Together with the Centre for Innovation, the Faculty of Archaeology and Archol, the Centre for Global Heritage and Development is creating an interactive virtual reality experience, for first year Archaeology students. The VR application - using 360-video and photogrammetry techniques - is meant to help students understand the context and complexity of an archaeological excavation. As a professional archaeologist there are many factors to take into account: budget, planning, safety and other regulations, soil type, the weather etc. The VR application aims to train in class room conditions, as real excavation is only possible during a short period (usually two to three weeks per academic year). Possibly gaming elements will also be integrated in the app. This project is part of an experiment to see how to integrate new digital and interactive techniques in Archaeology education. The ‘Field techniques’ project was selected in fall 2017 as one of 6 innovation projects in a University wide pilot, exploring the potential of VR for academic teaching & learning. If successful, the app will be available for classroom use in autumn 2018.
For more information contact Mara de Groot.