Microscope selfies
Marco arena – 16 may 2022
BIOLOGY and VR
We partnered up with the National Institute for Documentation, Innovation and Educational Research - the Italian Ministry of Education’s oldest research organisation – to put a new spin on the the educational cartoons on biology and the human anatomy that were so popular in the 80s and 90s. We aim to give tweens and teenagers the chance to zoom into the structure of a cell and to interact with its components.
We partnered up with the National Institute for Documentation, Innovation and Educational Research - the Italian Ministry of Education’s oldest research organisation – to put a new spin on the the educational cartoons on biology and the human anatomy that were so popular in the 80s and 90s. We aim to give tweens and teenagers the chance to zoom into the structure of a cell and to interact with its components.
A rendition of a cell in the Cellfie game.
UN SELFIE AL MICROSCOPIO
With Cellfie, pupils are able to move around the cell’s space freely and to identify its nucleus, mitochondria, ribosomes and all the other parts that make the cell’s structure. Once these have been correctly identified, the player/pupil will have to answer questions related to the various functions of the cell’s parts. By combining speed, knowledge and ability in navigating the cell, pupils will be awarded a final score that – much like in a videogame – they will be able to compare with their classmates. While this obviously won’t amount to a grade, it will nevertheless contribute to making the learning experience more fun and stimulating.
Our prototype can be uploaded to standalone portable headsets in schools to explore its potential as a learning tool. Cellfie has been developed with the scientific support of Xenia Fosella, a biologist, science populariser and teacher in a high school in the Pisa region. She has been working in STEM at all levels for a number of years.
The potential of immersive technologies in the education sphere has been widely discussed, but whether they can successfully be integrated within schools – and whether pupils can truly benefit from them – is still unclear. Data from these trials will be used to improve future virtual reality experiences and to make them more useful for teachers and more compelling for pupils.
With Cellfie, pupils are able to move around the cell’s space freely and to identify its nucleus, mitochondria, ribosomes and all the other parts that make the cell’s structure. Once these have been correctly identified, the player/pupil will have to answer questions related to the various functions of the cell’s parts. By combining speed, knowledge and ability in navigating the cell, pupils will be awarded a final score that – much like in a videogame – they will be able to compare with their classmates. While this obviously won’t amount to a grade, it will nevertheless contribute to making the learning experience more fun and stimulating.
Our prototype can be uploaded to standalone portable headsets in schools to explore its potential as a learning tool. Cellfie has been developed with the scientific support of Xenia Fosella, a biologist, science populariser and teacher in a high school in the Pisa region. She has been working in STEM at all levels for a number of years.
The potential of immersive technologies in the education sphere has been widely discussed, but whether they can successfully be integrated within schools – and whether pupils can truly benefit from them – is still unclear. Data from these trials will be used to improve future virtual reality experiences and to make them more useful for teachers and more compelling for pupils.
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Case study
Case study
