LokaKarsa

LokaKarsa is a gamified web app focused on teaching Aksara Jawa through interactive, fun, and engaging lessons with Machine Learning Integrations

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Inspiration

Inspired by concerns about the fading relevance of Aksara Jawa among younger generations who find it complicated and irrelevant. We saw the potential of gamified platforms like Duolingo to make learning Aksara Jawa enjoyable and connected to local culture.

What it does

LokaKarsa is a gamified web application designed to make learning Aksara Jawa interactive and meaningful. Through bite-sized lessons, challenges, and cultural context, users can learn Aksara Jawa not just as a language, but as an identity, with progress tracking and badge features.

How we built it

Built as a modern web application with the frontend using React and Vite, supported by a backend API built with Laravel. For more advanced learning features, we integrated Machine Learning to detect handwritten Aksara Jawa, enabling a more interactive and personalized learning experience. This system manages user progress, lesson content, and authentication, with an efficient database for Aksara Jawa data and performance metrics.

Challenges we ran into

Key challenges included accurate digitization of Aksara Jawa with its complex ligatures, designing motivating gamification mechanics without sacrificing educational rigor, integrating cultural context in an accessible way, and optimizing interactive web application performance. Developing and integrating the Machine Learning model for handwritten Aksara Jawa detection was also a significant challenge, requiring training data and model refinement.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud to have transformed a traditionally academic subject into an engaging and accessible digital experience, combining modern technology with cultural heritage preservation. The successful integration of Machine Learning for handwriting detection is a significant technical achievement. Positive feedback and accurate digital representation of Aksara Jawa are our major accomplishments.

What we learned

We learned the importance of user-centric design for challenging subjects, the complexities of digitizing non-Latin scripts, and the power of gamification in boosting engagement. We also gained valuable experience in developing Machine Learning models for handwriting recognition. This project reinforced our belief that technology can revitalize culture with sensitivity and creativity.

What's next for LokaKarsa

Next, we plan to add more in-depth Aksara Jawa lessons, community features, and expand the platform to include other regional Indonesian scripts. We also want to continue refining the Machine Learning handwriting detection model for better accuracy and to support a wider variety of writing styles. We also aim to partner with educational institutions to integrate LokaKarsa into learning environments.

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