Enhancing Legal Education: VR Simulations in Law Libraries

Virtual reality (VR) uses immersive experiences to help isolate users from the real world, usually via a specifically designed headset device and headphones. The opportunity for VR in law libraries evolves into a new way of interactive learning that can enhance the educational experience. As a result, digital information can be overlayed on top of real-world data.

For students to practice their advocacy skills in a simulated courtroom environment, law libraries can create virtual moot courts where they can participate in simulated courtroom situations. This can include virtual judges, juries, and opposing counsel, providing a highly immersive and realistic practice setting without the need for physical courtrooms. A user would be able to select them based on their background and history. It would act the same way as selecting your character or vehicle in a video game based on their statistics.

This way of learning can also open doors to collaborative learning. Where students and faculty can facilitate collaborative learning experiences and work together in the same physical space while interacting with digital content. This can encourage discussion, debate, and the sharing of ideas, enhancing the learning experience. It would also be possible for students to interact and learn from other students attending universities in other states or other countries.

As the reasons listed above sound amazing, we must also consider the implementation challenges and other roadblocks to get this technology to become a norm way of learning. A certain level of technology infrastructure is required, including VR-compatible devices and software, which can entail a significant investment in the technology infrastructure. With any technology, there is user training for both students and faculty, so that they can effectively use VR technologies, which can be a barrier to adoption. Creating VR content that is educational, accurate, and engaging requires expertise in both legal education and digital content creation. All students, including those with disabilities, should be able to access and benefit from VR resources by ensuring that they are accessible and inclusive in nature.

Virtual reality has the potential to transform legal education by making learning more interactive, engaging, and practical. To become an integral part of law libraries and legal education in the coming years, especially as the technology becomes more accessible and the applications become more sophisticated. Perhaps one day there will be a VR Law Librarian position!

Victoria Swindle, MLIS, Library Technology Specialist at Steptoe & Johnson PLLC