The visitors’ gaze often stops at the monuments of Komotini, the old buildings, the streets that carry decades of history and the places where different cultures coexist through time. For a group of students from the 3rd Experimental High School of Komotini, however, the history of the city should not remain “silent” behind a sign or a textbook.
Thus, the idea for the creation of “Application KomoMap & Monuments. It is a digital tour application, compatible for mobile and tablet devices, implemented by the students themselves, aiming to highlight the cultural heritage of the city through the use of modern technology.
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The application was designed and implemented within the framework of the Programming and Robotics Group that operates at the school, under the guidance of Computer Science teacher Androniki Verri. It was based on the tourist and cultural map of the municipality of Komotini, which includes four historical routes with points of cultural interest.
“This is an effort that combines local history, the educational process and digital innovation, proving that technology can act as a bridge between knowledge and the everyday experience of citizens and visitors,” Ms. Verri.
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An idea to “bring the history of the city to life”
The idea to create the app was born when students started studying cultural routes and historical maps of Komotini, in the context of the Group’s activities. As the children themselves explained to APE-MPA, they wondered how they could use the programming knowledge they were acquiring to create a tool that would be really useful for their city. So, they decided to develop a digital tour guide application, which could offer a more modern, easy-to-use and interactive experience of touring the most important monuments and historical sites of Komotini.
The choice of the points was not random. The students based their work on the official tourist and cultural map of the Municipality of Komotini, making use of the existing historical material and highlighting the existing routes that both residents and visitors of the city can follow. At the same time, they did their own research in the library and on the internet in order to find additional information about historical monuments and buildings.
“KomoMap & Monuments” includes three different cultural routes, which function as interactive tour maps. Each route covers a different area of the city and gives the user the opportunity to get to know distinct historical and cultural aspects of Komotini.
The first route has 23 stops and offers an extensive tour of the most important historical points of the city centre. The second consists of ten stations and serves as a shorter but comprehensive introduction to local history. The third includes four stations and is aimed at those who want a quick and focused tour.
At each station, the user can view information about the monument, photographic material and additional historical data, while also being able to access additional online resources to delve further into the history and heritage of the area.
From programming to practice and experiential learning
To develop the app, students used MIT App Inventor, a visual programming learning environment that allows students to create Android apps through programming pages.
“Through this process, the children were exposed to the fundamentals of algorithmic thinking, application design and digital content organization, turning theoretical knowledge into a functional digital tool with practical application. A special feature of “KomoMap & Monuments” is the possibility of voice navigation and audio presentation of information. In this way, the user can listen to navigation instructions and brief historical information about each monument, without having to constantly look at the screen of the mobile phone,” explains Verri, speaking to APE-MPA.
“The main goal of the Programming and Robotics Group is to give students the opportunity to create smart applications and automation, proposing their own solutions to everyday issues. During this year, students were mainly involved in programming applications for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, while learning about 3D printing technology,” he adds.
She stresses that the educational process was based on experiential exploration and teamwork, emphasising creativity, and the discovery of knowledge through practice. “Through this project, students gained deeper knowledge of local history, developed digital and collaborative skills, and realized that learning can be more creative and meaningful when connected to real life, technology and their place,” she notes.
On 25 April 2026, the children’s work was presented at the Panhellenic Student Conference of Local History “Come and let me tell you about my place” in Patras. Also, at the beginning of May, the children visited the mayor of Komotini, Yannis Garanis, to whom they presented the application. The mayor welcomed the students’ excellent work and said he would meet with them again in September to plan a public presentation of the application, which the municipality intends to put to good use. The next step will be, with the new school year, to complete all parameters of the app so that it can be downloaded on mobile devices through an official digital app store (play store).
