Expanding the Asian Studies Classroom Through Virtual Learning Spaces

Description

Salguero, associate professor of Asian history and religious studies at Penn State Abington, will work with his group to build on an ongoing pedagogical project that is used in the classroom to deliver ethnographic data, photography and short documentary films to students. Immersive technology will be the backbone of the project’s expansion so that students can experience Japanese Buddhist temples without the expense of travel.

“The project’s website provides all content freely through a Creative Commons license,” noted Salguero. “These valuable teaching materials will be available to faculty at other Penn State campuses — and elsewhere throughout the world — as open educational resources. The use of open, public and free technologies makes the work and content both accessible and sustainable so that, long term, students can have deeper learning experiences.”

The scope of Salguero’s project aims to include interactive maps and virtual tours of Buddhist temples native to Japan and virtual tours of Buddhist temples in Philadelphia. Supplemental to the immersive content will be pedagogical supports that aide faculty in the incorporation of the multimedia materials.

Cohort

2019

Focus Area

Immersive Experiences
Theme: Interactive Tours