International Journal of Information and Education Technology, Vol. 12, No.

4, April 2022

Development of Virtual Museum Model for Youth

Unchana Klentien

 and reach a wider audience online or through social networks

Abstract—The research provided guidance of the key [3].
elements on design and development of virtual museum which is Virtual museums exhibit content, e.g. texts, pictures,
a critical learning resource supporting learning experience motion pictures, audio records, and videos, in a digital form
outside the classroom for youth. The objective of this research is
to develop a prototype of virtual museums for youth and
and audiences can visit them via the Internet from anywhere,
evaluate the efficiency of the prototype. The research comprised at anytime [4]. However, virtual museums have not received
three steps: 1) studying demands and expectations of virtual much attention because people usually gain better learning
museums for youth by examining documents and researches experience with all five senses in physical learning
about virtual museums, visiting 10 museums in Bangkok and 20 environments. Maria Kampouropoulou et al. [5] studied
virtual museums in Thailand and worldwide, and conducting a views of primary school students on the use of a virtual
questionnaire survey on 400 university students about their
expectations of virtual museums; 2) developing a virtual
education museum and found that part of the students
museum website prototype and trialing it with three experts preferred visiting physical museums. Yet, there was also a
and 10 university students for improvement recommendation; group of students who thought a virtual museum was
and 3) having five experts evaluate the quality and efficiency of interesting and could help them understand history better
the improved prototype. The study showed that virtual than visiting the real sites. This finding was in line with a
museums for youth should consist of five key elements: 1) research of Rattanaporn Chiengkham et al. [6] on the 3D
efficiency of website’s function, 2) the website itself, 3) type of
virtual exhibition about the social and cultural development
media used in the virtual museum, 4) type of tools used in the
virtual museum, and 5) evaluation of the virtual museum. The in Thailand at Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre,
virtual museum prototype received a highest level score from which showed that the learning outcome from a 3D virtual
the experts (mean = 4.56) and a high level score from the exhibition was better than the learning outcome from a
university students (mean = 4.43). Moreover, evaluation results permanent exhibition. It was because, at a permanent
from the other five experts showed that all elements of the exhibition students had to rely on the lecturer and there was
improved prototype were appropriate.
also limitation of time for exploring and areas for exhibition.
Index Terms—Museum, virtual museum, youth, self-directed
Moreover, visiting an exhibition with a large group of people
learning. made it difficult for students to concentrate. In contrast for a
virtual exhibition, students could explore any exhibitions
worldwide without those limitation and distraction.
I. INTRODUCTION Unfortunately, museums are only popular among those
Museum is a place where important information is who are enthusiastic about art, and the number of people
gathered and important objects are exhibited, for the sake of visiting museums is still few. A German philosopher,
Alexander Baumgaten, argued that aesthetics was knowledge
education, research, and entertainment. Museums are
from experience and an intuition in judging the beauty of art
valuable sources of self-directed learning for youth on a great
without the interference of reasons [7]. Therefore, virtual
variety of topics. With the advent of the 21st century,
museums can act as another channel to link aesthetics with
learning has changed significantly and become more open.
appreciation of beauty in order to bring art into everyday life
Learners no longer have to wait for knowledge from teachers
of people in the 21st century. Kritchanat Santawee and
only, but can seek knowledge themselves. And this can lead
Sammiti Sukbunjhong [8] suggested that art museums should
to lifelong learning [1]. Application of virtual reality
also provide virtual museum service via the Internet.
technology to develop virtual local museums, which can
Likewise, Dendeon Lertthayakul [9] found that development
display still pictures, motion pictures, and 360-degree motion of a virtual local museum could improve learning outcome of
pictures, does not only create environments that can promote students. In addition, a research of Nitisak Charoenroop [10]
learning proficiency, but also allows learners to engage in on application of augmented reality to promote tourism
self-directed learning anywhere and anytime regardless of information showed that tourists had the highest level of
the limitation of space and time [2]. The Covid-19 global satisfaction about the application and the idea of using
health crisis has altered the way of learning from classroom augmented reality media in the future.
to online and the way of working from office working to Since virtual reality technology is important to the
working from home. Likewise, many museums and cultural development of learning for people in the 21st century to
institutions have quickly adapted to the current situation by mitigate the limitation of time and space for learning, this
creating virtual access to their exhibits. Many cultural research aimed to develop a model of virtual museums to fill
institutions have seized this occasion to share more content in the learning gap regarding aesthetics and youth. This study
examined key elements of existing virtual museums and
Manuscript received August 23, 2021; revised November 5, 2021.
Unchana Klentien is with Srinakharinwirot University, Bangkok, developed a prototype of virtual museums to be used for
Thailand (e-mail: [email protected]). future development or adaptation by private or public sectors.

