Chris K.

Creating a virtual courtroom for Open University law students


PC / macOS

Education

United Kingdom
Showing how the themed website may look on a iMac computer

Summary

Open University was looking for a way to help support a more flexible learning structure for their law students. A solution which would allow their students to be able to practice and conduct moot trials remotely from the comfort of their homes. It was important that students would have a relatable experience of going to a moot competition.

Dedicated platform across multiple devices such as computer, laptop, tablet, and mobile

Why move away from video conferencing?

  • Lacks preparing students for being inside a courtroom
  • Difficult to discern who is paying attention
  • Easy to get distracted by your environment
  • Niche industry with subtle nuances (titles, roles, tasks)

The Virtual Courtroom

A 3D virtual courthouse with entrance, hallways, courtroom and judges chambers was built to create that immersive experience.

Key Factors for Success

Formality of Court

Courtrooms command a sense of respect as their decisions have real life implications. Which give students a bit of anxiety and nervousness.

Eye Contact

Through interviews with law students, faculty and moot judges it became clear that eye contact was important for all parties.

Customization

Customizing your avatar to represent you was important for students. They wanted to show themselves to the others in this virtual world.

Exploration

Courthouses have a lot of additional information about their services and history of what has occurred there.

Building an Immersive Experience

Card sorting which lead to priority and understanding locations on screen. Top left admin rea, top right exit space, left middle side bar, center area main focus, right middle current side activity, bottom left and right are low impact, and center bottom is prime interaction area

Engineered courtroom anxiety

Formality of the courtroom starts when you enter the building, we capitalised on this in the virtual environment. By adding a foyer, waiting area and hallways.

Eye Contact through direction

In front of your avatar's face, there is a panel. This allows those around you to see you and to see which direction you are facing.

The table provides a dedicated space just for those sitting with you virtually
Buttons for starting and stopping audio, video and volume for both sections, class and table.

Customize your avatar

Sliders provide more options than preset values, allowing students to create an avatar which represents themselves.

Explore the courthouse

Travel around the courthouse, through corridors interacting with objects to learn about different areas.

Drag different areas of the application to make changes to the layout

Student Centered Design

Observations

Reviewed recordings of past moot trials using POEMS to get a full grasp of what students could expect in-person versus a video call.

Interviews

Speaking with law students and moot judges helped to identify pain points and create user journeys and mapping.

User Testing

Law students provided their feedback through user tests which led to multiple iterations to create a more refined and in-depth product.

Proof of Concept

Card sorting which lead to priority and understanding locations on screen. Top left admin rea, top right exit space, left middle side bar, center area main focus, right middle current side activity, bottom left and right are low impact, and center bottom is prime interaction area

Functional Prototype

The prototype demonstrates how Open University law students can participate remotely in a moot trial and gain vital experience in a courtroom.

Tech Stack

highlighting the interaction wheel for quick access to reactions
highlighting the interaction wheel for quick access to reactions
highlighting the interaction wheel for quick access to reactions
highlighting the interaction wheel for quick access to reactions

Small International Team