Second Life:Possibilities for Teaching and Learning in a Virtual

World

DR. LAURA NICOSIAAssistant ProfessorEnglish Department

AJ KELTONDirector

CHSS TechnologyServices Unit

What do you already know about Second

Life?

What is Second Life?

“Second Life is a 3-D virtual world entirely built and owned by its residents.”

A flexible space for learning and exploration

An opportunity for people to interact in a way that conveys a sense of presence lacking in other media.

Generalized rather than contextual, applicable to almost any discipline.

Second life is NOT a game - there are no rules or a fixed goal-oriented purpose

• http://www.secondlife.com/whatis andhttp://www.nmc.org/pdf/2006_Horizon_Report.pdf

Statistics

15-20K sign ups daily - over 10 million total

25 - 50K residents on at one time

over $1 million spent daily

The Linden - $L - The LindeX

Well over 200 educational institutions

Over 250 “sims” dedicated to education

What is Behind Second Life

a scaleable co-located grid of servers running Linux - “infinite” growth just by adding a server

Real-time 3D streaming at DSL/Cable modem (or higher).

Streaming positional audio - conveys distance and direction.

One download delivers persistent desktop access - everything resides on the grid

Cross-platform portability

What is Behind Second Life

Infinite avatar customization - no two avatars alike

Uploadable textures and audio

Quicktime video can play in-world.

Rigid body physics simulation

International Language Support - chat and communicate in

local languages, including Asian character sets. European

keyboards supported.

• http://lindenlab.com/press/technology

•Pedagogical Validity for Teaching with Second Life

First, we recognize…

There is significant media hype focused on the “darker sides” of the in-world experience - violence, sex, drugs and rock & roll [VSDRR]

The label of “gaming” poses an image problem for SL insofar as its potential uses in secondary and/or higher education

Without proper directions, goals and objectives, SL is as aimless and as pedagogically bereft of meaning as any other poorly designed or poorly deployed classroom lesson

However, withconstructivist pedagogies…

ComprehensionComprehension soars when (Neo)Millennial students soars when (Neo)Millennial students engage with their avatars and co-journey through the engage with their avatars and co-journey through the learning environment’s unfolding episodes and learning environment’s unfolding episodes and processes (Dede)processes (Dede)

Learning communitiesLearning communities are fostered ( are fostered (Bereiters and Scardameglia’s Knowledge Forum experiBereiters and Scardameglia’s Knowledge Forum experimentment)

Collaborative knowledge-building Collaborative knowledge-building develops and develops and cognitive capital is distributed among groups and cognitive capital is distributed among groups and individualsindividuals

• Continued on next slide

Constructivist pedagogies...

Learners forge Learners forge Identity Formation Identity Formation StrategiesStrategies (agency) through graphical (agency) through graphical avatars (persona) to communicate with avatars (persona) to communicate with other agents and to interact with digital other agents and to interact with digital artifacts (Dede)artifacts (Dede)

In many ways, SL immersion is similar to In many ways, SL immersion is similar to what many literary critics call what many literary critics call Transactional Reader Response Transactional Reader Response (Rosenblatt).(Rosenblatt).

Second Life is…Second Life is…

A A mediummedium or text that may be “read” or text that may be “read” as a hybrid genre or environas a hybrid genre or environ

A A platformplatform for learning and for learning and engagementengagement

An An interfaceinterface where immersion in a where immersion in a virtual environ using avatar-based virtual environ using avatar-based entities is akin to a transactional reader entities is akin to a transactional reader response with a characterresponse with a character

We construct We construct the Self in the Self in

many ways; many ways; narrative narrative

explorationexplorationis one is one

methodmethod

Harvard educational Harvard educational research indicates...research indicates...

• For psychologists adopting this model of cognitive psychology, embracing narrative and its characters is a fundamental way to enable human beings to make their way through the world.

We have at least 3 We have at least 3 selvesselves

The Real - the identity in the here-and-now; the The Real - the identity in the here-and-now; the person behind the facade or characterperson behind the facade or character

The Projective - the identity of the Real person we The Projective - the identity of the Real person we put into an avatar or online character; the put into an avatar or online character; the qualities we transfer from the Real to the onlinequalities we transfer from the Real to the online

The Virtual - one’s identity AS a virtual character; The Virtual - one’s identity AS a virtual character; a constructed, fictionalized protagonist we a constructed, fictionalized protagonist we embody while “inworld”embody while “inworld”

• Gee, James Paul.

• What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy.New York: Palgrave, 2003.

Navigating Navigating experiences through experiences through these personae is not these personae is not

simply “play”simply “play”•Importantly, Jung clarified that the various

persona, are not a pose or some other intentional

misrepresentation of the self to others. Rather, it

is, as it were, the self as self-construed, and may

change according to situation and context.

