[WP4] D4.2 Didactical Guideline for XR Developers – PAX Developing Environment

This deliverable reports on the design-based development and validation of the PAX Developing Environment (PDE), a framework and web tool that scaffold collaboration between XR developers and educators for educational XR application design. Building on prior guideline work (D4.1; T4.1–T4.3), we first synthesised developer needs and didactic requirements, transferring results from adjacent work packages and reducing them to practitioner-ready artefacts (e.g., glossaries, visual overviews). In MS4.2 (29 Nov 2024), a workshop with four external developers and two WP4 stakeholders assessed the conceptual PDE (Capture–Plan–Realise–Apply), highlighting the value of a shared process language while emphasising non-linear iteration, curricular integration, accessibility, privacy, and realistic data flows. In MS4.3 (30 Jan 2025), a developer survey (n=4) rated the steps positively (Plan 4.5/5; Capture and Apply 4.25/5; Realise 4.0/5), with calls for visuals, examples, optional templates, and inclusive design resources. An interactive prototype was then evaluated in six remote usability sessions (20 Jun–22 Jul 2025); five were fully analysed using transcript-anchored tables and a constrained GPT-assisted coding workflow. Across tests, PDE usefulness was highest in early phases (Capture/Plan) for structuring educator-developer dialogue. Recurring issues concerned onboarding being skipped, terminology clarity, role transparency, and the need for iterative, flexible navigation. Quantitatively, Capture consistently occupied the largest share of session time; Plan depth varied with user familiarity. These insights informed the final PDE: a responsive web environment with account management, explicit role cues, contextual tooltips, XR Compass integration, and export functions, while preserving the four-step lifecycle. Forward activities (WP6 Refinement Hubs, WP5 Training Spaces, and glossary expansion) target international validation, sustained curricular embedding, and theory building on didactical XR design.