Informal Learning in Denver

To break up the redundancy in talking only about the project, I wanted to reflect on a recent trip I went on to Denver, CO. I was there visiting my brother, who lives in a small suburb of Denver called Littleton. I suppose it would be interesting to share some of my informal learning experiences, and how I felt during some of them.

I was actually in quite a hurry when I first landed, as I had somewhere to be shortly after arriving in Denver. The airport, in my opinion, is an opportunity to teach travellers. It could be to teach them about the city they are visiting, which I do not see all that often, but what I was mainly focused on is getting out of the airport.

I had to find my way to a spot where my friend could pick me up. It was extremely difficult to navigate, as the signage informing me of where I should go was ambiguous. I ended up following a crowd of people getting off the plane, and this tactic ended up working out. Had I not followed the herd, I’m not sure I would have gotten out as quickly as I did. I had to find a shuttle that took me to the main terminal, which I could then choose to go to the West or East Terminal.

I had to call my friend and figure out which side he would be to pick me up. All I had to help me with these choices were hard to understand signs and arrows. It made me realize that in places like this where people are often unfamiliar with their surroundings how something like a mobile application that directed them where to go, something even representing a virtual reality, of some sort, would be helpful. A user could hold up their phone and there would be arrows or a highlighted path indicating where they should go to get to their destination they select on the application. This would have been welcomed and highly useful!

Another informal learning environment would be on the hikes I went on. There are often informational boards posted up at the beginning, middle, and end (which is really just the beginning, when you think about it) of a hike. I know many go on hikes to get away from technology, but to have some sort of virtual world or reality feature at some point in the hike, or throughout, could make for an interesting experience.

There is a video game titled Horizon Zero Dawn where the player looks through a special device and sees the world as it once was (see image above). How awesome would it be to be at the top of a hike and use your phone to look in a direction and see the world from centuries ago! Or the future plans for the area. It could enhance the experience of the hiker, and help inform and teach them about the surrounding culture or other information that is attempted to be taught to people on those informational boards. The boards are almost entirely text with a few visuals. There could be a check-in feature where audio or video could be played through one’s mobile device. I hardly ever read the informational boards, but I would potentially listen or watch something.