 |
|
|
|
Archives & Museum Informatics info @archimuse.com |
 |
Miss Traill's House: A DIY Internet House Museum for Classroom UseRobin McLachlan, Charles Sturt University - Mitchell Subsidiary
Session: Tools: Simulations and Walkthroughs
Miss Traill's House (the "real one") is a National Trust house museum
in Bathurst, NSW, Australia. Built in the mid-19th century and replete
with artefacts both grand and mundane, the house museum serves as a
valuable resource for CSU public history students. It's here classroom
theories on hegemonic discourse, thick and thin interpretation and similar
topics assume practical form. For external students, however, a visit
to the house is difficult, if not impossible. For these students, a
simple computer simulated version of Miss Traill's House has been developed,
initially on disk. It is now available to students through the Internet,
part of a wider project to make the entire subject Internet accessible.
This paper will discuss the process of developing the simulated museum
and consider its practical use as an Internet teaching resource for
internal and external students. Particular attention has been given
in the design to show students how artefacts can reveal something of
their owners and how changes to the fabric of a building are messages
from long ago occupants. The computer version of Miss Traill's House
was low budget in expenditure, minimalist in technology and involved
students in its design and construction. |
