History and Cartography meet youth through Digital Technology

Abstract

Through collaboration between the Onassis Foundation, the Historical Archive of the National Bank of Greece, and the Vocational Senior High School of Kamatero, an innovative digital project was developed that is both trendy and geared towards youth. This project showcases how a concept aimed at emphasizing the historical significance of the Capital of Greece inspired students to merge the disciplines of Computer Science and History, resulting in the creation of a 3D game on a popular platform. Additionally, this project demonstrates how Project-based learning can be achieved through collaborative and inquiry-based learning, real-world connections, initiative, and the satisfaction of creating something new. The impetus for the cooperation was the Panhellenic Student Competition of the Onassis Foundation, "Hack the Map: Imaginary Worlds." This competition invited schools to promote the cultural heritage of Greece, especially cartographic exhibits/evidence of the old days, through students' digital projects. The Historical Archive of the National Bank of Greece, which is a significant resource for studying Modern Greek History through primary sources, reached out to the Vocational Senior High School of Kamatero, located in the western sector of Athens, to work on a project. The school has an IT department, among other disciplines. In close collaboration, they developed a scenario that is about the civil war that occurred in Athens during the Interregnum period (October 1862-October 1863) after the dethronement of Greece's first king, Otto I. The scenario highlights the bloody events that took place between political factions in the city. In these conflicts, the implication of "Kyriakos," a dangerous leader of robbers, is a paradoxical historical event that stimulated the 2nd-grade Informatics students' imagination. Therefore, they created a 3D digital game entitled "Thieves and Policemen in the newly established Greek city-state: Iouniana." This presentation intends to demonstrate how the students' team of the Vocational School of Kamatero rebuilt Athenian monuments related to Kyriakos' action in a 3D environment; how they reconstructed the cartography of the capital's center during the second half of the 19th century based on these monuments and how they utilized digital resources (maps, photos, and texts) and books proposed by NBG Historical Archives; how a single player, via Kyriakos' persona, has to accomplish missions-battles and match parts of Athens' map of that era; and finally, how students narrated a historical event in a game constructed in Roblox platform inviting other young people to involve history knowledge.