From our theoretical and experimental results, the proposed teaching scheme that incorporates AR allows students to experience the
complete creative design process. In the discovering and defining questions phase, the students carefully observed and measured the
physical model of a bedroom and virtual model of some furniture, before determining the location of windows and lights, and the area of the
bedroom. In the traditional teaching scheme followed by class T1, the teacher played an important role in the process, demonstrating design
cases and teaching the basic operation of 3D modelling software. Our new teaching schemewas followed by class T2, where an AR scene of a
bedroomwas demonstrated by the teacher, and the students were then instructed to observe the physical model, wall lamp, and the style of
wallpaper, and to measure the length, width, and height of the physical model. Then, students can compare the actual physical model with
the virtual design cases. These steps allowed students to experience the process of discovery and the definition of questions. In the design
development, modelling, evaluation, and optimization phases, the students in T2 used “AR Creative-Builder” to build an AR scene to test
their design effects and examine whether the design matched the actual layout of the bedroom. Many students identified some unreasonable
features related to the size, colour, and orientation of the furniture. They fully optimized their final designs, whereas very few
students in T1 made modifications after finishing their design. If the students had only learnt knowledge and acquired skills for creative
design without experiencing the overall design process, they would have failed to appreciate each aspect of the creative design process, or
the true significance of the course contents. They may also have failed to engage in the teaching process, all of which would have lowered the
quality of teaching. The assessment of the teaching contents showed that more students in T2 learnt the basic processes of creative design,
understood the creativity assessment method, and mastered the basic operation of 3D modelling software compared with those in T1.When
we explained the basic process of creative design and the assessment method, most of the students in T1 exhibited little interest, whereas
the students in T2 actively inquired or discussed whether their creative designs met the evaluation criteria (CPSS) throughout the course.
The test results for E10 (all of the students in T2 completed the 3D models, whereas only 50% of the students in T1 accomplished the task)
suggest that the students in T2 mastered the 3D modelling software more expertly than those in T1. Many of the students in T1 observed
that, even if they used 3D modelling software with greater skill and created more sophisticated models, no final works of practical value
could be designed without observing the physical objects and testing the designs. The students in T2 actually built AR scene, helping with
the experience of the overall creative design process. This highlights the main advantage of AR technology, i.e., displaying components in the
real world that cannot be touched, or the microcosms that exist in people's imaginations using 3D models, thereby allowing people to
observe the internal details of objects conveniently and precisely, and to explore the innate nature of objects
.