No Screens Allowed in Rheta: Using A Fictional World to Teach Physical Interaction Design

Abstract

In this special issue of the Rheta Daily Inquirer, we explore how a fictional world can be used as an integral part of a course combining design and programming for students from different study programs. We built the world Rheta to encourage students to focus on creative design rather than engineering solutions. Through this pictorial, we present this fictional world, its core values, and how we use the world to facilitate student learning and critical thinking. We contribute a case study for a pedagogical approach where we use a fictional world and storytelling to enhance student creativity. We present some tentative conclusions based on student design work and feedback and reflections on how student tasks and feedback can be embedded in a fictional newspaper. Finally, we argue that student design work done in Rheta enabled fruitful discussions on sustainability and inclusivity in Rheta as well as in the real world.