Curating flexible learning spaces in museums with a virtual reality application

Abstract This study explores how pre-service teachers conceptualise and experience the design of flexible learning spaces in museums using Virtual Reality (VR). Grounded in phenomenological methodology and informed by Lefebvre (1991) spatial triad, it examines how immersive digital environments foster spatial literacy, pedagogical creativity, and professional identity. Participants enrolled in a Primary education programme engaged in a four-phase VR-based activity in which they designed a modular museum learning environment using Oculus Rift headsets. Data from pre- and post-activity reflections reveal that VR translated abstract educational theories into practical design decisions and stimulated emotional connections to the learning environment. Findings suggest that immersive environments foster embodied cognition and serve as catalyst tools for teacher education. Participants reported increased confidence in designing inclusive and adaptive learning environments and enthusiasm for integrating immersive tools into educational practice. By operationalising the spatial theory of Lefebvre within a virtual setting, the study offers a novel framework for analysing how educational spaces are produced and experienced in digital museums. The research argues for the value of VR as a pedagogical medium and a space of professional imagination, highlighting its potential to reshape how museum learning environments are curated, experienced, and taught by future educators. In practical terms, teacher education curricula could embed VR-based museum design tasks within courses on pedagogical digital competence to strengthen spatial literacy, inclusive planning, and museum–school collaboration. Museum education policy could support this through targeted investment in immersive infrastructure, staff training, and cross-sector partnerships connecting museums with initial teacher education.