Meet the Intern Designing an Interactive Map Tool for Seattle Educators

This Q&A with Kriti Vajjhula explores her project designing and prototyping a tool that locates VR exhibits and learning experiences in the Seattle area.

New foundry10 EdTech intern Kriti Vajjhula is currently pursuing a degree in informatics at the University of Washington with a focus in human computer interaction and software development. Her passion and five years of experience tutoring K-8 grade students sparked her interest in education research and propels her EdTech work at foundry10 today.

Get to know Kriti in the Q&A below!

Describe your foundry10 internship project.

Over the course of my internship, I have been attempting to create a series of resources identifying VR trends to be used by the foundry10 EdTech team to drive future virtual reality research, as well as resources meant to help educators transition into a VR classroom environment.

One portion of the project includes designing and prototyping an interactive map tool built into the foundry10 website to be used by educators and families to locate interactive VR exhibits and learning experiences in the Seattle area.

I have also been working on compiling a list of tips, tricks, and problem solving scenarios for teachers implementing VR. Lastly, I have also been testing up-and-coming educational VR applications and writing reviews regarding their classroom efficacy.

What has been your favorite part of the internship?

My favorite part of the internship has been testing VR applications. Trying out fun and engaging software has really helped me get into the mindset of a student to be able to distinguish helpful and not so helpful tools to supplement classroom learning.

The most challenging part of the internship?

The most challenging part of the internship has been understanding the impact and reach of all of the previous virtual reality research projects that the EdTech team has done, and putting myself in an educator’s shoes to figure out what they value most through teaching with virtual reality.

It was challenging to parse through foundry10 research reports, derive new insights, and determine what kind of improvements should be made to the classroom VR onboarding process based on educator’s interview responses.

How has this internship expanded your ideas about learning?

Throughout this internship, I have had the opportunity to work with others that have had an established presence in virtual reality education research and understand the implications of foundry10’s applied studies.

I have also seen the potential of the technology firsthand while testing VR products. The insights that I have gained from both of those experiences have allowed me to grasp the future potential for VR in education and understand what kind of subject areas would be the most impacted.

What do you hope education will look like in the future with the evolution of EdTech?

Virtual reality’s current foothold in the gaming industry has opened up many pathways to gamify educational experiences and create collaborative environments for children to learn in the “metaverse.”

For example, being a player visualizing and navigating human body cells, or learning about aquatic environments as a deep sea diver alongside other students, allows for total immersion and for a different perspective into the subject matter that typical classroom learning doesn’t achieve.

This is a helpful approach and has opened up avenues for novel VR applications, such as empathy-building experiences. There are programs that allow children to experience what it is like to be colorblind and view the stories of those who are refugees and homeless, which all nurture empathy in students and a sense of worldly awareness.

This is what I think will truly change the face of education. In addition, I believe that once VR applications begin to line up with state and national education standards, they can be embedded into classroom lesson plans, revolutionizing virtual reality education.

What is one thing you think people would be surprised to learn about you?

I have always been fascinated by aviation and would like to gain a private pilot license in the future. I had the opportunity to fly a small single-engine aircraft as a part of a flight lesson in the last year, and I had such an amazing experience that it only furthered my interest in obtaining a license.

What are you currently reading?

I am currently reading Crying in H Mart, a memoir about a singer and musician growing up as a Korean-American woman and details the ups and downs of her relationship with her immigrant mother. I am about halfway through and love the book so far although it is heart-wrenching. It talks about how she embraced her cultural identity over the years through cooking and food with the help of her mother, which is something I greatly resonated with.

Learn more about the foundry10 internship program here and foundry10 intern alumni here.