Give three compelling examples of how cultural issues affect your project.
Our project educates students on the Lehigh Valley Watershed through virtual reality game-based technology. One of the cultural issues I foresee is the disparity between the number of males and females being given access to participate in these games in certain communities. Unfortunately, women in many communities are not encouraged to pursue STEM fields and engage in STEM learning. STEM fields are promoted more towards men. In many schools, teachers choose to give STEM opportunities (whether it’s in terms of participating in events, conferences, competitions, etc) to men. Thus, I foresee that in some communities, there could potentially be a significant difference in the number of males being given access to engaging in our games as compared to females.
Our project uses immersive virtual reality technology. This type of experience might be very new and almost alien to students of lower-income communities. Unfortunately, due to the lack of resources being given to them, they might not have experienced something like this before. Hence, they may be unfamiliar with how to engage with the game. Help would have to be provided to these students so that they can maximize their benefit from engaging with this game and learn something out of it.
Game-based learning via technology is still a relatively newer concept, particularly in developing countries of the world. Some educational institutes may have orthodox, restrictive opinions about this type of teaching. Their curriculum may be more strict and reserved towards the traditional forms of learning. Thus, they may not be very open to adapting their curriculum and including game-based learning technologies. They may want to stick to their traditional teaching methods.
Have you experienced or observed any of these social situations at home? Describe at least three such situations.
I have observed all 3 situations at home. I grew up in New Delhi, India. While I have a very supportive and progressive family and I studied at one of the best schools in India, I did notice all the 3 situations I described above at various points of my life. Although my family nor high school never discouraged me from engaging in STEM fields, I did notice a disparity between the number of males and females engaging in STEM fields around me. STEM-related activities were very often catered more towards males and it was a very male-dominated field in my country. In many schools, STEM events were only reserved for males which is extremely unfortunate and disheartening to see.
I have worked closely for many years with children from lower-income families in India on various projects to help uplift them and give them resources. I have first hand seen their lack of experience with technology and the fact that this domain is extremely new for them. Thus, I am aware that engaging in game-based virtual reality technology would be a huge learning curve for them. But that being said, if they are given the correct guidance and adequate support, I’m confident that they would become comfortable with this technology. Despite their lack of experience, they should definitely be given access to game-based learning so that they can learn and grow.
The Indian education curriculums set by the government are very restrictive and orthodox. They focus a lot on rote learning and less on discussion and opinion-based learning. However, the type of teaching methods used to educate students depends significantly on the education institutions. Thus, the incorporation of game-based learning like our project depends on the institution. Through my experiences, I have noticed that most premier schools in the country are more open to flexible curriculums and incorporations of different teaching styles as compared to lower-ranked ones.
Give three examples of cultural practices that can be leveraged to addressed community/market problems.
In today’s day and age, STEM-related fields are being promoted and appreciated a lot. Society is welcoming of new technologies. Especially women in STEM-related fields are being supported a lot and are beginning to being encouraged particularly in more progressive communities. This narrative can be leveraged to address problems.
Given the COVID-19 pandemic and the shift to a virtual environment for most tasks, I think our project fits into this change well. Through our games, students are being given a tour of the Lehigh Valley Gap and are being educated on the watershed. This immersive virtual reality allows students to experience the Lehigh Valley area almost as if they are there physically. During a time like this where it isn’t advisable to be in places physically and where there’s been a shift to the virtual world, I think our project would be instrumental, and we can leverage this.
Climate change and environmental degradation are very real and happening at a rapid pace. Our project focuses on educating students specifically about the Lehigh Valley Watershed through virtual reality games because having a clear understanding of watersheds is crucial to make decisions regarding a sustainable future. Pressing environmental issues like air pollution, land usage, water quality, etc can only be tackled once concepts about watersheds are properly understood. Only then can one effectively strategize to deal with these urgent environmental issues. Through educating students about the watershed, our project supports a sustainable future. Thus, this cultural practice of the collective aim towards a more environmentally conscious future can be leveraged.