Mario Wolf

Escape rooms are an established game genre that has become popular in educational contexts in recent years. Digital escape rooms are variations, which use digital environments and may be played by participants not present on site. Compared to physical escape rooms, digital escape rooms are characterised by lower implementation and application efforts and at the same time by reduced intensity of the experiences. There is little evidence to date as to whether these low-threshold escape rooms are nevertheless sufficiently effective for learning. In this evaluation study, a learning activity based on a digital educational escape room (DEER) that uses the 360°-based spatial visualization (360VR) of a waterworks and a web-based form – contributing guidance and the escape room-specific challenges – is analysed. In the learning activity, students of environmental engineering study programs are asked to explore the 360VR-based waterworks guided by the instructions and challenges in the web-based form. Quantitative results of the study on learning outcomes and variables relevant to learning, such as emotion, motivation, and usability (N=73) are reported. The evaluation is supported by the qualitative results of guided interviews. Remarkably, some participants would have preferred to explore the 360VR environment without the guidance provided by the web-based form. Overall, the results show the learning effectiveness of the DEER, the efficacy of the web-based form as a guidance instrument, and values of learning-relevant variables that are conducive to learning. The DEER also achieved a high level of acceptance among students. Due to the low effort required for the creation of the DEER by lecturers and for application on the part of students, the presented combination of 360VR and web-based forms can be seen as a powerful low-threshold learning tool that enriches teaching.

The imperative to transform current energy provisions is widely acknowledged. However, scant attention has hitherto been directed toward rural municipalities and their innate resources, notably biogenic resources. In this paper, a methodological framework is developed to interconnect resources from waste, wastewater, and agricultural domains for energy utilization. This entails cataloging existing resources, delineating their potential via quantitative assessments utilizing diverse technologies, and encapsulating them in a conceptual model. The formulated models underwent iterative evaluation with engagement from diverse stakeholders. Consequently, 3 main concepts, complemented by 72 sub-concepts, were delineated, all fostering positive contributions to climate protection and providing heat supply in the rural study area. The outcomes’ replicability is underscored by the study area’s generic structure and the employed methodology. Through these inquiries, a framework for the requisite energy transition, with a pronounced emphasis on the coupling of waste, wastewater, and agriculture sectors in rural environments, is robustly analyzed.

Zusammenfassung: Die Einführung koproduktiver Organisationsformen in der Daseinsvorsorge bedarf integrierter Handlungsstrategien. Ein Instrument zur Strategieentwicklung stellt die Konstellationsanalyse dar, mit der komplexe Problemlagen systematisch analysiert und Handlungsansätze identifiziert werden können. Zentrale Elemente des Beitrags sind die Darstellung der Konstellationsanalyse, die anwendungsbezogene Erläuterung anhand eines Fallbeispiels aus der ressourcenorientierten Abwasserbewirtschaftung sowie zusammenfassende Handlungsempfehlungen, die Akteure aus Wissenschaft und Praxis bei der Anwendung der strategieorientierten Konstellationsanalyse unterstützen sollen.

360° models are a form of virtual reality (VR) that allow the viewer to view and explore a photorealistic object from multiple locations within the model. Hence, 360° models are an option to perform virtual field trips (VFT) independent of time and location. Thanks to recent technical progress, 360° models are creatable with little effort. Due to their characteristics of visualization and explorability, 360° models appear as excellent learning tools, especially when additional didactic features, such as annotations, are used. The subject of this explorative field study is a 360° model of a waterworks that has been annotated for learning purposes. Data are collected from a total of 55 learners in four cohorts from study programs in environmental engineering and urban studies using a questionnaire that included standardized measurement instruments on motivation, emotion, and usability. Furthermore, the eight learners of cohort 1 are surveyed using semi-structured interviews on learning, operation and features of the 360° model. Overall, a very positive view on learning suitability of 360° models in VFTs is revealed. In addition, further potential for development of the 360° model could be identified. The results indicate that VTFs based on 360° models might be valuable learning tools, because of their applicability without great effort on the part of either the lecturers or the students. VFTs based on 360° models might serve as a supplement to conventional learning activities or in self-directed learning activities.

Mixed reality (MR) applications are widely considered to be effective educational tools. However, the use of MR alone cannot ensure learning, and studies even suggest that the affordances of this technology could decrease the mental processes required for the acquisition of new knowledge. Like any other technological innovation, the educational possibilities of MR are closely related to the design of its contents. Despite this, there are no design recommendations for MR focused on learning. Educational psychology presents a range of empirically proven design guidelines for multimedia learning environments. This chapter reviews existing guidelines and categorizes them into principles related to the perception of information and the related essential information processing (design principles) and principles aiming at promoting generative learning (activating principles). These principles are translated to MR-learning environments.

New sanitary systems are an intelligent way to approach wastewater management in the face of demographic and climatic changes. It is also compatible with the emerging paradigm of a resource-oriented management of wastewater. While the general technical applicability of resource-oriented systems has been proven in various projects, the realisation is still on hold. The reasons can be found in several risks for wastewater disposal companies that are linked to the implementation process. Based on an analysis of the general context of an implementation of a new sanitary system in a typical rural area of Eastern Germany, this paper analyses to which extend the implementation of such innovative approaches can be facilitated by the regulation system and which steps need to be taken. According to this aim, risks that can hamper the transformation of the wastewater sector are identified, major administrative controlling mechanisms outlined and depicted in which strategic approach these could be used in order to foster the implementation of resource-oriented sanitary systems. As a result, the feasibility of the implementation of new alternative sanitary systems through the strategic application of the controlling mechanisms is generally proven. However, collaborations of the wastewater sectors with stakeholders of other sectors are required.