I think second life is a wonderful place to use for educational purposes. My experience has been nothing but positive with second life. At first I was kinda skeptical because it seemed kinda weird to me. I didn't see why people would want to be in another world as someone else. Little did I know that it encompasses much more than just walking around talking to various people. However once I started using the program and got the basics down I was impressed. There aren't any boundaries and you have the ability to create your own building and present presentations etc..... I especially liked the Space Museum and going up on the rooftop for the powerpoint presentation for nlu. I wish CPS would use this for teachers on our professional development days. However some old school teachers would be lost and most schools wouldnt have enough computers to accomodate the staff. Funny thing is that I just got a PS3 and the playstation network is just like second life with the avatars and such. Everyone is walking around watching videos, talking, and purchasing PS3 games. They throw parties on there and play games together. There is even streaming ESPN! LOL!! Second life may be the future...... but of what in education? There are so many possibilities of how it can be used. Let me get to braingstorming..... maybe I can come up with something that will change education as we know it.
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B, I think I am showing my age when I say that Second life just is not much of a life for me. I get a greater kick out of a game like Oregon Trail or something where the "gameplay" is smoother.
ReplyDeleteI do not deny that Second Life has a place in Education, but for my taste, I feel like it is too complicated to become a standard or mainstream. The control panels and commands were WAY too complex to be used in an educational setting any earlier than middle school. And even that is stretching it.
I can definitely see it as a venue for PD or on line courses.
But K-12, eh. It nothing compared to a Wii or a PS3 where all the controls are manipulated in a handful of buttons and a directional pad.
Peace
D
Currently I do not see my elementary students using Second Life in the classroom. I agree with D, some of the control panels and commands would be to confusing for the younger students to use. I could see 5th graders being able to figure out how to get around but I do not think they are mature enough to use second life as an educational tool. They would get in there and start playing with the sounds, greetings, jumping around. Also being realistic we only have one computer lab that is hardwired in the school.
ReplyDeleteI think that if a teacher really wanted to use second life in their classroom they could use their projectors to show students the different worlds. The teacher could control the avatar an the students would still be able to experience second life and all it has to offer without the lose of learning time.
Yeah Greene........... that would be funny they would be flying everywhere and typing crazy messages. I see 2nd life as more of a teacher tool than for students to utilize.
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ReplyDeleteHey, I think you are on to something fantastic, I also believe that maybe it can be incorporated in the CPS curriculum. It's so funny many of our teacher probably would be lost, just like I was at first. But I guess practice do make perfect!!!(LOL) I was just like you a little apprehensive about Second Life and the more you work with it the better your understanding become and then you become more curious about it.
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