doi: 10.18178/ijiet.2022.12.4.1620 313

 International Journal of Information and Education Technology, Vol. 12, No. 4, April 2022

The Archive of Srinakharinwirot University was used as a The final step was having five experts evaluate the
model for developing the virtual museum prototype in this improved prototype in terms of the website format, media
research. presentation, virtual museum tools, and quality and
efficiency assessment. The Index of Item-Objective
Congruence: IOC was used to evaluate the virtual museum
II. RESEARCH APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY model validity based on the score range from -1 to +1 was
defined as following: + 1 = Congruent, 0 = Questionable, and
A. Research Purpose -1 = Incongruent. The questions which had scores lower than
The objective of this research is to study and develop a 0.5 were revised.
prototype of virtual museums for youth and evaluate the
efficiency of the prototype.
III. FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS
B. Sample Groups and Participants
There were three sample groups in this study. The first 1) Findings from the analysis of virtual museums in
sample group consisted of 400 university students aged Thailand and worldwide and the survey of expectations
between 18 and 25 from the science and social science fields of virtual museums for youth from 400 university
of study. These samples were asked to answer a questionnaire students can be concluded as follows.
about their expectations of virtual museums. The samples a) Online media use behavior – The majority or 174
were chosen by accidental sampling from four universities, people of the sample group (43.50 percent) had access
which were Srinakharinwirot University and Chulalongkorn to online media and the Internet through iOS
University in Bangkok, Chiang Mai University in Chiang smartphones, followed by 93 people (23.25 percent)
Mai Province, and Mahasarakham University in Maha through Android smartphones, 79 people (19.75
Sarakham Province. The second sample group consisted of percent) through iPad, and 54 people (13.50 percent)
three experts on virtual reality design, art content, and/or through other devices. In terms of online media and the
museum management and ten university students. These Internet use, the majority or 289 people of the sample
samples were asked to trial and comment on the developed group (72.25 percent) used online media in a form of
virtual museum prototype for youth. The third sample group applications most frequently, while the other 111
consisted of five experts on virtual reality design, art content, people (27.75 percent) used online media in a form of
and museum management. These samples were asked to websites most frequently. The majority of the sample
evaluate the quality and efficiency of the improved virtual group (129 people or 32.25 percent) used online media
museum prototype for youth. for a continuous period of 31-60 minutes per time,
followed by 91 – 120 minutes per time (106 people or
C. Ethical Issues 26.50 percent).
Information and identity of the students participating in The majority of the sample group had never visited or used
this research was treated as confidential and used for the virtual museums via online media and the Internet (217
study and statistical purpose only. people or 54.25 percent). Only 27.50 percent (110 people) of
the sample group used to visit or get information from virtual
D. Research Methods
museums, while 18.25 percent (73 people) were not sure or
The research methodology comprised three steps. The first did not remember if they used to visit virtual museums or not.
step was studying demands and expectations of virtual Yet, the majority of the sample group were interested in using
museums for youth by 1) examining documents and online virtual museums (314 people or 78.50 percent) and
researches about virtual museums, 2) visiting 10 museums in thought online virtual museums could provide knowledge
Bangkok to examine their media use, technology, and like traditional physical museums (319 people or 79.75
designs, 3) visiting websites of 20 virtual museums in percent).
Thailand and worldwide to examine their efficiency, media b) Expectations of virtual museums:
use, virtual museum tools, designs, and assessment, and 4) Learning management in virtual museums – The sample
conducting a five-Likert scale questionnaire survey on 400 group answered the questions with a high level score the
university students about their expectations of virtual most (mean = 4.46). The item that received the highest score
museums. The data of respondents’ general information and was ―Virtual museums should employ diversified media
internet use behavior were analyzed by frequency count and technologies to portray knowledge‖. The item that received
percentages, whereas, the data on pattern of virtual museum the second highest score was ―Virtual museums should
were analyzed by mean and standard deviation. The provide entertainment and knowledge at the same time‖.
interpretation of mean score was specified as following: Efficiency of the virtual museums – The sample group
1.00-1.50 = very low, 1.51-2.50 = low, 2.51-3.50 = average, answered the questions with a highest level score the most
3.51-4.50 = high, and 4.51-5.00 = very high. (mean = 4.60). The item that received the highest score was
The second step was developing a virtual museum website ―Virtual museums should be accessible from a variety of
prototype that included pictures, 360-degree panoramic devices such as a personal computer, tablet, or mobile phone‖.
images, and virtual reality technology by using the Archive The item that received the second highest score was ―Virtual
of Srinakharinwirot University as a model. The developed museums should be quick to load and display for prompt
prototype was subsequently trialed with three experts and ten use‖.
university students for recommendation and improvement. Types of media and tools used in virtual museums – The

