Edutangible: Developing Multi-touch Interfaces for the Communication of Collections at the Panama Viejo Monumental Complex.

Between February and April 2011, I led the project Edutangible, a research project about the use of multitouch technologies at the Panama Viejo Monumental Complex in Panama City, Panama. Our goal was to explore the use of a multi-touch tabletop to engage school children ages 8 to 11 with the site and with its archaeology collection. We hypothesized that the more "natural" type of interaction these technologies provided (i.e. being able to manipulate vicarious representations of the artifacts through touch) could help enhance the children's interest in the collection objects. Through iterative design cycles linked to our first two days of user testing, we created an interface in which children could put together pieces of Pre-Columbian plates. We then conducted two more days of user testing in which we framed the use of the tabletop as part of a guided tour of the site. A total of 200 children participated in the four test sessions. We asked the children to give rankings in a feeling scale to the four key parts of the tour: the visit to the main tower at the complex, 2 collection exhibitions, and the multi-touch tabletop. Test results showed that while the technology was highly engaging and attractive for the children, it could also potentially overshadow the collections and the monumental complex. Based on this experience, I would like to present an overview of the challenges I have identified when using these technologies to communicate heritage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]