Second Life as a Learning and Teaching Environment for Digital Games Education

Previous studies show that online virtual worlds can contribute to the social aspects of distance learning, improve student engagement, and enhance students’ experience as a whole [4]; [3]. This paper reviews previous research of using online virtual worlds in teaching and learning, compares Second Life with traditional classroom sessions and the Blackboard, and discusses the benefits and problems of using virtual environments in the post-sixteen education and how they affect students’ learning. It also reports a study of using Second Life as an educational environment for teaching games design at undergraduate level, and investigates the impacts and implications of online virtual environments on learning and teaching processes and their application to digital games education. The sample was 27 first year students of the Computer Games Modelling and Animation course. Students’ views on using Second Life for learning and teaching were collected through a feedback questionnaire. The results suggest that virtual learning environments like Second Life can be exploited as a motivational learning tool. However, problems such as identify issues and lacking of role markers may change student behaviour in virtual classroom. We discuss this phenomenon and suggest ways to avoid it in the preparation stage

LEARNERS AND COLLABORATIVE LEARNING IN VIRTUAL WORLDS: A Review of the Literature

ABSTRACT The purpose of this paper is to present selected literature on learners and collaborative learning in virtual worlds. Research in virtual worlds on collaborative learners is gradually emerging and will gain in significance, particularly in online and distance education environments. It will be argued that the design and functionality of virtual worlds provides a platform for collaboration, particularly for learners that have grown up with digitalized learning environments and may have developed a preference for them. The paper starts with a clarification of terms, a description of the various categories and a chronological overview of the emergence and development of these environments. The familiarisation with the subject matter continues through a discussion of the significance, opportunities and barriers that this medium offers and is followed by an examination of learners' characteristics and their implications for teaching and learning in virtual worlds. Drawing on recent examples of virtual worlds in education and some current statistics, the paper strives to meet the continuing education needs of practitioners and educator using virtual worlds. It concludes with an examination of the challenges and perspectives on collaborative learning in these environments and the trends in virtual worlds that impact the delivery of student learning

Towards Measuring Learning Effectiveness considering Presence, Engagement and Immersion in a Mixed and Augmented Reality Learning Environment

The current era of advanced display technologies, such as a head mounted displays, smart glasses and handheld devices, have supported the usage of mixed-reality and augmented reality concepts in smart educational classrooms. These advanced technologies have enabled enhanced collaboration and an interactive communication between distance learners and local learners. Being present' is a key factor in both worlds (real and virtual) as it plays an important role in increasing the students' collaborative engagement during the learning activity. However, few studies have considered how much using such immersive interfaces with various learning scenarios may ultimately affect learning outcomes, and whether students feel fully engaged or not in such environments. This work-in-progress paper will demonstrate a MiRTLE+ prototype of how remote students can collaborate within mixed-reality environments by using an augmented reality approach. Secondly, it will explore the learning effectiveness based on the following factors: students' presence, engagement, and immersion in smart environments. With regard to the learning task, we will consider a card game task to measure the learners' progress as they progress from novice to expert player. To evaluate these factors, we utilise several existing frameworks which have been applied to our mixed-reality worlds that help us to examine the learning outcomes from using these environments

Ratava\u27s line: Emergent learning and design using collaborative virtual worlds

Ratava\u27s Line is an online, 3D virtual world fashion and interactive narrative project created collaboratively by students at both the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York City and at Interactive Arts at Simon Fraser University (SFU) in Vancouver, Canada, using emergent, collaborative 2D and 3D systems. This distance learning project, developed over two months and culminating in an online event in multiple, remote locations, integrated three key design elements: the translation of original 2D fashion designs from FIT students into 3D avatar space; exhibits of artwork of student and professional artists from New York City and Vancouver in virtual galleries; and creation of an interactive narrative "fashion cyber-mystery" for online users to participate in and solve in a culminating, cyber-physical event. The overall project goal was to explore how online collaboration systems and virtual environments can be used practically for distance learning, fashion and virtual worlds design, development of new marketing tools including virtual portfolios, and creation of cross cultural online/physical events. The result of this process was an interdisciplinary, cross-institutional, international effort in collaborative design in virtual environments, and a successful exercise in emergent, collaborative distance learning. © ACM, 2004. This is the author\u27s version of the work. It is posted here by permission of ACM for your personal use. Not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in International Conference on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques, page 25. (2004). http://doi.acm.org/10.1145/1186107.118613

The seamless integration of Web3D technologies with university curricula to engage the changing student cohort

