A taste of Second Life

Learning in Virtual Worlds Conference

2009-03-31T22:17:00.000-07:00

"Virtual worlds are opening up fantastic possibilities for students and lifelong learners....... "

"A Regional Conference, 'Learning in Virtual Worlds' to be held on 21st April 2009: A collaborative event between RSC Northern and the Univeristy of Sunderland and sponsored by The Higher Education Academy."

http://www.rsc-northern.ac.uk/

Kathryn & Ferdinand will be presenting on "The GCU Experience." We'll be talking generally about GCU's SL initiative - CU There - and discussing some of the pilot teaching projects that are currently taking place within GCU. We'll report on some of the different pedagogies the projects use, and look at the emerging results and issues from the projects where we have already had students in-world. We'll also touch upon staff development and student induction. And then we'll take a peek at a potential future for 3D technologies...

Hey, thats us, that is!

2009-02-16T05:19:00.001-08:00

Now published on Virtual Worlds Watch, the [infamous] podcast interview of Ferdinand & Kathryn...

http://virtualworldwatch.net/2009/02/16/kathryn-trinder-and-ferdinand-francino/

Enjoy!

#cevw09 Peter Twinning on Curriculum Issues.

2009-01-21T02:01:00.000-08:00

Test pic for Michael :-)

Teaching and learning with MUVEs’

2008-10-22T08:25:00.000-07:00

[Re post from Facebook]

Teaching and learning with MUVEs’ -
To members of Second Life for Educators

Posted on Facebook on: 21 October at 10:29

---
The European funded MUVEnation project has just launched ‘Teaching and learning with MUVEs’. This is a one year postgraduate programme, delivered online, for future and in-service teachers who want to use innovative methods and tools to address learners motivation and participation issues in compulsory education. What impact can 3D virtual worlds, such as Second Life, really have on our learning and teaching settings?
http://muvenation.org/about/programme-description/

The course is free, but there are only 80 places. Participants will receive a formal letter or certificate of completion from their assigned institution For a full overview of the programme description and objectives please visit. We have four levels of participation - from the full course to those who are more experienced and would like simply to observe and participate in discussions
http://muvenation.org/about/programme-description/

The programme will be taking place in Italy, United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Belgium and France. If you are interested in participating then please see the registration details here on the site, the closing days for applications is the last week in October.
http://muvenation.org/participate/

We look forward to hearing from you,
The MUVEnation team

"Let's junk the myths and celebrate what we've got"

2008-09-29T00:56:00.000-07:00

An article in the Grauniad by Jeff Jarvis - http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/sep/29/digital.media.new "Let's junk the myths and celebrate what we've got"

Yes, good, excellent...but he doesn't go nearly far enough. His 'complaints' are farily minor, and we've had all these about Web 2.0 & Second Life, but just look at some of the others we've received recently about SL - scantily clad women, porn, sexist, racist, unaccessible, as well as, yes, more minor complaints that we hear with each new technologuy that comes along - it is too technology hungry, it is uncontrollable ("can we stop the students from going to x, y, z?"), it is impossible to police, it is flash-in-the-pan, it is a game with no educational value....

So, can we junk these myths in the way that Jeff Jarivs does? And what other myths are out there regarding Web 2.0, Second Life and similar online virtual environments?

Come on, comments are open, let's get these things off our chests, move the argument on, find out what are the *real* issues, and discover what are the *real* gems to celebrate for learning & teaching.

Accessibilty and Second life

2008-09-01T05:43:00.000-07:00

Accessibilty came up a wee while ago at one of our taster sessons, and many others have been enquiring if any movement had been made on this issue. It is of course an issue we take seriously, but one that, as it was for the web and the intenet, is taking longer to develop than, perhaps, we feel it should. However, we knew that there would be solutions out there as demand grows.

An article was brought to my attention this mornig (thanks Gwynn), posted by Eloise Pasteur (who does a lot of development and scripting work in Sl for education. Many of the 'teachers tools' in the area next to the Redundnt Tech Hut on GCU Island are by Elouise)

http://eloisepasteur.net/blog/index.php?/archives/190-Second-Life-text-to-chat-software-E.V.A..html, and the original post at: http://tentacolor.com/2008/08/30/the-scripted-leading-the-blind/

Second LIfe Tutorials

2008-08-24T05:30:00.000-07:00

For those still new into Second Life, or just considering registering, here is a recent find. I've not been through them all yet, but they look pretty comprehensive: http://sl-adventures.com/village/hut1_movingAround.html
The website also includes SLUrls to the island where you can practice these activities.

