Teleportation to schools! This crowdfunding campaign wants to bring the VR world closer to schoolchildren

VR (virtual reality) is a new digital technology that is increasingly used in education worldwide. In order for Croatia not to fall behind, VR cinema KEK offered the first Croatian VR movie “Hunters and Gatherers” to all schools in Croatia this fall.

“We were delighted by the reaction of the schools,” he says Before that, Rostuhar movementsč of the first Croatian VR cinema and author of the first VR film.

“Almost all schools told us that they wanted new technologies and innovative content, and most we agreed on over a hundred schools that we started visiting a month ago. But we were also contacted by those schools, especially from less developed parts of Croatia, who would like their students to be a part of that story, but they cannot financially make it happen on their own, but they need support. That’s why we came up with the idea to start a group financing campaign – to try with the help ofć good people to collect as many funds as possible, to introduce as many schools and schoolchildren as possible to this powerful tool in education.”

Photo: PROMO

Our famous travel writer and multimedia artist Davor Rostuhar, and his colleagues from the Club for Expeditionism and Culture (KEK), about a year ago launched the first Croatian VR cinema specialized in films, which is also one of the first “arthouse VR cinemas”. in the world. The number of cinema visitors is growing month by month.

“Although the vast majority of people who come to our cinema and try to watch a movie are delighted with the new experience of experiencing a story, a part of the public is skeptical and scared, but that is always the case with new technologies,” he said. ; e Rostuhar “VR is definitely the future, and it is not a question of whether we will accept this technology or not, but only when and how We will accept it – will we be lagging behind the world, or will we be the ones who push the boundaries, and will we use it for shallow entertainment and distraction, or for quick and spectacular learning like never before.”

The first VR cinema opened in Zagreb

Photo: Goran Stanzl/PIXSELL

He was among the first to recognize and support the group funding campaign Boris Jokića scientist from the Institute for Social Research who said: “Digital technology in education can be used for many stupid things. However, if we use it in the correct way, if with its help we provide students with unique learning experiences, psychological immersion in worlds they could never experience, then the result is a better education, more motivated students, more satisfied teachers and what digital technology really is: enrichment of learning, teaching, education, and if you want, life.”

Photo: PROMO

By watching the documentary VR film “Hunters and Gatherers”, the students are “teleported” into the world of the Hadza tribe in Tanzania, one of the last tribes in the world that still lives as humans have lived for 99% of their history – as hunters. collectči. This opens up space for many thoughts, discussions and lessons in history, geography, biology, ecology, sociology, psychology, economics, ethics, philosophy and informatics. The film follows the teaching curriculum and interdisciplinary topics: civic education, sustainable development, personal and social development, and the use of information and communication technology. Each school that joins the project will also receive other multimedia content, teaching materials and a multimedia lecture by Davor Rostuhar.

Photo: PROMO

The cost of including a school in the project is 600 euros, which covers the arrival of a traveling VR cinema for one day at the school and the screening of a VR film for a hundred students. This amount includes all organizational and travel costs, construction of a traveling cinema, equipment, salaries of three KEK employees who work only on that project, rights to show the film, production of teaching materials, and the costs of awards (perks, and postage) that can be achieved by everyone who supports the campaign, and commissions of the crowdfunding platform, banks and payment processors.

The goal of this crowdfunding campaign is to collect funds for 50 schools, i.e. 5,000 schoolchildren, and on the first day of the campaign moreć ča quarter of the target amount!