Virtual Canuck » An Educator discovers his SecondLife
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Saved by 5 people (-2 private), first by anonymouse user on 2007-12-05
- Mrichme on 2008-03-25 - Tags 21stcentury , education , secondlife , technology
- Whited on 2007-12-05 - Tags no_tag
- Nnoakes on 2007-07-02 - Tags secondlife_education , secondlife_education_blogs
- Rodcorbett on 2006-07-21 - Tags Second , Life , Article
- Hamacleod on 2006-07-20 - Tags education , second.life , play , social.technologies , games
Public Sticky notes
In this post I relate my experiences exploring LindenLab’s SecondLife with a view to assessing their use in formal educational contexts.
Highlighted by rodcorbett
Proponents of these virtual environments argue that they afford the creation of vibrant forms of communities of inquiry. Key to many commonplace and dictionary definitions of community is a sense of place. Describing, creating and experiencing a sense of place on the net has been the domain of science fiction authors (notably Gibson and Stephenson) and early developers of text (Moos and Muds), 2D animation (http://www.thepalace.com) and real time videoconferencing. Although each of these developments have attracted experimental educational use (for example Moo’s Athena University, many university Palaces etc.) none have thrived to the extent where they are the home or even attracted major use by mainline or emergent formal educational institutions.
Highlighted by whited
Many of these sites are marked “mature” and a visit to one of my first ‘parties’ found a women shouting (both in text and audio) F*** this and F** that over and over, so I wasn’t overly impressed.
Highlighted by whited
There are a number of features of a ‘real campus’ that Marilyn Lombardi describes in a recent EduCause article and notes how they are being recreated in virtual contexts. Nonetheless, it doesn’t take too much imagination to see that this environment offers everything that Moos and Muds had with the important affordance to create ones own gestures, buildings and activity scripts.
Highlighted by whited
The capacity to create spaces in which multiple forms of human discourse can flourish, while still retaining access to the Net’s resources is very compelling.
Highlighted by whited
herefore one must have a compelling need to engage simultaneously in order to justify the learning curve and technological requirements of these systems. I imagine that for opening sessions, special guests and other multiple site activities, SL would provide not only excitement but a great deal of dare I say “realism’ that likely justifies the effort.
Highlighted by whited
Creating an educational environment in close proximity to enterprise focused on sex, rock and roll and gambling, presents a host of moral and ethical concerns.
Highlighted by whited
Public Comment