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CITE Journal Article

Tags: schools, today, education, technology, research, learning on 2009-07-02 and saved by 54 people -All Annotations (131) -About

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Ript™ Quick Start

Tags: no_tag on 2009-01-29 and saved by 4 people -All Annotations (1) -About

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Virtual Worlds News: Notes from Virtual Worlds London: Linden Lab CEO Mark Kingdon's Keynote

Despite the many urban myths, it’s possible to hold a secure meeting in our hosted Second Life. But people want a solution behind the firewall. We’re working on the alpha now. We have alpha customers signed up. And we’ll have a beta in the first quarter.

Tags: behind, firewall, second, life on 2008-12-25 -All Annotations (1) -About

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Educational Frontiers: Learning in a Virtual World (EDUCAUSE Review) | EDUCAUSE CONNECT

Educational Frontiers:
Learning in a Virtual World

Cynthia M. Calongne (“Lyr Lobo”)

Cynthia M. Calongne (“Lyr Lobo”) is Professor of Computer Science at Colorado Technical University.

Comments on this article can be sent to the author at calongne@pcisys.net and/or can be posted to the web via the link at the bottom of this page.

Virtual worlds are engaging, stimulating spaces where students can meet online for normal class activities, including lectures, discussions, case studies, projects, papers, exams, and labs. Classes are a mix of synchronous and asynchronous activity. A virtual world class differs from a traditional course management system, such as Blackboard or Moodle, due to the three-dimensional (3D) graphical setting, the use of avatars to represent the class participants, and the sense of presence that puts the learner within the scene.

After teaching nine university courses using the virtual world of Second Life as an educational classroom, I have come to the conclusion that successful virtual class experiences require a blend of technology, tools, content, student ownership, identity, engagement, course structure, risk management, mentoring, feedback, and a good orientation to using the tool.
The First Class: Orientation

An editor once said that a published book often does not begin with the first chapter that the author wrote. Since authors tend to start the book with background and detailed information, the editor usually removed that chapter and began the book instead with chapter 2, where the action begins. Similarly, although it is tempting to begin a virtual worlds class with an orientation to the software and the virtual world itself, students need action and excitement to help them envision how they will use it effectively. Instructors thus should sell the benefits first, have students choose to use the virtual world, and then discuss how it works.

When a student logs in to a virtual world for the first time, the monitor may display the student’s avatar (a representation of self) from

Tags: SeconLife, learning, virtual, world on 2008-10-02 -All Annotations (26) -About

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Classes are a mix of synchronous and asynchronous activity
Instructors thus should sell the benefits first, have students choose to use the virtual world, and then discuss how it works.
Figuring out how to move, look around, and interact with others is not intuitive for most users. If the first class begins here, some students will exit the software, vowing never to return. Rather than startle students, the first class needs to show them the benefits of using virtual worlds, demonstrate what students of all ages have accomplished in only a few days, and provide a brief introduction on how to use the tool effectively. The first class should feature cool technology, exciting research, entertainment, and great visuals to enflame students’ imagination.
I begin the orientation session with exciting examples from other classes, schools, and research projects.
I continue the orientation with highlights of accomplishments from teenage students at Ramapo, Suffern (N.Y.) Middle School’s campus in Second Life, hosted by Peggy Sheehy (http://ramapoislands.edublogs.org/about/).
Finally, I end the orientation with an overview of how to move, look around, customize avatars, and interact with other avatars and objects.
The next step is thus to mitigate the risks associated with using unfamiliar technology and to create a safe learning environment.
one rule is that mistakes are great opportunities for learning.
Class can be held on the beach, in another country, in outer space, or in any simulated setting.
communicate via text or voice, offer information or ask questions whenever they like (without being impolite), and correspond with classmates and friends via private messaging.
Students can create content, using built-in tools to construct their ideas as a form of virtual doodling.
Shifting students from the passive roles of survivors and castaways to the active roles of researchers and explorers requires a change in their perception of themselves and their willingness to participate.

With very little time and a lot of content to cover, one way to accomplish
A well-structured course includes a syllabus that defines the course objectives, learning objectives, goals, measurements, a schedule of activities and assignments, and rubrics for assessment.
Other benefits include discovering new ways to study, discuss, create, and express the course subject under the supervision and support of the instructor.
In virtual worlds, the instructor’s role shifts from being the “sage on the stage” to being the domain expert—the authority who stimulates and supervises exploration while providing structure, guidance, feedback, and assessment. Demystifying complexity is not an easy task!
this list favors activity-based learning and social networks:
- Self: Customizing the avatar
- Exploration: Moving around the world
- Communication: Sharing information with others
- Navigation: Looking at 3D content
- Interaction: Using 3D objects
- Creation: Designing a class project
- Delivery: Giving the projects to the instructor
- Assessment: Evaluating Second Life projects
- Feedback: Compiling progress and performance reports
This method does not replace traditional methods of evaluation, but it does offers additional ways of assessing what students know and can apply.
Colorado Technical University (CTU)
Many classes that include case studies use role-play, putting learners in roles and contexts in which they explore the content and make decisions based on the forces and constraints placed on them.
Ramapo’s immersive literature activity in which Suffern Middle School students enact the courtroom scene from John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men.
As mentor, I felt it was important that I offer the right mix of instruction, observation, opportunity to struggle, and support—all of which were necessary for them to discover, build, and test their solutions. The struggle to discover solutions is part of the learning process. For the mentor, knowing how to balance that struggle with solutions and success is key.
Classes in virtual worlds offer opportunities for visualization, simulation, enhanced social networks, and shared learning experiences.
In virtual worlds, we can leverage a mix of content and activity to support all learners: auditory, visual, and kinesthetic.
Course designers, instructors, and IT professionals are challenged to create stimulating content, deliver it reliably, and ensure a stable virtual world learning environment.
Over 400 universities and 4,500 educators participate on the Second Life Educators List (SLED).¹

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Welcome from Fleep - CCK08SL - Connectivism in Second Life Cohort | Google Grupper

Tags: SeconLife:, potensial on 2008-09-10 -All Annotations (4) -About

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*Second Life as a platform has many limitations, but there are some things
that it is exceptionally well-suited for, including: Holding discussions
and meetings in text chat or voice; building and creating 3D collaborative
objects, projects, spaces, and models; roleplaying and simulations; and
more.
- Hold group or individual conversations in voice chat (you will need a
headset/microphone to participate, they can be purchased at any electronics
store for between $30-$50USD. I strongly encourage you to pick one up as
voice conversations can cover much more ground than text conversations -
especially for slow typists!)
New Media Consortium Orientation - If it's been a while since you did

the initial orientation tutorial, or you want to brush up on the

basics of moving and getting around in Second Life, the New Media

Consortium has a terrific walk through, self-paced orientation

tutorial. They also have great freebies and lots of information in a

San Francisco themed area.

http://slurl.com/secondlife/NMC%20Orientation/69/107/32/

Second Life Video Tutorials - Created by Linden Lab, these short

videos cover the basic interface controls for using Second Life

http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Video_Tutorials

Keyboard Shortcuts in Second Life - This handy print out has a list of

keyboard shortcuts to make your Second Life easier.

http://hippasus.com/resources/secondlife/SL_Keyboard_Shortcuts.pdf

Educational Uses of Second Life - This is an overview of some of ways

Second Life can be use for educational purposes.

http://sleducation.wikispaces.com/educationaluses
Add Sticky Note
- SL tutorials
  posted by jeanberg on 2008-09-10