Living through virtual Living through virtual experiences is to experiences is to

inhabit a realm of pure inhabit a realm of pure possibility and to possibility and to

practice what Donald practice what Donald Graves callsGraves calls

“long thinking.”“long thinking.”

• ““Long thinkers are Long thinkers are problem finders, enjoy problem finders, enjoy their own company, their own company, have a sense of play, are have a sense of play, are highly focused and have highly focused and have been appreciated by been appreciated by other long thinkers.”other long thinkers.”

• Donald GravesDonald GravesTesting is Not Teaching: What Should Count in Education,Testing is Not Teaching: What Should Count in Education, 2002 2002

Immersion yields enhanced Immersion yields enhanced motivationmotivation

Hands-on, constructivist practices pose Hands-on, constructivist practices pose challengeschallenges and peak and peak curiositycuriosity

MMUVEs MMUVEs reach learnersreach learners who do not succeed in who do not succeed in conventional classroom settingsconventional classroom settings

The use of MMUVEs allow for delivery of The use of MMUVEs allow for delivery of sophisticated content in sophisticated content in context context andand application application

• http://muve.gse.harvard.edu/rivercityproject/

Dede’s research onDede’s research onMMUVEs showsMMUVEs shows

The application of MMUVEsThe application of MMUVEs

Requires Requires higher order skillshigher order skills

BuildsBuilds fluency fluency in distributed modes in distributed modes of communication, expression and of communication, expression and rhetoricrhetoric

Encourages participants to engage Encourages participants to engage in in extended periods of dialogueextended periods of dialogue (both written and oral)(both written and oral)

Second Life permits

Guided Inquiry, where experience is central to Guided Inquiry, where experience is central to learning learning

Scaffolding of in-world prior experiences Scaffolding of in-world prior experiences through seeking, sieving and synthesizing through seeking, sieving and synthesizing experiencesexperiences

Decentralization of the class - knowledge is Decentralization of the class - knowledge is created across a community rather than created across a community rather than delivered from an individual (the teacher)delivered from an individual (the teacher)

And…

Unlearning of unconscious assumptions Unlearning of unconscious assumptions about communities and the “Other”about communities and the “Other”

Application of critical thinking and Application of critical thinking and problem-solving in context and in processproblem-solving in context and in process

Sharing of resources, cultural knowledge, Sharing of resources, cultural knowledge, stories and experiencesstories and experiences

Social exploration using a multiplicity of Social exploration using a multiplicity of perspectives and points of viewperspectives and points of view

Pedagogical Pedagogical considerations:considerations:

AsynchronousAsynchronous media to enable convenient media to enable convenient participation and deeper reflection at each user’s participation and deeper reflection at each user’s pacepace

SynchronousSynchronous virtual exchanges to allow for virtual exchanges to allow for heightened immersion and emotional/social heightened immersion and emotional/social interactionsinteractions

A combination of A combination of mediated,mediated, situated learning- situated learning-environments (teacher established challenges) AND environments (teacher established challenges) AND free, evolvingfree, evolving situated learning environments (to situated learning environments (to experience virtual exploration)experience virtual exploration)

An effective virtual An effective virtual learning environment learning environment

may:may:

Supplement face-to-face interaction Supplement face-to-face interaction

Be used in combination with other multi-Be used in combination with other multi-media (I.e. videoconferences either media (I.e. videoconferences either embedded within the SL platform or embedded within the SL platform or concomitant with SL)concomitant with SL)

Be an adjunct to BlackBoard or another Be an adjunct to BlackBoard or another more linear, asynchronous interactions with more linear, asynchronous interactions with discussion groups and blogs discussion groups and blogs

For discipline-specific For discipline-specific

uses of SL in the uses of SL in the class:class:

•““101 Uses for Second Life in the College 101 Uses for Second Life in the College Classroom.” Dr. Megan S. Conklin—Elon UniversityClassroom.” Dr. Megan S. Conklin—Elon Universityhttp://trumpy.cs.elon.edu/metaverse

Advertising

Architecture

Art/Theater Studies

Astronomy

Business

Chemistry

Composition

Culture Studies

Disabilities Studies

Economics

Education

Ethics

Gender Studies

Geography

History

Journalism

Justice Studies

Language Studies

Marketing

Math

Physics

Political Science

Programming

Psychology

Real Estate

Religion

Rhetoric

Sociology

Women’s Studies

Ultimately, We Must

Make the environment part of the learning experience rather than an end to itself

Enable metacognitive reflection on the SL experience

Construct feedback loops and self-renewing frameworks to inform our praxis

Investigate the pedagogical successes and failures of using Second life for our classes and disciplines

Dante’s Inferno and Linden Hills

Meet Students in “Interesting” Places

Exposure to the “Other ”

Construct 3-D Sites

Hold Meetings Inworld

The CHSS Pilot Project

Recreate What Exists

Walk into a story

Create Something New

Engage Your Students

Science

Art

NOAA

Business

Spaceport Alpha and Delta

Literature and History

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