The second article I reviewed is:
Baker, Suzanne C., Wentz, Ryan K. and Woods, Madison M.(2009). Using Virtual Worlds in Education: Second Life as an Educational Tool. Teaching of Psychology. 36:1,59 — 64
All I have to say is wow. Not Wolrd of Warcraft mind you, but wow as in WOW. This article talks about signing students into a MMORPG, Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game, and having class in a virtual setting. They review the validity of the idea and cost effectiveness. Though to sign up for "Second Life" is free, if you want private space, you have to pay a monthly fee to rent the virtual land. They found that the students were engaged and eager to begin. Of course, going to school in a video game? Who wouldn't find that exciting!
For my thoughts, I would have to know much more about the project for me to dissagree, but I could imagine it being very effective for keeping students engaged in classroom criteria and very willing to participate in the class itself. Would I ever try something like this? Maybe, but it wouldn't rent out to a 3rd party. I would create the virtual setting with my own programs and go from their. This way, I would have complete control over the content and be able to modify as I see fit.
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Mick,
ReplyDeleteLike you I would be really interested in seeing how this would work. I think this would be a lot of work on part of the teacher but could really be efective if used correctly. Let me know if you ever do decided to complete something like this!
I would love to do something like this. But, I would have to be the administrator on ALL levels. I have to be aware of every single bit of content in order for myself to be comfortable with it. This, "Second life" may be a good plan, an excellent way to introduce otherwise impossible scenarios, but I would have to research the program.
ReplyDeleteThe only Real software of this type I currently 'play' with is a military simulation. I do not think I could easily defend the educational implications of this software, but it doesn't mean I won't try:)