Abstract
This paper describes the work undertaken as part of the ‘Digital Documentation of Ksar Said’ Project. This project, funded by the British Council, combined education, history, and heritage for the digital preservation of tangible and intangible aspects of heritage associated with the 19th century Said Palace (Ksar Said) in Tunis. We produced an interactive 3D model of Ksar Said and developed learning resources to build Tunisian students’ critical engagement with their heritage through inquiry learning activities within the 3D model. We used a user-centred approach, based on pre-assessment (i.e., co-creation of contents), mid-term evaluation (i.e., feedback on contents and preliminary design of virtual activities), and post-assessment design (i.e., user trial). Our results demonstrate the potential of this novel approach to virtual learning and inform future co-design, evaluation and implementation choices for improving the generative power of three dimensional virtual replication of heritage sites in the cultural heritage sector.
Highlights
In countries affected by conflict, there are often contested narratives about a country’s history and heritage, beliefs and faiths, culture and identity [1]
In 2017 we developed an online project combining virtual reality (VR) and historical inquiry to engage young Tunisians with learning activities related to the rise of their nation in the context of their built heritage
We developed the missions as a co-design and assessment project based on: 1. Formative consultation with various stakeholders to build our understanding of Tunisian history and heritage, aimed at selecting the inquiry questions and related “missions” for the web portal; 2
Summary
In countries affected by conflict, there are often contested narratives about a country’s history and heritage, beliefs and faiths, culture and identity [1] Because these narratives are strongly held, it is difficult to reach consensus between different groups (religious, ethnic, etc.) about the accepted historical narrative of a country. Ksar Said is a former Tunisian Beylic Palace located in Bardo, on the outskirts of Tunis It contains a wealth of architectural and decorative features which reference Tunisia’s rich cultural history and its Roman, Punic, Ottoman, modern European (Italian, French), Arab (including Andalusian) and Islamic influences. The Palace has associations with many of the early achievements of the country, including abolition of slavery, and the first written constitution in the Arab-Muslim World In essence, this monument is a microcosm of Tunisian history, combining both tangible architectural evidence and intangible associations with the myriad aspects of the nation’s history.
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