Growing up, Sri Sham Haran’s favourite video game was Digimon World 3. He would spend hours exploring its digital worlds, drawn in by the sense of discovery, challenge and play.
Years later, that childhood fascination would find an unexpected home in medical education.
As an educational technologist with Duke-NUS’ Technology Enhanced Learning and Innovation (TELI) team, Sham develops immersive learning applications that help students engage with complex subjects in more intuitive ways. His latest app, Annotomy, was rolled out earlier this year to support first-year students learning human anatomy. Using 3D scanning techniques to digitise plastinated anatomical specimens, the app gives students access to interactive learning resources anytime.
Outside work, Sham remains close to the gaming community organising events such as Global Game Jam, where enthusiasts come together to build a game over a 48-hour weekend.
In this edition of Faces of Duke-NUS, Sham shares how a love of games grew into a career designing immersive educational tools, what it felt like to see his first app used by students and why friends are still his best support system when things get tough.
1. Tell us about your job scope and what you do on a typical day
My job focuses on developing immersive educational applications. My day to day primarily revolves around designing and coding features for these applications.
2. What inspired you to join Duke-NUS, and what drew you to start developing the immersive learning systems?
I wanted to develop extended reality (XR) applications (an umbrella term for virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality technologies that blend digital and physical environments).
It’s interesting how they have been used beyond entertainment in other fields, and in my job, I hope to explore how XR could transform our daily lives and shape the future of human interaction. Then I saw an opening for this position and applied, hoping to learn more about the role XR plays in healthcare education.
3. When designing an immersive learning system, what are some key considerations?
The user experience is the most important consideration. This includes thinking about whether the interactions are natural and comfortable for the user, or how easy it is for the user to navigate the system.
4. How did you feel when the first immersive learning system you developed was rolled out at Duke-NUS?
It felt cool, seeing my application used by students and I hope it has created a positive impact in their lives. It's a good reminder to me that the work we do is meaningful.
5. What is a memorable milestone from your time here at Duke-NUS?
That would be when I completed the first proof of concept (POC) for the Annotomy application.
I experienced a bit of imposter’s syndrome when I first joined the School. But after I completed the POC which was met with a positive reception, it helped me feel more comfortable in my role and proud of what I had created.
Screenshots from Annotomy // Credit: Sham
6. What are some challenges that you have encountered and how did you overcome them?
Admittedly, I do struggle with design aspects such as the user experience side of things and the visual user interfaces. Thankfully, my supervisor Dr Lu Weiquan has a solid grasp of UX and has given me lots of guidance in this area.
Sham works closely with Dr Lu Weiquan at the to design educational apps and software for medical students // Credit: Duke-NUS
7. Any advice for someone who is keen to consider a career as an educational technologist?
I think being familiar with the tools (such as Unity Engine) that are commonly employed in our work is important. Understanding the design mechanics underlying interactions in immersive applications and games helps a lot too.
All photos in this story are copyrighted by Sri Sham Haran and Duke-NUS.
We’re always on the lookout for stories to tell. Know a colleague we should feature in a future Faces of Duke-NUS spotlight? Drop us a note at communications@duke-nus.edu.sg!