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 International Journal of Information and Education Technology, Vol. 12, No. 4, April 2022

sample group answered the questions with a high level score five experts viewed that the improved prototype were
the most (mean = 4.40). The item that received the highest appropriate in overall (IOC = 1). Only the elements of
score was ―Audience should be able to visit virtual museums 3D object images and maps received 0.6 of IOC and
freely‖. The item that received the second highest score was needed further improvement. The experts suggested that
―Virtual museums should support more than one languages, the 3D object images should have realistic texture and
with language options provided for audience to choose‖. colors, so that they were more interesting and attractive
In addition, the website analysis showed that important for youth. Regarding this, the researcher still used
tools for virtual museums included registration tools, search existing white 3D object images from the Archive of
engine, social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter, and Srinakharinwirot University but added realistic images
YouTube, and online discussion tools. Moreover, most of the building under the 3D image model section on the
virtual museums offered 360-degree panoramic images for website instead. The experts also suggested that there
360-degree exhibition tours. Texts, pictures, or videos were should be a pointer or pin on the map that indicated a
used in the description and display of exhibitions. Meanwhile, current location of users when exploring the virtual
photographic slides were used as thumbnail images to link to museums. The researcher added the location indicator
different exhibition rooms. Virtual reality (VR) techniques pin on the map accordingly. After finishing the three
with and without headset goggles were used as well as 3D steps of the research, five key elements of virtual
and 360-degree image techniques to display models, museums for youth were concluded as shown in Fig. 6.
buildings, sculptures, skeletons, or antiquities. Visitors could In addition, Fig. 1-5 show the pictures of The Archive of
explore virtual exhibitions freely by using the zoom-in button Srinakharinwirot University, which was recreated in a
and the map and navigator tools provided in the websites. virtual model by using those five elements.
There were also links to the museum’s websites for further
studies.
Only some of the websites offered audio descriptions with
a speaker button. Audience could choose to turn on or turn
off the sound with the button. There were also a help button,
directional arrows, share button, download button, and
screenshot button.
Designs of the virtual museums – The sample group
answered the questions with a high level score the most
(mean = 3.77). The item that received the highest score was Fig. 1. Hall of Fame at the Archive in a 360-degree panoramic image.
―Fonts used in virtual museums should be easy to read and
clear‖. The item that received the second highest score was
―Virtual museums should use dark text on light background
such as dark blue text on a white background‖.
The website analysis showed that exhibition rooms in
virtual museums used warm color tone, cool color tone, and
neutral color tone depending on the content in each section.
The websites used maximum two font styles and maximum
three display colors, including the color of the background.
Fig. 2. 3D version of the university’s model.
Text in each text box was left aligned or centered. Text boxes
were placed on the left or right of images or objects,
depending on the positions of those objects.
Evaluation of the virtual museums – The sample group
answered the questions with a high level score the most
(mean = 4.28). The website analysis showed that most virtual
museums did not have an evaluation section for users to
comment or provide feedback for improvement. However,
some virtual museums had a Frequently-Asked-Question
(FAQ) section or online discussion section instead.
2) Findings from the trial of the developed virtual museum Fig. 3. The virtual museum’s guiding manual.
prototype for youth showed that the three experts gave a
highest level score for the prototype in overall (mean =
4.56) and the ten university students gave a high level
score for the prototype in overall (mean = 4.43). Both
groups agreed that in the current situation of Covid-19,
museums should use media and technology to develop
virtual museums that could provide similar user
experience as physical museums to visitors.
3) Findings from the evaluation of quality and efficiency of
the virtual museum prototype for youth showed that the Fig. 4. The navigator of the virtual model.

