by Cam Lucadou-Wells
A new learning ‘reality has been born at Lyndale Secondary College, with the launch of the first state school augmented reality lab.
The new ‘smart’ classroom – with partner Lumination – will use virtual reality (VR), AR and software to fully immerse students in topics and places around the world.
At the opening on 24 November, politicians and students donned the VR googles to experience this brave new world.
Lyndale principal Pam Robinson labelled the lab as a “ground-breaking evolution in education”.
“I want you to imagine a classroom where textbooks come to life, where historical events unfold before our students’ eyes, and where complex scientific concepts are visualized in 3D.”
She said the augmented classroom would “ignite” the “spark” and engage students.
“We will be embracing our new cutting-edge classroom not as a replacement for our expertise but as a powerful tool to enhance our impact where we can empower our students to not only navigate the challenges of today but to become the innovators and leaders of tomorrow.”
Campbell Rushton-Smith from Lumination said Lyndale was among 30-plus early adopters of the learning lab.
Among the “engaging, exciting and powerful” applications, students could “walk through an ancient Egyptian tomb”, or “practise their different languages whilst navigating the streets of any city in the world”.
They could undergo a virtual job interview, explore space, delve inside a human cell, dissect a frog, mainipulate DNA and solve real-world problems with mathematical concepts.
The tech was expanding into education, defence, government and enterprise sectors, he said.
“With Dandenong being a manufacturing and transport hub, we are excited about the plethora of future opportunities for Lyndale to utilize this lab in partnership with local industry and assist in solving their real world problems.”
Dandenong MP Gabrielle Williams said the school was continuing its tradition of innovation.
“Thank you for always thinking about how we can offer our local kids the best possible educational experience and one that will serve them well, not only in their secondary school years, but well beyond.
“We’ve heard examples around taking kids into ancient Egypt and letting them explore the pyramids and the different tombs. We’re talking about the fact that you might not need to do live dissections anymore.”
The lab comes on the back of a $29 million ‘top-to-bottom’ rebuild of the college, which dramatically modernised its 52-year-old setting.