For those of you further into SL, the 'Deeper aspects' section may be of interest: http://sl-adventures.com/deeperAspects.html?106158

And another one...

2008-08-18T03:49:00.001-07:00

It seems that courses teaching in Second Life about Second Life are proliferating... Anyone at GCU want to start a new course? Do get in touch!

Copied directly from an in-world notice from EDTech Community group(use the search groups function in SL to join the group):

"Digital Media Certificate being offered at vTSTC.
Completion of the program will result in a college credit certificate in digital media. For detailed course information please visit our website referenced below. The digital media certificate is 24 semester hours and may be completed as quickly as two semesters (each semester is 12 hours). Our semesters run 15 weeks sectioned into 7 1/2 week blocks with two course offerings each block..

Non-Texas residents course cost is $200.00/ semester hour - each full time semester will be $2400.00, plus the cost of any course material required for a class (ie. digital camera). If you are a Texas resident you may qualify for in state tuition.

Once accepted into the program, we will be offering a $500.00 scholarship as well as a software bundle including programs such as Adobe CS3 & MS Office which is a $700.00 value.

For more information about the program , please visit this website:
http://v.tstc.edu

Please take time to visit our virtual campus

http://slurl.com/secondlife/TSTC%20Commons/130/126/46

Should you have any other questions or would like to enroll in the course, please IM Stella Schuler"

"Social Network Learning in Virtual Worlds"

2008-08-18T02:24:00.000-07:00

This course, run by Boise State University "...explores the use of social networks in and around virtual worlds as a means of supporting networked learning and collaboration". It's a distance course, tutored entirely in Second Life:

http://docs.google.com/View?docid=dfzrcdcd_18238v9rhfw

An interesting example of teaching using 3D virtual worlds, and the web page/wiki contains some rather useful resouces. Well worth checking out.

If any one registeres for the course we'd be interested in hearing about your expereince!

Scientific discourse 2.0. Will your next poster session be in Second Life ®?

2008-07-02T03:20:00.000-07:00

A relatively balance view, and easy read, on using 3D environments for Scientific discourse, though the ideas and thoughts are applicable to any subject considering using the technology for teaching and learning.

The author concludes:
"As with any new technology, there are issues that could have an impact on the usefulness of online communication and its acceptance within the scientific community. Scientists who rely on peer-reviewed data for their work might find Web 2.0's lack of proofreading unacceptable to document research findings. However, we should explore the existing and potential applications of virtual communication for unique ways to discuss ideas, answer questions, educate and debate. Our ability to understand what we can accomplish in online worlds depends on our collective experience with the technology. The more scientists and clinicians who work with and comprehend the applications of virtual worlds for their respective research fields, the sooner we will realize how this technology can be best applied. The next step is to invite ourselves into these online realms, experiment with what they have to offer, and see where our exploration and creativity takes us."

See the full text at: http://www.nature.com/embor/journal/v9/n6/full/embor200886.html

Inquiry in a Networked World - LTEA2008 in Second Life

2008-07-01T01:09:00.000-07:00

Last week I attended a couple of sessions at the "Learning Through Enquiry Alliance (LTEA) Conference 2008 - Inquiry in a Networked World", held by the University of Sheffield, CILASS (Centre for Inquiry-based Learning in the Arts and Social Sciences)

I attended these virtually though, in Second Life. One stream of the (RL) conference was 'Spaces'. The organisers had set up combined sessions, where SL delegates led a couple of discussions exploring how Inqury based learning may be supported by use of virtual spaces...or even the other way around, how being in a virtual space can instigate IBL. A stimulating morning, well run and well done in SL. (We decided that taking part in SL was more socially interactive than in RL, where we got to know a small group much better than we usually can do in RL!)
Sheila created a wiki to support the conference. This has been developing from before it started as well as during, and is still developing now as delegates reflect.

http://networked-inquiry.pbwiki.com/About+LTEA2008+in+Second+Life.
Chatlogs will be posted soon.

I think one of the main things that came out of this for me, that I'll be following up pretty soon was triggered by Sheila's comment about the 'natural cues' in SL, that were being overrided by the animations we were all using when sitting in the initial spot. When we moved to Sakura house and used seats that allowed us to 'see' who was typing that made for a very different experience. Intriguing...

SLurl to Sheffield's Islands: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Infolit%20iSchool/148/196/21/

Goldfinch

Knowledge Exchange Launch

2008-06-25T07:29:00.001-07:00

GCU's island was officially launched last week at the Knowledge Exchange Launch event.

