An interview with Dr Saroash Shahid, Ben Audsley, Meher Khan, Jorge Freire
The Electronic Resources Team at the Institute of Dentistry, Dr Saroash Shahid and Jorge Freire from Digital Education Studio, in collaboration with the Immersive Learning Lab, piloted the use of TINALP —a tool for creating interactive 2D and 3D anatomical content—in the BDS Year 1 Head and Neck Anatomy module. The project explored how immersive learning could impact student engagement and learning.
Jorge Freire caught up with the team and this interview shares insights from the pilot’s co-creators on the activity creation, teaching, learning design, technology use, student response, and lessons learned for future innovation.
Can you introduce the TINALP pilot project and explain what motivated you to explore immersive 2D and 3D models for teaching head and neck anatomy?
Ben Audsley:
The project idea came when we were deciding the next use of a HoloLens VR headset from a previous initiative. We explored how mixed reality could be used in dental education, particularly with apps that are affordable and allow interaction with 3D models. After seeing a demo from TINALP, it was clear the technology could transform didactic lectures, making them more interactive learning. We secured funding for a year-long pilot and began by introducing the technology to staff across the Institute of Dentistry. It is important to give academic staff opportunities to explore and define what projects these innovative technologies can be interesting for.
Dr Saroash Shahid:
Teaching Anatomy has always been challenging because it is so visual and 3D in nature. Traditional PowerPoints are not enough. Students were asking for something more engaging and when Ben introduced me to TINALP, it made sense to explore it—and the student feedback throughout confirmed how effective and useful it was.
This project involved a range of formats and learning experiences—from pre-recorded video and personal device interaction to VR headset experiences.
How did you approach designing these different modalities, and what did you hope students would gain from each?
Meher Khan:
We took a gradual approach, both for students and for Saroash. For the first session, we created pre-recorded videos to introduce the 3D models and Saroash presented the models, while teaching. In the second session, students used their own devices to explore the models themselves. In the third lecture, students used VR headsets with full interaction and learned together. We used QMplus to host resources and activities throughout, and having the TINALP team available on-site helped with delivery and confidence-building.
Saroash Shahid:
The staged rollout helped me too—it was a learning curve. I tried different teaching methods and became familiar with the platform over time. Different lectures and students have diverse needs and were able to tailor the affordances of TINALP to the topic (e.g., muscles vs. blood vessels).
What was the student response?
Saroash Shahid:
Feedback was positive. Students found it immersive and useful for understanding structure and spatial relationships. Some gave one-to-one feedback to me, too, suggesting improvements, such as asking for pre-recorded lectures as part of our flipped approach, which we acted on. Their suggestions shaped how we adapted the sessions.
Ben Audsley:
Success came from introducing the technology slowly and learning more about it ourselves and how to promote learning with it. We also scaffolded resources on QMplus—videos, surveys, instructions—all released lecture by lecture, following a flipped approach. The third session, with a structured lesson plan and VR headset use, was a highlight. Students were engaged and interacted more than I have seen in a long time, even discussing the models while wearing the headsets and learning together
Looking ahead, what are your key takeaways from this pilot, and how might it influence how you or others teach and support learning?
Meher Khan:
Immersive learning adds clear value in Anatomy—it allows hands-on interaction that is not possible in traditional formats. And flipped learning worked well: students came prepared and made better use of the in-session time.
Saroash Shahid:
This showed that VR has real potential in teaching Head and Neck Anatomy. The sessions were more fun and engaging, even for a traditionally dry and factual subject. Flip learning was new for me and highly effective—I will use it again.
Ben Audsley:
Immersive learning is the future. It lets us do things we have never done before across disciplines—not just Anatomy. But it requires serious preparation and support. The flipped model made it possible to focus class time on interaction, not just content delivery; we put a lot of technical, and facilitation support on for this pilot, too. Once students have a chance to have the wow factor, they really focus on learning and the pilot showed that there is value after that initial amazement.
