the virtual classroom in the same terms as the physical space of the traditional classroom. At the same time, the comparison of statistical data indicates the obvious differences in the perception of the student's space in the traditional and virtual classrooms. This is especially true for such parameters as openness, freedom of movement and the ratio of participants in the educational space, which indicates different learning conditions that determine the choice of teaching methods and techniques in the traditional context and in the virtual educational environment. Discussion of the results of statistical analysis allows us to draw conclusions about the difference of educational potential of the virtual and physical classroom spaces, the importance of socialization and various methods of its creation in the educational process.Conclusion. The conducted research shows the need for further study of space in the educational context, the need to take into account its parameters for developing virtual courses. Also, the results of the study show the importance of spatial characteristics for the success of learning, for creating a comfortable educational environment. The data obtained can be used in the development and improvement of online courses; it will help to avoid mistakes when in planning.
format Article
id doaj-art-bd3e22ef93d94c178e8e1191b7f86663
institution Kabale University
issn 1818-4243
2079-5939
language English
publishDate 2023-11-01
publisher Plekhanov Russian University of Economics
record_format Article
series Открытое образование (Москва)
spelling doaj-art-bd3e22ef93d94c178e8e1191b7f866632025-08-20T04:00:13ZengPlekhanov Russian University of EconomicsОткрытое образование (Москва)1818-42432079-59392023-11-01275132210.21686/1818-4243-2023-5-13-22677Perception of Space in the Traditional and Virtual ClassroomT. G. Nikitina0Volga Region Academy of Education and Arts named after St. Alexis, Metropolitan of MoscowThe paper presents the study of the educational context and its characteristics to achieve the most effective learning process.The aim of the research is to examine the perception of physical space in the traditional classroom and virtual space in online learning. The study of this issue is based on the psychological approach to the perception of virtual space as a model of physical space and on understanding the importance of this research area due to the development of distant forms of learning: though, the problems of virtual space functioning in the perception of students and its impact on learning efficiency still remain unexplored. Meanwhile, understanding the mechanism of space perception can help to adapt the learning process to the form of learning in choice: learning in a traditional classroom, where students work in a real physical space, learning in a virtual environment or in a hybrid form.Materials and methods. The theoretical basis for comparing the characteristics of physical and virtual space is the studies that focus on the importance of spatial organization in the process of learning. The psychological approach to the perception of space makes it possible to rely on the mechanism of transferring the physical characteristics of space into a virtual environment and to determine the possibility of comparison, primarily in an axiological sense. The study was carried out in the context of university education. Students of a higher educational institution were offered a questionnaire, the results of which were processed using a statistical method. Quantitative trends were then interpreted in the application to the learning process. The experiment was carried out in three stages (questionnaire, statistical processing, interpretation of the results), each of which revealed new aspects of the problem under study.Results. The study shows that there is a metaphorization mechanism that allows the learner to perceive the space of the virtual classroom in the same terms as the physical space of the traditional classroom. At the same time, the comparison of statistical data indicates the obvious differences in the perception of the student's space in the traditional and virtual classrooms. This is especially true for such parameters as openness, freedom of movement and the ratio of participants in the educational space, which indicates different learning conditions that determine the choice of teaching methods and techniques in the traditional context and in the virtual educational environment. Discussion of the results of statistical analysis allows us to draw conclusions about the difference of educational potential of the virtual and physical classroom spaces, the importance of socialization and various methods of its creation in the educational process.Conclusion. The conducted research shows the need for further study of space in the educational context, the need to take into account its parameters for developing virtual courses. Also, the results of the study show the importance of spatial characteristics for the success of learning, for creating a comfortable educational environment. The data obtained can be used in the development and improvement of online courses; it will help to avoid mistakes when in planning.https://openedu.rea.ru/jour/article/view/967educational spacespace parametersparticipants of educational activitiesvirtual environmenttraditional classroom
spellingShingle T. G. Nikitina
Perception of Space in the Traditional and Virtual Classroom
Открытое образование (Москва)
educational space
space parameters
participants of educational activities
virtual environment
traditional classroom
title Perception of Space in the Traditional and Virtual Classroom
title_full Perception of Space in the Traditional and Virtual Classroom
title_fullStr Perception of Space in the Traditional and Virtual Classroom
title_full_unstemmed Perception of Space in the Traditional and Virtual Classroom
title_short Perception of Space in the Traditional and Virtual Classroom
title_sort perception of space in the traditional and virtual classroom
topic educational space
space parameters
participants of educational activities
virtual environment
traditional classroom
url https://openedu.rea.ru/jour/article/view/967
work_keys_str_mv AT tgnikitina perceptionofspaceinthetraditionalandvirtualclassroom