This week the island has been opened up to the public, so if you're there and you see a visitor looking lost, please help them out! :-)

Videos from the launch can be found at:
RL video http://www.gcal.ac.uk/appliedknowledgeexchange/video/index.html

and

SL video http://www.caledonian.ac.uk/appliedknowledgeexchange/video/index_2ndlife.html

Work is about to start on developing the Learning & Teaching in 3D Virtual Worlds Competition entries. Watch this space for more news and details of the projects.

K

Found blogHUD...

2008-06-25T07:05:00.000-07:00

...but too mean yet to buy it so that I can post direct to this blog. :-)

Surely one of our own scripters can write something like this for us, to use here at GCU? ;-)

Kathy

Michael blogs about blogging about blogging in SL...

2008-06-25T06:33:00.000-07:00

...or something along those lines. This all gets very recursive :-)

See Michael's blog post re his entry to the SL Comp. He also posts some great links to his own found resources, and I'm about to go check out the HUD he mentions that allows you to "blog directly from SL". I've been looking for just such a thing! Too good to be true :-) I want. (But will it work with blogger? That is the burning question. Watch this space...)

Michaels blog can be found, on the HEA's Law Subject Centre website, at: http://tiny.cc/nym0e

Kathy

MD to fight stress in Second Life

2008-06-17T07:20:00.000-07:00

"In another sign that Second Life is beginning to resemble the first, doctors are stepping into the virtual world to reach patients they might otherwise miss."

"A Massachusetts General Hospital neurologist, Dr. Daniel Hoch, wants to learn whether therapy administered in Second Life, the virtual world created by Linden Lab, can have benefits in the world that we share with our spouses, kids, death, and taxes."

"In coming months, an instructor from Mass. General will lead 20 to 40 Second Life recruits through guided meditations designed to reduce their stress levels."

"...SL might make teaching some concepts easier. Guided imagery meditations, such as walks through meadows or forests, could be generated in the SL teaching space..."

"...individual students will be encouraged to send text messages directly to the instructor while she is teaching over the voice channel, providing the kind of feedback many teachers dream of."

Find the full story here

Spotlight: Virtual Chemistry for Real Students

2008-06-13T03:22:00.000-07:00

An interesting posting on the SLED blog (thanks Colin for bringing this to my attention)

http://www.sl-educationblog.org/?p=130

Hiro Sheridan has created a "molecule rezzer that allows a user to name a compound in text chat and watch as it builds itself in front of you atom by atom, and a docking simulator that demonstrates how molecules bond together to form more complex structures".

This rezzer helps students to visualise a concept that they currently find difficult to grasp through more traditional text and image explanations.

Hiro has also built a 3D periodical table and has made this freely available to educators. I'll ask Goldfinch to pick up a copy for GCU Island next time she's in-world.

To visit their island in SL to try out some of these tools for yourself, click the SLURL to login and teleport directly: http://slurl.com/secondlife/ACS/101/234/27

Kathy

GCU 3D Virtual Worlds Competition - The Winners

2008-06-10T04:13:00.000-07:00

We're pleased to announce the 3 joint winners of the our recent 3D Virtual Worlds Competition.

The wining entries are:

"Finding the way in Second Life"
David Moffat, School of engineering and computing (Creative Computing Technologies)

"Overcoming the barriers of asking for help: The feasibility of Second Life as a platform for students to access support from an Academic Development Tutor without feeling stigmatised"
Dr Jane McKay, Dr Valerie Webster, Gordon Morlan, Health & Social Care

"Radiographic exposure manipulation"
Jan Little, School of Health and Social Care

The competition was devised to find pilot projects to investigate potential uses of 3D virtual worlds (for example, 'Second Life') to support learning and teaching within the University.

Each of the 3 winning entries will receive a small development prize in both £ and L$ ('Linden Dollars' - the in-world currency of Second Life) along with advice on designing & realising project ideas and evaluation strategies. The CA and CU There teams will be working with the winners in the coming months to develop their ideas and begin implementation and building.

There were also several Runner-Up projects in the competition, Whilst these will not receive a budget for development we recognise that they have merit in their own right, therefore we will be working with these teams on planning the implementation and building of their projects, where feasible.

More information will be announced as these projects progress.

Emerging Mondays radio broadcast and Second Life events

2008-06-10T00:57:00.000-07:00

Check out the JISC Emerging Mondays events:

http://elgg.jiscemerge.org.uk/stevenw/weblog/1479.html

http://elgg.jiscemerge.org.uk/graham/weblog/1478.html

This weeks event was:

'Social software - finding value? The right tools but the wrong approach?'

