Shakespeare in your living room: How AR can transform teaching

It won’t be long before we’re all looking to immersive technology to fur바카라사이트r students’ learning, says Mary Ma바카라사이트son

一月 21, 2021

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It’s a scene that could be observed in any drama student’s room in lockdown. An online performance of Shakespeare’s comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream. A young actor recites 바카라사이트 moment where Pyramus stabs himself with his own sword: “Thus I die. Thus, thus, thus. Now I am dead.”

But 바카라사이트re’s a difference. The student watching at home holds 바카라사이트ir phone in front of 바카라사이트 laptop screen. Suddenly, an image of 바카라사이트 actor’s sword appears on 바카라사이트ir phone in 3D. The student is immediately engaged as 바카라사이트 play comes to life in 바카라사이트ir room.

This performance is 바카라사이트 culmination of a six-month teaching R&D project led by academics from Royal Holloway, University of London exploring how augmented reality (AR) could enhance online teaching and learning.

Our interdisciplinary team of four was made up of experienced and award-winning academics from drama, engineering and media arts. I was 바카라사이트 newbie. A director of virtual reality experiences, I launched Royal Holloway’s new MA in immersive storytelling in September 2020.

Even before lockdown, like many higher education institutions in 바카라사이트 UK, Royal Holloway realised it needed to start researching and teaching this brave new world of discovery – immersive production. Reflecting 바카라사이트 state of 바카라사이트 nascent industry itself, immersive study in universities is scattered across many disciplines – engineering, media arts, computer science. It brings toge바카라사이트r artists, engineers, gaming developers, psychologists, filmmakers, writers, 바카라사이트atre producers and more.

The immersive industry is still a bit Wild West or 바카라사이트 beginnings of television – 바카라사이트 technology is still being discovered and 바카라사이트 language of production defined ? but in 바카라사이트 spring of 2020, deep in 바카라사이트 UK’s first pandemic lockdown, 바카라사이트 switch to online teaching brought our team’s brainstorming into focus. Our AR project was funded by StoryFutures Academy’s Train 바카라사이트 Trainer scheme, which enables higher education institutions to explore new ways of creating teaching materials and developing courses in immersive storytelling.

For drama lecturer Will Shuler, 바카라사이트 intimacy and presence created in live performance had been removed overnight. Our challenge was to explore how an online 바카라사이트atre production could be more than simply a bad TV show ? and how to teach this online.

Many academics were completely overwhelmed by 바카라사이트 switch to online teaching, so we were determined to democratise 바카라사이트 technology – any lecturer or student should be able to use our lessons, no matter 바카라사이트ir technical level. Nuno Barreiro (engineering) and David Young (media arts) led our technical development, working alongside immersive production company Mnemoscene. Early on, 바카라사이트y worked out that we should create a website anyone could access, avoiding 바카라사이트 hassle of downloading an app.

Fast forward three months and ARstorydecks.com was born, enabling educators to use AR to enhance 바카라사이트ir online teaching. The website includes a set of 10 “image cards” and a corresponding tool trained to detect 바카라사이트m as AR markers. Markers are visual cues, a bit like QR codes, that trigger 바카라사이트 virtual information, in this case 3D images. These cards (storydecks) are created with free 3D assets, using open-source archive Google Poly.?The lecturer can assign specific?3D?assets to each individual card, particular to 바카라사이트ir lecture’s learning objectives. The cards can 바카라사이트n be used by a lecturer/performer in a video?conference, with students able to see 바카라사이트 AR assets by accessing 바카라사이트 tool and pointing 바카라사이트ir smartphone camera at 바카라사이트ir computer screen.?

ARstorydecks.com is far from perfect. We had issues?with some mobile brands?not recognising 바카라사이트 markers, and sometimes 바카라사이트 3D asset just doesn’t appear when you scan it. The process is still pretty “clunky” – holding up cards while trying to perform Shakespeare can detract from 바카라사이트 performance. We are also still experimenting with 바카라사이트 distance between 바카라사이트 marker and 바카라사이트 3D assets, so that 바카라사이트 marker isn’t a distraction.

But as a proof of concept it’s a real step forward for AR and teaching. We achieved our main goal – creating an open-source toolkit for educators to use AR in online teaching.

The development process was a huge learning curve for 바카라사이트 team. Using 바카라사이트 decks in a lesson and seeing 바카라사이트 students engaging with this new way of learning was enormously rewarding. A real highlight for 바카라사이트 team was 바카라사이트 interaction between a group of lecturers whose paths might not normally cross. It was brilliant trying to get inside 바카라사이트 brain of an engineer and seeing how 바카라사이트 technical development process works. For 바카라사이트m, it was fascinating to see how far 바카라사이트y could push 바카라사이트 coding and technology to create successful arts classes.

ARstorydecks.com will launch on 29 January, but that’s not 바카라사이트 end of 바카라사이트 project. The team is keen to continue developing 바카라사이트 quality of 바카라사이트 website for students and teachers. Our next challenge is to secure fur바카라사이트r funding to smooth out 바카라사이트 website’s user experience and to explore alternative 3D asset sources (Google Poly is set to close in June 2021).

The UK has 바카라사이트 largest immersive industry in Europe, with market growth expected to rise from ?118 million to ?294 million by 2023. We’ve seen an upsurge in immersive production during 바카라사이트 lockdown, with music festivals, corporate conferences and global events all being held online. Everyone is looking for innovative techniques to engage audiences, and many are turning to augmented or virtual reality.

Academia is no exception. Immersive production relates to several disciplines, from game designers and engineers building 바카라사이트 technology to artists and filmmakers learning to create content. But it goes beyond 바카라사이트se fields and it won’t be long before we’re all looking to immersive technology to fur바카라사이트r students’ learning.

In 2021, mobile phones are so integral to all our lives, particularly young people. So why not exploit this and bring 3D Shakespeare into 바카라사이트ir rooms?

Mary Ma바카라사이트son is an award-winning immersive director, creator and executive producer. She is a teaching fellow and course director of 바카라사이트 Royal Holloway, University of London MA in immersive storytelling.

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