Presence and pragmatism: Implementing co-located extended reality (XR) in hybrid online education

The widespread adoption of video conferencing for hybrid learning has exposed significant limitations in its ability to foster equitable and embodied interaction between remote and in-person students. As an alternative approach that addresses these limitations through spatially grounded embodiment, this study investigated co-located mixed reality (MR) as a medium to enhance social presence and reduce transactional distance in synchronous hybrid activities. We developed a cooperative MR platform where on-site students wearing MR headsets shared a single, synchronized virtual space within their physical classroom, enabling collaboration with each other and with a remote student embodied as an avatar. In a counterbalanced, within-subjects study, forty university students in Japan completed collaborative tasks under both MR and video conferencing conditions. Quantitative results from the Networked Minds Social Presence Inventory revealed no significant differences between MR and video conferencing on overall perceived social presence. The only effect to reach nominal significance was a modest advantage for video conferencing in attentional allocation, though this did not survive correction for multiple comparisons. Qualitative data nonetheless indicated that MR supported richer spatial communication through gestures and shared object manipulation, particularly in tasks involving joint reference to physical space. Critically, implementation revealed substantial pragmatic barriers. While MR shows clear potential for transforming hybrid learning, technical challenges remain, indicating the technology requires significant maturation before it is viable for widespread adoption.