Second Life - Day 6

The Final Day!

Today was my final day exploring the 3D virtual learning environment of Second Life! I chose to visit Virtlantis, which is a language learning island, though it isn't limited to just learning English. Let's take a look at what I found.

Virtlantis

 ^^ Here is my initial view upon teleporting here. Everything you need to know about Virtlantis is right in front of you. ^^

 ^^ The schedule for the coming week offers activities in English, Polish, and French. ^^

 ^^ This island was designed to be very inviting. ^^

 ^^ Exploring the island. Here's a building where learners can gather. ^^

 ^^ Inside the building. A little dark, but students could easily meet up here. ^^

 ^^ Another area for people to meet. ^^

 ^^ Yet another meeting area. Each are has a different 'feel' to it, depending on the vibe you want. ^^

 ^^ An aerial view of the island. ^^

^^ Approaching the amphitheater. ^^ 

 ^^ Virtlantis offers music concerts. There's a lot of support here for people who want to organize activities. ^^

^^ My personal favorite hangout location. My avatar took a relaxing break here to reflect on her journey through Second Life. ^^

Final Thoughts

Today's visit was completely different from yesterday's trip to the Holocaust Museum, but I think that's part of the beauty of Second Life. There are plenty of different learning environments to suit different educational needs. Virtlantis seemed pretty similar to EduNation, though it looks like at Virtlantis, anyone can contribute and become a teacher. I could envision students coming here to gather for speaking practice.

The End?

I tended to visit Second Life at odd hours (thank you, time difference), so every place I visited was virtually empty. It made me question the popularity of these places, but they all seem to be well maintained, so my guess is that I just had bad luck meeting other people. I wonder what it would be like to visit these places when they are full of people; it must be a different experience!

This week's project took me to so many different learning environments. I know there's more out there, such as historical versions of real cities, but I think I learned a lot traveling to the various locations this week.

I don't know if I'll use Second Life in the future, but I can definitely say that I am much more comfortable with it, and with 3D VLEs in general. If this is the way that education is going, I am ready for the future.

Second Life - Day 5

Something Different

Today I tried out very different location. I went to the Holocaust Memorial Museum, as it was on the list of places to visit this week and was highly recommended. What an amazing experience!

Holocaust Memorial Museum

When you enter the museum, you are automatically greeted with the following message: 

"Welcome to Witnessing History. You are entering an environment focused on a single event – Kristallnacht (The Night of Broken Glass). Here, you will take the role of a journalist, recalling the testimony of eyewitnesses as you investigate what happened during the November 1938 pogroms."

Because the museum puts in in the role of journalist, you are asked to explore and interact with everything you come across in order to write your findings at the end. Below are some screenshots of my journey through the museum:

^^ Where I landed after teleporting in. ^^

^^ The entrance to the museum. ^^

^^ When you enter, the curator automatically delivers a message (quoted above) to prepare you for the experience. ^^

^^ In the first room, you begin to gather information by reading the posters on the walls. ^^

^^ When you are ready, you click on the glowing book, which opens up a wall to the rest of the exhibit. ^^

^^ You are transported to the streets as they would have looked on the Kristallnacht. ^^

^^ Getting my bearings. ^^

^^ Visitors can interact with a lot of objects. Here you see a translation (left) of one of the propaganda posters (center). ^^

 ^^ By clicking on a glowing object, I was able to receive a notecard with more detailed information. ^^

^^ The notecards helped paint a picture of that night and the events leading up to it. ^^

^^ It was a very immersive and detailed experience. ^^

^^ An up-close view of some authentic photographs. ^^

^^ Exploring another room. ^^

^^ Photographs linked to eyewitness accounts. ^^

^^ After exploring the synagogue, you reach the end of the tour. ^^

^^ Visitors are asked to reflect on their experience and post it on this board. ^^

^^ The museum also has a quiet place for reflection, much like it would in the real world. ^^

^^ The museum was very detailed, right down to the quotes on the walls. ^^

^^ If you want to learn more, the poster will take take you to websites outside Second Life. ^^

Overall Thoughts

The Holocaust Memorial Museum in Second Life makes for a pretty powerful experience, not just because of the content, but also because visitors are surrounded by the aftermath of the event in a way that wouldn't be possible in a traditional museum. I think this is a far more memorable experience, and one that really makes learning come to life because visitors are responsible for gathering and piecing together information to create an understanding of what happened.

