'I feel like I'm living in the future': TVDSB collaborates with new augmented reality app
A new augmented reality app has launched in St. Thomas, Ont. which is bringing history and culture to life in the city.
"I think one thing that the pandemic has taught us is that digital experiences are really important to connect us," says Daniel Kharlas, COO of EXAR Studios and co-founder of the app.
"Augmented reality is that tool where you bring the digital layering on top of the real world, and we want to bring real stories with that new digital medium. At the Veterans Memorial there is a beautiful mural that's been painted here there's more stories to tell about soldiers through time and we want to be able to tell that."
At the cenotaph in St. Thomas, the app brings up virtual poppies and users can click on profiles of local soldiers.
Engage AR app at Veterans Memorial in St. Thomas, Ont.
Engage ARt app at Veterans Memorial in St. Thomas, Ont.
There are five experiences in the city, with others in London. Port Stanley will be added later this year. In a partnership with Elgin County Museum, and funded by the Donna Evans Bushell Estate, the app will allow people to get history and culture on their smartphone.
"We wanted to add something that would help attract a younger audience, and really make something engaging for people to get to like at street level," says Andrew Gunn, consultant for the estate who provided funding for the app.
"A lot of small communities have museums that have been placed for a long time, and they provide such a valuable resource to document the past of our communities, but at the same time we have to find new ways to engage young people. There's been a massive transformation in terms of the dominant mode of communication, the way that people talk and communicate all the time, and that's where museums and all that kind of cultural information needs to be present to, so I think the app helps to accomplish that."
Laura Briscoe, TVDSB innovation coordinator tests out the app on June 15, 2021. (Brent Lale/CTV London)
Laura Briscoe, TVDSB innovation coordinator tests out the app on June 15, 2021. (Brent Lale/CTV London)
The Thames Valley District School board (TVDSB) has approved the use of the app on all devices.
"I feel like I'm living in the future, I just tested it out and saw a train, and then I look in real life and it's not there," says Laura Briscoe, TVDSB innovation coordinator.
"Over the years, and specifically this year, students are seeing connections with like, there's history, there's trades there's technology, math, literacy and the poppy mural with the history connections. What we're trying to do is find things that students care about, listen and hear what those ideas are and bring them to life so students have been able to connect. We want students engaged in learning because they're excited they're passionate about it and something beyond just getting good mark."
Users can download the app here with the St. Thomas specific version available here.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cargo ship had engine maintenance in port before Baltimore bridge collapse, officials say
The cargo ship that lost power and crashed into a bridge in Baltimore underwent 'routine engine maintenance' in port beforehand, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.
Families shocked after Niagara Falls hotel cancels bookings made year in advance of solar eclipse
After having the foresight to book their Niagara Falls hotel rooms more than a year in advance, several families planning to take in the solar eclipse next month were shocked to find out their reservations had been cancelled.
B.C. rescuers face 'high likelihood' of failure to reunite orphaned orca with pod
The race to reunite an orphaned orca calf that’s stuck in a shallow lagoon with a neighbouring pod has entered its fifth day, and a marine scientist says the clock is ticking.
Video shows police interrupting auto theft in progress outside Toronto home
New video footage obtained by CP24 shows the attempted theft of a vehicle in a North York driveway earlier this month that was ultimately interrupted by police.
Majority of Canadians believe in life after death: Angus Reid survey
A new survey from the Angus Reid Institute has found that a majority of Canadians believe in some form of life after death, a proportion that has held steady for decades.
MyPillow, owned by U.S. election denier Mike Lindell, formally evicted from Minnesota warehouse
A court ordered the eviction Wednesday of MyPillow from a suburban Minneapolis warehouse that it formerly used.