How to create an online immersive learning experience

As featured in our Digital Curriculum Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Menu.  On the 5 November 2024 and 12 March 2025, me and my colleague delivered our new session 'How to create an online immersive learning experience'.  As written, it aimed to:

"Learn how to create your own online immersive learning experience using H5P’s user-friendly Virtual Tours (360), with available authentic panoramic 360° images.  By the end of this brief workshop you will have created a basic online immersive experience to further develop.  Little technical know-how required."

As the School of Social Sciences has an objective to develop staff digital skills in the production of high quality digital immersive learning, which was influenced by my work in this area.  The School's Digital Development Group has recognised this workshop as an offering to support with this objective.  Therefore, the March workshop was opened widely for the School of Social Sciences colleagues to attend.  Though specifically designed for IHAP staff, the optional invitation was offered fully online to accommodate additional people.

Some slides were adapted to include some School-wide resources.

We received the following feedback:

• Lynne Thompson - "Can I say, Dan and Godson this is great. I've always wanted to do that and never really been able to. So just walking us through it, it's been absolutely fantastic. So thank you...I'm really happy."
• Lynne Thompson - "...it has been great."
• Nicola Payne - "I agree Lynne it is great to know how to do it now!"
• Rubby Legbedze - "It all worked well, I felt like a magician..."
• Rubby Legbedze  - "This is really good, all sorted. thank you"
• Ian Jones - "My NOW LR's will be transformed...🤩"
• Sarah Buglass - "Thanks Dan and Godson! A great session"
• Jo Mcfadden - "...thanks Dan and Godson."
• Moses Mukuru - "Thanks Dan and Godson."

EDIT: On 16 July 2025, I ran this workshop for members of the PGCert Café, Centre for Academic Development and Quality.  People, like me, working towards their non-apprenticeship pathway Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education (PGCLTHE).

• Lauren Martin, Lecturer, Design and Digital Arts - "How would one make their own 360 images?  Do you need a special camera?  I would like to take one of my workroom to show students what a real-life making workroom looks like."
• Giuseppe Belli, Lecturer, Design and Digital Arts - "Yeah, we've used 3D cameras to do virtual tour set designs, but I'd like to know if there's an accessible app that we can use that that does the same thing there rather than a 3D camera.  You know things that we have with us."
• Charlotte Marshall, Senior Lecturer [PGCLTHE], Centre for Academic Development and Quality - "I'm just trying to think how could I use it in my practice?  I'm so inspired but I don't know where it would fit.  That's where you're on."
• Me - "I'm quite the idea machine.  But I'm thinking some thoughts already...could be around inclusive practice or something...To evaluate a room and how inclusive it could be."
• Charlotte Marshall - "Totally doing that.  Thanks Dan."
• Charlotte Marshall - "I love the idea of the inclusive classroom, Dan.  That's like, again, blow my mind, really thinking that would be so good to do."
• Lauren Martin - "I just think it's really useful.  Thanks Dan, for popping this together.  Just because there's lots of real world situations we'd love to take our students, but we've got 44 or 45 students per year group and we can't take them all to a theatre backstage.  We can't take them all to a costume workroom.  It's just not practical.  But this could be the next best thing because...Then at least they get a little taster."
• Lauren Martin - "I've got so many ideas now."
• Charlotte Marshall - "My mind's blown and I'm just like over the summer.  I'm totally going to do that because the next not for your cohort.  Sorry, you lot, the next cohort.  I'm already thinking like that inclusive practise would be a really great way of thinking about inclusive practise from an entirely different angle and doing something really meaningful...So thank you, Dan.  So, so much."
• Rikus Ferreira - "Great thanks Daniel!"