Posts tagged ‘Second Life’
Virtual Conference Explores New Frontiers in Language Learning
Barcelona Spain, 20 March 2008 – – SLanguages 2008 is a 24-hour multilingual conference to celebrate and investigate the use of 3D virtual worlds for language education. The event will be held in Second Life on 23-24 May 2008…
SLanguages 2008 is a 24 hour multilingual conference to celebrate and investigate the use of 3D virtual worlds for language education. The conference will be held within Second Life allowing the participants to exchange ideas and share experiences simultaneously around the world. The online conference is free to attend and includes talks, workshops, discussions and posters on language education using virtual worlds such as Second Life. The events will cover methodologies, teaching tools and experiences.
Second Life is a 3D virtual world that has attracted over 12 million residents worldwide and has become a mainstream phenomenon for education, business and entertainment. Throughout 2007 Second Life has become an important tool for language learning with many universities using the 3D world for language tuition, including Michigan State University and the University of Southampton. “Interest in using Second Life for education has increased exponentially over the last year” says Second Life educational consultant Gavin Dudeney, author of The Internet and the Language Classroom, Longman 2007.
The event is an opportunity for those new to virtual language teaching to learn about the opportunities virtual worlds offer. The conference also allows experienced language educators to share experiences and ideas. “3D virtual worlds such as Second Life offer a unique form of immersive learning not found elsewhere. The SLanguages 2008 conference is the perfect opportunity to see the recent developments in this area and to meet those involved in truly innovative educational projects” says Graham Stanley, who has established the British Council’s ‘Learn English Second Life for Teens’.
SLanguages 2008 will be hosted within Second Life on the tropical “EduNation” islands owned by The Consultants-E. The conference starts 10am (PST) Friday 23 May and ends 10am (PST) Saturday 24 May. The seminars will continue to also reach a much wider audience through archives of the event on the http://www.slanguages.net website.
To register for the conference or for further information, please contact Gavin Dudeney of The Consultants-E or visit the website http://www.slanguages.net.
About The Consultants-E:
The Consultants-E is an educational consultancy company specialising in online education, offering tailored consultancy in technology for education. Their consultants assist companies and educational institutions to integrate innovative technologies into their teaching practices. The company also offers courses in e-learning tools such as Second Life, wikis, podcasts and Moodle. The Consultants-E own and run three private islands in Second Life that foster education and training.
Contact:
Gavin Dudeney
The Consultants-E
c/ Cerámica 54
08035 Barcelona
Spain
gavin.dudeney@theconsultants-e.com
http://www.theconsultants-e.com
Dudeney Ge (Avatar in Second Life)
[Authorised press release from The Consultants-E]
April 2, 2008 at 4:21 pm
“Second Life,” the online world that brings players together from across the globe to socialize, shop and even fly, is developing a second career as a hot spot for learning English as a second language (ESL).
It’s a classic innovation–a novel way to use a tool created for an entirely different purpose, namely to have a good time. That’s still the reason why most players come to “Second Life,” but English-language instructors who spend time with students there say they’re combining fun and learning–and getting excellent results.
Author: Bonnie Ruberg, Forbes Innovations, 19th March 2008
Full article available here.
March 31, 2008 at 4:00 pm
UPDATE: If you log in on the 18th at 11am GMT you should be able to join my (hopefully) live Google presentation by clicking THIS LINK. (Should allow you to ask questions using the chat interface!)
Later today (after I get some sleep!) I’ll be attending the Massively Multi Learner workshop at Anglia-Ruskin University.
I’ll be uploading my presentation in as many formats as possible to this post – and you may also be able to catch the live presentation online if you follow the instructions here.
Author: Daniel Livingstone, Learning Games Blog, 18th March 2008
Full article available here.
March 18, 2008 at 3:33 pm
Tomorrow I’ll be speaking at Massively Multi-Learner 2008. The presentations will be web-cast using Quicktime, details on the MML page here. My talk is titled “Before, Beyond (and Somewhere to the Left of) Second Life”, and will be a very brief run through of the use of virtual worlds in education (extremely simplified!) – looking at platforms past and future.
Author: Daniel Livingstone, Learning Games Blog, 17th March 2008
Full article available here.
March 17, 2008 at 8:44 pm
The latest Eduserv Foundation funded study into UK universities,
colleges and academics developing “stuff” in Second Life, and using
this for teaching and learning, is underway. Fuller details are
blogged here:
http://www.silversprite.com/?p=460
As we visit these developments, we’ll be taking screen dumps and
adding them to this picture set in Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/silversprite/sets/72157603982005324/
If you’re in UK Higher or Further Education and you’ve developed
something in Second Life then get in touch:
john@silversprite.com
It’s an opportunity to promote what you’ve done, and also for like-
minded academics to find you.
If you are aware of other developments in UK universities and colleges
– be they at the institution, department, group or lone academic level
– then we’d appreciate word of them too; thanks.
Author: John Kirriemuir, Silversprite Helsinki, 4th March 2008
March 4, 2008 at 6:48 pm
Still playing a bit of catch up from GDC and I have some interesting virtual world notes……
Have you seen the NASA
Request for Information for a massivley multiplayer online educational game. I think there are a couple of points of interest here. First, its a request from NASA for an MMOG. Prima facie interesting. Second, look at some of the quotes from the RFI and/or associated Web site:
- “There is increasing recognition that these synthetic environments can serve as powerful “hands-on” tools for teaching a range of complex subjects.”
- “MMOs help players develop and exercise a skill set closely matching the thinking, planning, learning, and technical skills increasingly in demand by employers.”
- “These skills include strategic thinking, interpretative analysis, problem solving, plan formulation and execution, team-building and cooperation, and adaptation to rapid change.”
I think the idea here is more like an America’s Army, recruiting type experience designed to increase the number of kids involved in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
**I should note here too that the following items come from the Virtual World News – probably the best single news coverage of developments in this area.
Corey Bridges from Multiverse Says Don’t Count Out Second Life: How you know your on the bleeding edge….when you start talking about how the first company to mainstream virtual worlds is slipping…judas, most people haven’t even been in a virtual world yet. We are just starting to see for-real corporate forays into the space…and yet here we are talking about Linden Lab slipping. IMHO the only thing that is slipping is this incorrect perception I think fostered by people outside of Second Life that Second Life would somehow remain as the only dog in this hunt. The Virtual World market is growing, the pie is getting bigger so relative slices will appear smaller.
Evidence of the above…..”$425 Million Invested in 15 Virtual Worlds Companies in Q4 2007“….”venture capital and media firms have invested more than $425 million dollars in 15 virtual worlds companies during the fourth quarter of 2007”. Hmmm…..$425 million IN THE FOURTH QUARTER. Yeah, this whole InterWeb thing is just a fad…..
Linden Lab to Beta Lightweight Second Life Client in February….hmmm….allowing access to a system (a virtual world say) from outside that system…where have I read a great blog post about how learning companies should be exploring that concept more?
Author: Mark Oehlert, e-Clippings, 28th February 2008
February 28, 2008 at 6:28 pm
(
link)
“Virtual worlds promise to be an excellent venue for research and education in business and related disciplines. This document provides an introduction to virtual worlds, discusses why virtual worlds are so well-suited to the study of real-world business, and describes how a platform could weave together various types of virtual worlds and virtual spaces to achieve a variety of research and educational goals. I close by inviting instructors, students, researchers, textbook authors, publishers, game developers and others to join in a collaboration to make this vision a (virtual) reality.”
Author: Mark Oehlert, e-Clippings, 27th February 2008
February 28, 2008 at 6:20 pm
Gaming & Learning 