I could see a teacher sending students to come here and report their findings. The museum is designed for this kind of student-centered learning. Overall, I think the Holocaust Memorial Museum is a great example of how Second Life can work for an educational experience.

Second Life - Day 4

Introduction

The journey continues as I seek out potential places and react to the different environments in Second Life. I'm starting to feel a bit more comfortable in the virtual world, but I still have been on mostly-empty islands.

Sky Platform

I wanted to go back to Learn It Town - not to the downtown area, but to the Sky Platform. The Sky Platform is a really unique place, and I wanted to explore the different possibilities.

Basically, the Sky Platform functions as a blank slate. When you click on the red "HORIZONS Pro" button, a list of different locations pops up. Click on a location, and the location materializes right before your eyes. When you are finished, you just type "clear" in the chat box, and you are back to your blank slate. Here's what I mean:

 ^^ You can have class on a campground. ^^

 ^^ Or you can meet in a traditional classroom. Not sure why the ground is made of grass, though. ^^

 ^^ A Pharaoh's tomb is one of the environments that you can create. ^^

 ^^ How about a countryside cottage? ^^

 ^^ This library seems like a great place to set a mood for a class. ^^

 ^^ Want to do some situational learning? You can practice car terminology in the garage? ^^

 ^^ As someone who currently lives in Japan, this shrine appealed to me. ^^

 ^^ Students can role play in a hotel. ^^

 ^^ Take your students somewhere they've never been before, like a New York City loft. ^^

 ^^ Students can experience something they've probably only ever seen on TV, like the Oval Office. Imagine having class here! ^^

 ^^ Create a relaxed atmosphere in a garden. ^^

 ^^ Or talk about history in context. ^^

^^ Get your class to relax on the beach. ^^

The Sky Platform is a really unique way to get a variety of locations without actually having to travel anywhere. I think it's a good way to get students comfortable. They can easily choose a location that makes them feel at ease. Lowering the affective filter is a key part of language acquisition. If students feel that they can control their environment within a 3D world, they may feel more at home. 

Additionally, this may play to some students' strengths. If they know a lot about, say, working in a garage, they can transport their teacher and classmates to that environment and share what they know. Or maybe they have to give a report about Stonehenge. It's much more interesting for everyone if they are standing in that environment. 

Of course, there are traditional locations like a classroom or conference room in the Sky Platform. There are also locations where students can do situational learning, such as at the airport or car garage. But part of the appeal of Second Life is that things don't have to be stuck in reality. So why not have a class in a Pharoah's tomb, on the beach, or in the Oval Office? You can really set a mood and create a feeling for your students that you can't do in a traditional classroom.

Second Life - Day 3

Introduction

Today was my third day exploring the virtual world of Second Life. Today I chose to a visit place that wasn't specifically designed for education in the same way as EduNation or Learn It Town, but still has the potential for learning and exploration.

Exploratorium

After testing out a few locations, I settled on the Exploratorium, which is a great island for educational discovery. Based on the museum in San Francisco, the island has several small exhibits that you can interact with. While I walked around the entire island, I only took screen shots of two exhibits. Here's what I found:

 ^^ Aerial view of Exploratorium. ^^

 ^^ They had an exhibit in honor of Pi Day, where you could learn all the mathematical properties of pi. ^^

^^ More of the displays for the Pi Day Exhibit. ^^ 

 ^^ There was a replica of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Reactor. ^^

 ^^ There were lots of explanatory posters about how the reactor works. You could interact with some objects and learn about their scientific makeup. ^^

^^ Because we can't fully understand what happened at Fukushima without talking about the earthquake, there were explanations about the earthquake that happened on 3.11 as well. ^^

 ^^ Lots of explanatory posters, maps, and a timeline. ^^

^^ The Exploratorium's blog announces when experts in various fields will be coming to give talks in Second Life. They also highlight new exhibits on the island. ^^

Thoughts

This is really different from the other places I've visited. I could see students coming here (or to a similar island that is rich with information) to research something. Students could break off into different groups, and each small group could explore a specific exhibit. Then, students could come together and report on their findings. Possible homework could be creating a notecard to give to their teacher or classmates (about their experience or what they learned), or it could be listening to a lecture by one of the guest speakers.

The trick in Second Life is to find locations that are education-focused and rich in information. I think students might learn better than in traditional classroom environments since they are immersed in the environment and have to set out to find the information themselves. The potential goes beyond just English. From history to math to science, there is much that can be learned about in a location such as this one.