The Second Life events are on Emerge Island: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Emerge/69/80/36

And the radio broadcasts can be listened too, or caught later at: http://icecast.commedia.org.uk:8000/emerge.mp3.m3u

Unfortunately I didn't catch this one as I was attending SL eve classes, but I'm aiming to attend next month, and I'll report back.

Don't Panic

2008-05-30T11:52:00.000-07:00

You may not be able to get into SL tonight. Looks like Linden's servers are having problems again.

Please see: http://status.secondlifegrid.net/2008/05/30/post91/ for updates and to check when SL will be back online.

Goldfinch

May 2008 snapshot of UK HE and FE developments in SL

2008-05-22T07:11:00.000-07:00

http://www.eduserv.org.uk/foundation/sl/uksnapshot052008

May 2008 snapshot of UK HE and FE developments in SL

This report summarises an investigation into the use and uptake of Second Life (SL) by UK Higher and Further Education. The research, carried out in the period up until May 2008, had four main goals:

* to determine the "state of play" of SL developments within the Higher and Further Education sector,
* to discover how these developments are supported, in terms of time, funding and other resources,
* to explore the functionality of these developments, i.e. which types of media or interactive service they incorporate,
* to establish how "busy", or well-used, the developments have been and discover any impacts resulting from their implementation and use.

John Kirriemuir
May 2008

Notice posted on Twitter http://twitter.com/andypowe11, and link followed from: http://artfossett.blogspot.com/2008/05/second-snapshot-of-uk-educational.html

And the good news is...

2008-04-29T11:44:00.000-07:00

We *should* now have access again to Second Life on Campus...well, maybe...

I remember back in the old days, back then when Blackboard was young... Most new techs have hiccups and glitches, but look at GCU's use of BB now - most of us couldn't imagine being without it!

Anyway, details of the resolved problems can be found in the link below.

Goldfinch

(Please right click to open in an new window) http://status.secondlifegrid.net/2008/04/29/post42/

[RESOLVED]Problematic Logins (and forced logoffs)
[05.51 AM RESOLVED] Logins should be restored for all affected accounts. It may take some time for things to return to normal as the system catches up and everyone starts logging back in, but they are back online. -Chiyo

[05.16 AM UPDATE] The good news is we have found the problem with logins. The bad news it means logging off all accounts associated with one of our inventory databases while the fix is implemented. The accounts affected will not be able to log back in until they are complete.

Massively Multi Learner 2008 - Video Streams

2008-04-13T01:19:00.000-07:00

Video of 2 of the presentations from MML08:

Simon Bignell, aka Milton Broome (University of Derby), talks about "Blended Learning with 3D environments".

This stream is 36 minutes long, but is *well worth* watching. Simon shares Derby's experiences of their early development and exploration of using Second Life as a teaching environment. Not all their experiences are relevant to GCU and I don't necessarily agree with all he says, but he does make a lot of sense and gives some very helpful 'tips'. :-)

Anna Peachy (Open University) talks about some of the work the OU are doing in Second Life.

Emerging trends in serious games and virtual worlds

2008-04-07T01:39:00.000-07:00

Emerging trends in serious games and virtual worlds

By Sara de Freitas
Serious Games Institute

In the new BECTA publication:
Emerging technologies for learning: volume 3 (2008)

NMC Publishes Results of Educators in Second Life Survey

2008-04-07T00:50:00.000-07:00

http://www.nmc.org/news/nmc/sl-educator-survey

Each spring, the New Media Consortium (NMC) conducts a comprehensive survey intended to capture insights about the work of individual educators; these typically focus on a specific new-media-related topic. Given the NMC’s expansive projects this year in virtual worlds, the Spring 2007 NMC survey was intended to gather information on the activities, attitudes, and interests of educators active in Second Life.

The results are from the 209 completed surveys collected between May 1-29, 2007.

ReLIVE08

2008-03-26T02:06:00.000-07:00

The Open University is pleased to announce an international conference for Researching Learning in Virtual Environments to be held at its campus in Milton Keynes on the 20th and 21st of November 2008.
This conference will be of interest to anyone researching learning and teaching in virtual world environments such as Second Life.
The conference organisers are keen to construct a programme that features diverse and innovative research approaches to learning and teaching in virtual worlds. Given the emerging practice associated with virtual worlds, the conference committee are also keen to receive papers reporting on the experience of learning and teaching using virtual worlds that relate practice and outcomes to literature and research in this area. We anticipate that submissions will reflect a range of research methods and will examine issues such as rigour, methods of sampling, relationships between researchers and researched, and the ethics and politics of the research process.
Please find more details at the website on http://www.open.ac.uk/relive08