Assessing mobile mixed reality affordances as a comparative visualization pedagogy for design communication

Spatial visualization skills and interpretation are critical in the design professions, but difficult for novice designers. There is growing evidence that mixed reality visualization improves learner outcomes, but often these studies are focused on a single media representation and not on a comparison between media and the underpinning learning outcomes. Results from recent studies highlight the use of comparative visualization pedagogy in design through learner reflective blogs and pilot studies with experts, but these studies are limited by expense and designs familiar to the learner. With increasing interest in mobile pedagogy more assessment is required in understanding learner interpretation of comparative mobile mixed reality pedagogy. The aim of this study is to do this by evaluating insights from a first-year architectural design classroom through studying the impact and use of a range of mobile comparative visualization technologies. Using a design-based research methodology and a usability framework for accessing comparative visualization, this paper will study the complexities of spatial design in the built environment. Outcomes from the study highlight the positives of the approach but also the improvements required in the delivery of the visualizations to improve on the visibility and visual errors caused by the lack of mobile processing.