Why don't we let students be pioneers in going new ways in research and thereby prepare them for coping with uncertainty? Research-based learning (RBL) is a type of learning related to excellent teaching not only in schools but also in higher education (Brew, 2013). In this most advanced variant of research orientation in learning, students learn by actively doing research themselves (Healey & Jenkins, 2009). As intended results, they are supposed to adapt a questioning attitude, make progress in their personal development by experiencing failing as well as success, and potentially even contribute to a new state of research in their field (Huber, 2014). The Design-based Research (DBR) project to which the paper relates explores and expands the options of RBL in the digital space. Digital environments offer diverse opportunities to enable and support student research (Levy, 2013), opportunities we use for augmenting traditional research practices. By making video, video annotation and the specific variant of 360° video both mediums and instruments in sustainability research we aim for a new learner experience, deeper learning, and a multiplicity of perspectives. Showing an area of investigation while presenting its every angle, the 360° video technology allows for individual acquirement of the space. A unique immersive potential is provided by the user’s self-determined image section. Here, we refer to findings which indicate that the combination of traditional knowledge assets (formal) and open, unstructured digital spaces (informal) offers a possibility of encouraging students to experiment and to explore the body of knowledge. In addition, more new and continuative learning goals can unfold (Jahnke et al., 2014). Highly immersive conditions linked to positive emotions, according to Olmos-Raya et al. (2018), can be helpful in long term retaining of the acquired knowledge. New didactical options appear due to the fact that the user explores and interprets the space through the self-chosen image section, based on his or her own experience and interests. The individual perspective, the very own assessment and interpretation of the situation provoke the insight exchange with others and the personal knowledge construction. In our paper we present ideas for new ways of research-based learning by applying 360° video and the rationales behind them. Well-founded conjectures are explicated in Design Principles whose development supports the DBR process.

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