| Educational Possibility | Ellaboration of examples I observed and descriptions
of regions in Second Life (SL) where these teaching / learning strategies are
already being implemented | Theory in Literature | |
Connect with individuals (fellow learners
/ practicioners / researchers) in geographically distant locations | Within SL one can join groups which immediately
allow an affiliation with individuals with like interests. I very quickly
joined the Distance Educators Group and receive information on events and
resources for distance educators within SL. This included the announcement
for the Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education Confernce that I attended
on March 12th and 13th (http://www.vwbpe.org/ ). I continue to receive
announcments for round table discussions and presentations. There are also
sims (regions) within SL that provide a place to connect with fellow
scholars. One such example is EdTech Island (EdTech (154, 200, 24)) where
those interested in educational technology can collect resources and be
invited to join groups such as the Distance Educators Group mentioned above. | Rymaszewski et al. p. 11 | |
Active participation (physical presence)
in a normally inaccessible event / time period / geographically removed or
inaccessible location | Perhaps the most poignant examples that I
encountered were those on Bowling Green State University (BGSU) Interaction
Island [BGSU Interaction (1, 253, 33). Here, one can visit a planetarium of
the solar system in which it is possible to literally walk by each planet and
touch it. Also on this island is an Australian Herpetology exhibit where I
was introduced to everything from the thick tailed Gecko to the Green Tree
Python. Another region that showcases this possibility, is Wyoming
Entrepreneur (161, 42, 24). Here I was able to attend a Native American Art
show that I otherwise would never have been able to attend in the
geographically-distant Yellowstone National Park. It was also in this region
that I felt a bit of experiencing a different time period as I rode a horse
through the tall grass of the prairie! | | |
| Attend academic conferences | Many professional conferences occur in SL. I
attended the Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education Conference. Please
see the following URL for more information: http://www.vwbpe.org/ | | |
Access diverse cultures / minority
subcultures | I was interested in LGBT/Q spaces and thus located
several regions of note: Gay and LGBT Resource Center, Sutherland (15, 12,
89) and Provincetown (112, 137, 29). However, upon visiting Health Info
Island (122, 147, 23), I also encountered Disability Island. | Aldrich p. 50, Rymaszewski et al. p. 44 | |
| Space for underserved groups of learners | Virtual learning environments can make it easier to
find groups of learners who may be excluded from traditional educational
systems: Disability island (above) “People with disabilities inhabit virtual
worlds in higher proportions than real worlds” (Slide in Virtual Ability
Gazebo) | | |
| Cost-free learning | Anyone with access to a computer may start a Second
Life | | |
| Office hours | For online classes, office hours can be held in
Second Life. This can enhance the sense of physical presence which is often
lacking in online education. | | |
Provide context to the learning activity
and thus enhance emotional involvement | UC Davis's Virtual Hallucinations
(http://slurl.com/secondlife/sedig/27/45/22/) is a simulation that allows one
to hear the voices and have the visual hallucinations that an individual with
schizophrenia would experience. As expected, it was an intense and disturbing
experience. However, it will not be quickly forgotten and certainly
heightened my awareness about schizophrenia. Another good example of a
contextualized learning experience was Story Quest Island (115, 247, 21). In
this quest, one learns about living with HIV and dying from AIDS by visiting
the home of Uncle D. | Aldrich (p. 6) Emotional involvement triggers
memory! | |
Provide context with the goal of lowering
learner tension | In nearly every educational space on Second Life,
the ambience is one that promotes relaxation. There are usually birds
singing, green trees and welcoming signs and furnishings. This is part of
what makes me feel that learning in SL is a "guilty pleasure". The
BGSU Interaction island and particularly the Butterfly Pavilian on this
island (BGSU Interaction, 204, 30, 26) seemed a poignant example of how
context can lower tension. | When tension is lowered, learning assessment is more
realistic (Aldrich p. 25-26) | |
Make and display art / creative design /
architecture and machinima | Art, design and overall creativity is central to
Second Life. Some spaces are designed simply to show beautiful creations
(greenhouse island (63, 113, 22)) but in many education sims, art students
create and display their work (BGSU Interaction (1, 253, 33) ). Machinima is
