Overview

In partnership with Scitech Discovery Centre Creatives, this project explores the development of digitally enhanced interactive experiences that facilitate and enable the exploration of active multi-modal learning and young children’s demonstration of creativity and digital capabilities such as computational thinking. In collaboration with Scitech creatives, this project will investigate the impact of a range of immersive digital experiences within face-to-face and online modes, on the nature of children’s (aged 5 – 10) engagement, interactions and development of STEM concepts and creative capabilities.

Project aims

• explore how the learning environment design impacts children’s engagement with digital technologies and demonstration of creativity and the development of learning outcomes
• determine the design features of the learning environment and the technologies integrated into the environment that provoke and scaffold children’s active engagement with digital technologies and their creative thinking and doing, both while in the exhibition and then online and through social media platforms
• explore how the digital elements of an exhibition impact on how children connect with others (friends, family, teachers, science communicators) during a Scitech experience
• develop transferrable design features for digital interactive exhibitions at Scitech

Project design

Phase 1: A design experiment project conducted in collaboration with the Scitech creative team has produced a prototype of the Move it! interactive exhibition that provides kinaesthetic learning experiences to activate children’s creativity as they engage with the decomposition element of computational thinking, and develop their understanding of cause-effect, patterns, and sequences.

Phase 2: An investigation of how children’s experiences with digital elements of Scitech’s exhibitions impacts on their creativity and STEM engagement. Children’s experiences will be contextualised within STEM exhibitions, which integrate age-appropriate digital technologies into the design of the learning environment.

Phase 3: Scitech Online. Examining how to foster children’s creativity with STEM activities in online learning environments. Scitech delivered parts of their program (Science Show, Puppet Show, STEM workshops and afterschool STEM club) live to Year 1 children living in regional Western Australia. Participants were interviewed and video observations made for multimodal analysis through the lens of the A-E of Children’s Creativity framework, to explore the impact of the learning environments, how children demonstrated their creativity, and ways to foster creativity through online delivery.

Partner/s

Scitech

Timeframe

August 2021 – December 2025

Contact

Professor Karen Murcia

View all projects