amar oitijjho

The initial thought

How well do our children know about our heritage sites?

In 2019, we asked social science and arts teachers from five different Bangladeshi schools to help us with a small survey. We utilised the most ubiquitous object in our daily lives, the taka currency note. Each one incorporates a heritage site. Only around 26 percent of the students among 93 responded with correct answer and we have found that a gap exists.

According to the survey, a significant majority of children are unaware that Bangladesh is home to a variety of heritage sites with rich histories and cultural value.

COVID-induced challenges

In 2020, when we first considered employing technology to incorporate cultural sites into schools, we encountered difficulties caused by covid. We have witnessed lockdowns in which classrooms were abandoned.

The obstacle

The opportunity in disguise

Integrating [Interactive] technological features in learning culture and heritage

When the covid scenario is seen in the context of the year 2020, however, things have changed, as we now have experienced teachers who have learnt to offer classes via the Internet and mobile devices. The students were also adjusting to it. The COVID era made it easier for children to pick up basic computer and technological skills.

Virtualheritage Interpretation

The post-covid era has the capacity to incorporate technology into the educational system. Given the development and flexibility of technology applications in learning systems, we wanted to utilize this chance to incorporate interactive technology features in learning culture and heritage. We explored developing an application that could scan a banknote. In the projection of a similar 3D model, users will be able to pan, zoom, and rotate, in addition to receiving granular information. However, we have considered bringing the original place to life in 3D, as opposed to something that is pastiche and could be perceived as computer-generated at the first place.