the art of making films in Second Life. This has the dual learning
application of being a learning experience to make the film but also the film
may have an educational message. | Showcases the user-generated content of SL (Aldrich
p. 57, Rymaszewski et al. p. 3) also show-cases possibility for learner to
take something away from the experience - artifacts (Aldrich, p. 68) | |
| Art to bring writing to life | In her VWBPE session entitled Abstract Thoughts to
Concrete Examples:Transferring Student Essays to the Virtual Realm in Second
Life, Francis Rawlslyn allowed her atendees to tour her island on which
students in her literature course had created places about which they had
written. The creations were truly detailed and advanced and really
illustrated (brought to life) their writing. | | |
| Learning a second Language | At the VWBPE conference, the Virtual Language
Resource Center (VLRC) sim project was introduced. This sim is a region to
which students can go to learn the English by doing day-to-day tasks. | | |
Access to health and nutrition guidance /
infectious disease | On the Centers for Disease Control Island (191, 86,
22) one can garner information on the current H1N1 pandemic,
sexually-transmitted diseases, workplace safety, emergency preparedness and
resources to find family planning clinics. There are striking photos of
pathogens ranging from Escherichia coli 0157:H7 to Streptococcus. Another island called Health info Island (122, 147, 23) provides
a Heart Healthy Pavilion that had up-to-date information on eating to promote
heart function. There were information slides on CPR and a Virtual Ability
Gazebo. | | |
| Clinical Simulations | At the VWBPE conference, I attended several sessions
regarding the possibility of clinical simulations in SL. A safe but realistic
environment can be provided, one in which students can learn by exploring and
interaction. Students can learn to read vital sign machines and fetal
monitors. The presenters noted an increase in student engagement. | HIVEs can allow for failure and this is an important
part of learning (Aldrich, p. 4) | |
Continuing Medical Education for
practicioners | At the VWBPE conference, Heyden, Wiecha and Dorland
(2010) reported on the use of a medical education pilot study in SL. A coach
was provided and the family practicioners practiced with a virtual patient.
http://www.vwbpe.org/files/LETTERS_SATURDAY/Saturday_1300_East_1.pdf | | |
Access to technologies / tools that might
otherwise be prohibited by cost or limited production | Called Genome Island (79, 160, 67), it offers
learning opportunities for students studying all aspects of genetics from
molecular to large organismal. There is an Abbey and Garden in honor of
Mendel, a Tower with molecular, human, bacterial and drosophila genetics.
There is a garden of prokaryotic genetics (including the Plasmid Patio)! For
those with interests in larger animals, there is a cattery and a bunny hutch.
If, however, you are in search of more molecular methods, you will not be
disappointed as there is a DNA analysis room, complete with virtual lab
procedures (PCR, DNA sequencing and electrophoresis). Or, for a slightly
different “flavor” of molecular, there is a bioinformatics kitchen. | | |
| Virtual labs | The best virtual labs that I encountered can be
found on Genome Island (79, 160, 67). Avatars can interact with PCR apparati
(e.g. a thermocycler) as well as DNA sequencing tools and media / reagents.
Some virtual laboratory environments can be found on Centers for Disease
Control Island (191, 86, 22) though they lack interactivity. | | |
| Virtual Crime scenes | At the VWBPE, Dr. Donald Lehman, Debbie Jeffers and
Chad Sherman presented on the design and development of a virtual crime scene
and corresponding lab for a capstone experience in a forensics course. | | |
| Molecular modeling | Some possibilities for amino acid / peptide models
can be seen at: Amino World – ACS (88, 26, 83) | | |
| Green Learning | In all cases, learning in SL limits consumables used
ranging from paper to laboratory supplies. | Aldrich p. 48 | |
| Predictive modeling of change | This is a broad possibility, as instructors could
design sims in SL to show students ramificaitons of actions. One specific
idea would be the evantual impact of global warming. | Allow the learner to see impacts of action.
(Aldrich, pp. 21-37) | |
| Self-paced learning | All of the learning opportunites of which I partook
were self-paced. For me, this lowered anxiety and made learning more fun! | Aldrich p. 69 | |
| Self actualization | In choosing the physical appearance / mannerisms /
gender and even species of one's avatar, one must reflect on one's own
nature. This process can be an internal learning experience. | Gender in Second Life (Rymaszewski et al., p. 14,
Yee, 2004, p. gender-bending) | |
| Educational Research | Interviews and observations for qualitative research
can be performed entirely in SL | Boellstorff (2008) | |
| | | | |
