"What is this, why is it so fun? It's really fun!"
On the 31st, the Gyeongnam Office of Education Future Education Center was filled with the voices of children participating in experiential activities.
On this day, the Gyeongnam Office of Education unveiled the Future Education Center to the media about two weeks before its official opening.
The Future Education Center was built on a 48,496㎡ site in Seodong-ri, Uiryeong-eup, Uiryeong-gun, consisting of three buildings named Experience Bowl, Empathy Bowl, and Imagination Bowl.
It was designed to allow direct experience and learning of core future technologies of the 4th Industrial Revolution era, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data, and Internet of Things (IoT).
Two students are learning how to operate an autonomous vehicle at the Gyeongnam Future Education Center. Photo by Lee Seryeong
Visitors can experience all of the following: ‘Experience Nuri’ which includes the Creative Convergence Playground, Digilog Adventure Zone, and Future Education Sharing Zone; ‘Learning Nuri’ where level-based classes on various topics such as AI and robots are conducted; and ‘Uiryeong Area Linked Experience’ which offers experiences related to local history, culture, and food.
Experiential A inside the education center offers level-based learning on six themes: AI, robots, life innovation, health, climate environment, and space innovation. Experiential B outside the center includes visits to the Uiryeong Uibyeong Museum, making Manggae rice cakes, traditional Korean sweets like Jocheong Hangwa, dried persimmon snacks, and 23 other experiences along with 20 food-making activities.
Two students are holding up a robot in a coding class at Gyeongnam Future Education Center. Photo by Lee Seryeong
The Office of Education stated that the Future Education Center was established as the first of its kind nationwide to help students cope well with the uncertainties, complexities, and diversity of the rapidly changing future society.
After a pilot operation in July, official operations began on August 21, and the opening ceremony is scheduled for September 15.
With a maximum capacity of 1,000 people per day, about 80,000 people have applied for experiences by the end of this year.
On this day, 479 students from four middle schools in the province?Jinrye Middle School in Gimhae, Yangju Middle School in Yangsan, Gyeongsang National University College of Education Affiliated Middle School in Jinju, and Yaro Middle School in Hapcheon?participated in on-site experiences.
Park Jong-hoon, Superintendent of Gyeongnam Education, is observing a coding experience. [Photo by Lee Se-ryeong]
Students met on each floor were deeply engaged in the Future Education Center’s experiential program ‘iChallenge,’ which uses the Big Data and AI platform iTalkTalk and the student smart device iBook.
They operated autonomous vehicles and enjoyed racing games by building remote-linked steering wheels with LEGO.
They showed off their reaction speed by running across illuminated footpads and did sit-ups together with mini sensor robots.
They also enjoyed victory by moving robots programmed with coding commands to avoid obstacles and attack other robots.
They pressed piano keys with AI, read books, and solved riddles as future secret agents.
Students from Yangju Middle School in Yangsan are taking a commemorative photo after experiencing dried persimmon snack making in Deoksil Gambit Village. [Photo by Se-ryeong Lee]
Children and teachers cited the ability to encounter future technologies through ‘play’ as the greatest advantage of the Future Education Center.
One teacher said, “Instead of vaguely writing code in computer language and solving problems, you can naturally experience and learn future technologies as if playing a game with your whole body. There were many fun and interesting things even for me as an adult.”
One student said, “It’s good because we don’t just listen to classes but get to try things ourselves. It feels like we came here to play together with friends, so it’s more enjoyable, and I want to come again on the weekend with my parents.”
Another student said, “I made dried persimmon snacks at Deoksil Gam-bit Village, and it was easy to make because the explanation was good, and it tasted better than I expected.”
Park Jong-hoon, Superintendent of Gyeongnam Education (left), and Lee Soo-kwang, Director of the Future Education Institute. [Photo by Lee Se-ryeong]
Lee Sugwang, director of the Future Education Center, said, “The Future Education Center is a core strategic asset of Gyeongnam education that nurtures both digital and humanities sensibilities and supports all students to live lives of independence and coexistence. We will do our best to help children experience both anthropological and digital experiences and become a cradle of their dreams and hopes.”
Superintendent Park Jonghun said, “We want to firmly establish the assets at the Future Education Center so that our children can live independently and coexist with a self-directed attitude in the future world.”
“This place was created hoping that studying would happen naturally while playing, not by struggling with a pounding headache. We prepared various difficulty levels from stage 1 to stage 6 so that anyone who comes can access knowledge necessary for the future society in a fun and enjoyable way according to their level.”
He added, “We ask for interest and encouragement so that the Future Education Center can lead the digital transformation of education and properly serve as a driving force for Korea’s future education.”
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