Introduction

Propter has created ScioXR, an XR platform with immersive games and experiences to empower students to learn by doing. On ScioXR, users can make XR content focused on STEM education.

Through our platform, we are providing the building blocks for others to contribute. Our solution will also be a cross-platform between VR and AR technology as we want the users to be able to run our solution on devices that are easily available to them.

Over the past two decades, we have seen enormous changes in technology, yet our classrooms remain more or less the same. This especially applies to fields like Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Our project seeks to modernize the contemporary classroom and spark the student’s interest in new technologies, as we prepare them for the 21st-century job market. For students to fully grasp and adopt the knowledge they are acquiring, ScioXR seeks to provide a contextual learning experience by bringing XR technology into the modern classroom.

Product for teachers and students

We have envisaged ScioXR as a product which both teachers and students can use. For example, teachers can use our software to make new content from their curriculum that the students will use in classes. 

Students will have the ability to learn new things while trying the experiences that were created by their teachers or they could also make their own content that everybody else can play. The product is planned to be used as additional educational material to teach the students some topics that are harder to understand without the use of VR/AR.

For example, physics teachers can make an experience where the students learn about the kinetic or potential energy by moving objects in VR and visualize the results that their actions are making. In chemistry, they can make an experiment for practicing mixing of the substances and see the results in a safe environment.

Frontier technology

Through XR surroundings it is a lot easier for children to visualize and understand complex concepts. Students can observe and interact with virtual surroundings and conduct experiments in a controlled environment. They also have the opportunity to play with elements and virtually produce new results. Using our platform, teachers, educational specialists, and game designers will be able to create and deliver XR content for children.

When it comes to specific technologies we are using the Unity3D game engine for developing our platform. Our solution will support major VR and AR headsets.

Open Source 

Our goal is to cover a number of cross-cutting themes relating to STEM education and this is something we couldn't do ourselves. With support from the open-source community, we are excited to extend our platform for the benefit of everyone who wants to use the product. The community can help us by generating new content and building blocks so that the platform can cover more educational topics.

Team 

We are a team of gamers and technology enthusiasts. We are based in Vrsac, a small city in Serbia and even though there is a limited talent pool we managed to gather a team of people eager to work on VR/AR and to create cutting edge solutions. Our team consists of programmers and artists with a lot of experience in game development. We all come from varied backgrounds and experiences and each has unique views and creativity. We are a diverse team by age, gender, nationality, functional background, and skills and every one of these is beneficial for our business. 

It’s proven that more diverse companies are often more innovative and creative because they bring together individuals from different walks of life. Having various team members can bring broader ideas and new perspectives to the company.

Way ahead

With the investment from UNICEF’s Innovation Fund, we will continue to develop and improve our solution and raise awareness about the advantages of using such a platform. We also hope that through the Fund’s support, we are able to raise more capital to scale our project. 

Our focus is on the development and preparing our product for the pilot study that can give us valuable data we can act on. We are looking forward to collaborating on this project with UNICEF country office and schools from Serbia.

It is a great pleasure to be part of a group of companies that are helping with digital connectivity and skills gaps for young people. We look forward to the opportunity to collaborate with other teams to share knowledge and raise the quality of our products together.