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This finding suggested that learners in the 21st century are

digital citizens who prefer interactive learning with the help
of technology. Likewise, Ployphan Chittarach and Natirath
Weeranakin [15] studied the development of a dinosaur
virtual museum application with image-based environment
and found that related parties would like virtual museums to
provide realistic experience to users with 360-degree
panoramic images and to be easily accessible from
smartphones. A mobile-friendly virtual museum may suit the
Fig. 5. Map and directional arrow. modern lifestyle of people these days in terms of convenience
and easy access. Therefore, virtual museums should be
designed to fit a variety of devices. Moreover, multimedia
such as 3D images, 3D motion images, audio description, text
description, and short video should be employed to enhance
user experience. With virtual museums, not only do these
users no longer have to travel to museums, but they can also
have a close up look at the exhibits just by zooming in. As a
result, there have been attempts to develop and improve
virtual reality systems and panoramic image technologies on
websites for the sake of education [16]. A finding from a
Colorado State University’s research showed that 70 percent
Fig. 6. Five elements of virtual museums for youth. of virtual museum visitors usually visited the real museum
after [17]. Consequently, virtual museums should ensure
attractive environment, content, and exhibit management,
IV. DISCUSSIONS AND CONCLUSIONS provide visual and audio interactive experience for visitors,
Virtual museums allow youth to get access to learning and encourage new ideas and inspiration with augmented
sources from anywhere at anytime, especially during the reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technology, so that
current Covid-19 situation. In Thailand, however, virtual visitors can enjoy full experience of the museums without
museums are not much supported or promoted and the error or mistake [18].
accessibility is relatively low. Even physical museums are
only popular among certain groups of people, while others
may only visit museums during school educational tours. V. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR RELATED PARTIES
Many museums have been forgotten. Yet, museums are a This virtual museum prototype for youth has been
great source of knowledge for youth. They are places where developed by taking into account the expectations and
evidences of human culture and evolution are stored. As suggestions of university students, the target group of the
museums are an innovation that can enhance learning process, museums. Related parties from the public or private sectors
a user-centered approach should be adopted in museum can apply this prototype to develop websites and virtual
management, by offering a variety of activities and services museums to add value and improve access of digital citizens
for a wide range of audience such as travelling exhibitions or to museums. Virtual museums can be an important source of
online exhibitions [8], [11]. In addition, with the evolving knowledge and learning without the limitation of space and
communication technology, relationship building between time, especially when access to physical museums is difficult
museums and audience to improve learning experience and because of the current Covid-19 pandemic crisis.
encouraging audience to have critical thinking and to develop
knowledge by themselves are also important points to CONFLICT OF INTEREST
consider [12]. If virtual museums are promoted and media
and technology are adopted to provide realistic experience The author declares no conflict of interest.
for virtual museum users, especially youth, those users would
AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS
be able to learn and understand messages from virtual
museums and enjoy visiting museums at the same time [13]. The author conducted the research, analyzed the data,
Accordingly, the most important thing is to engage users wrote the paper, and had approved the final version.
with the media and allow them to explore the museums freely
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