The increasing tendency of many university students to study at least some courses at a distance limits their opportunities for the interactions fundamental to learning. Online learning can assist but relies heavily on text, which is limiting for some students. The popularity of computer games, especially among the younger students, and the emergence of networked games and game-like virtual worlds offers opportunities for enhanced interaction in educational applications. For virtual worlds to be widely adopted in higher education it is desirable to have approaches to design and development that are responsive to needs and limited in their resource requirements. Ideally it should be possible for academics without technical expertise to adapt virtual worlds to support their teaching needs. This project identified Web3D, a technology that is based on the X3D standards and which presents 3D virtual worlds within common web browsers, as an approach worth exploring for educational application. The broad goals of the project were to produce exemplars of Web3D for educational use, together with development tools and associated resources to support non-technical academic adopters, and to promote an Australian community of practice to support broader adoption of Web3D in education. During the first year of the project exemplar applications were developed and tested. The Web3D technology was found to be still in a relatively early stage of development in which the application of standards did not ensure reliable operation in different environments. Moreover, ab initio development of virtual worlds and associated tools proved to be more demanding of resources than anticipated and was judged unlikely in the near future to result in systems that non-technical academics could use with confidence. In the second year the emphasis moved to assisting academics to plan and implement teaching in existing virtual worlds that provided relatively easy to use tools for customizing an environment. A project officer worked with participating academics to support the teaching of significant elements of courses within Second LifeTM. This approach was more successful in producing examples of good practice that could be shared with and emulated by other academics. Trials were also conducted with ExitRealityTM, a new Australian technology that presents virtual worlds in a web browser. Critical factors in the success of the project included providing secure access to networked computers with the necessary capability; negotiating the complexity of working across education, design of virtual worlds, and technical requirements; and supporting participants with professional development in the technology and appropriate pedagogy for the new environments. Major challenges encountered included working with experimental technologies that are evolving rapidly and deploying new networked applications on secure university networks. The project has prepared the way for future expansion in the use of virtual worlds for teaching at USQ and has contributed to the emergence of a national network of tertiary educators interested in the educational applications of virtual worlds

The use of virtual environments as an extended classroom – A case study with adult learners in tertiary education

This study was conducted in immersive 3D virtual environment Second Life®, with the support of web 2.0 tools as a complement to physical classroom - extended classroom. It was assumed that socialization is a key factor for collaborative learning and knowledge construction. The study aims to identify the variables that may influence knowledge sharing in learning contexts using virtual environments; with the aim of contributing to the improvement of learning situations using the online tools. This research is exploratory in nature and falls within the field of phenomenological studies. The study was implemented in a tertiary education institution involving regular and adult learners. We conclude that in virtual environments learners tend to feel more confident, open, participatory, creative, understanding and seem to participate in training sessions because they are indeed interested in learning. On the other hand, the possibility of providing online tutorial session allows reaching a larger number of learners. These online sessions can be established in a time and place (virtual) free of constraints and can be tailored, allowing a more effective participation from learners.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

From ‘hands up’ to ‘hands on’: harnessing the kinaesthetic potential of educational gaming

Traditional approaches to distance learning and the student learning journey have focused on closing the gap between the experience of off-campus students and their on-campus peers. While many initiatives have sought to embed a sense of community, create virtual learning environments and even build collaborative spaces for team-based assessment and presentations, they are limited by technological innovation in terms of the types of learning styles they support and develop. Mainstream gaming development – such as with the Xbox Kinect and Nintendo Wii – have a strong element of kinaesthetic learning from early attempts to simulate impact, recoil, velocity and other environmental factors to the more sophisticated movement-based games which create a sense of almost total immersion and allow untethered (in a technical sense) interaction with the games’ objects, characters and other players. Likewise, gamification of learning has become a critical focus for the engagement of learners and its commercialisation, especially through products such as the Wii Fit. As this technology matures, there are strong opportunities for universities to utilise gaming consoles to embed levels of kinaesthetic learning into the student experience – a learning style which has been largely neglected in the distance education sector. This paper will explore the potential impact of these technologies, to broadly imagine the possibilities for future innovation in higher education

Learning in the Panopticon: ethical and social issues in building a virtual educational environment

This paper examines ethical and social issues which have proved important when initiating and creating educational spaces within a virtual environment. It focuses on one project, identifying the key decisions made, the barriers to new practice encountered and the impact these had on the project. It demonstrates the importance of the ‘backstage’ ethical and social issues involved in the creation of a virtual education community and offers conclusions, and questions, which will inform future research and practice in this area. These ethical issues are considered using Knobel’s framework of front-end, in-process and back-end concerns, and include establishing social practices for the islands, allocating access rights, considering personal safety and supporting researchers appropriately within this contex

Transforming pre-service teacher curriculum: observation through a TPACK lens

This paper will discuss an international online collaborative learning experience through the lens of the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework. The teacher knowledge required to effectively provide transformative learning experiences for 21st century learners in a digital world is complex, situated and changing. The discussion looks beyond the opportunity for knowledge development of content, pedagogy and technology as components of TPACK towards the interaction between those three components. Implications for practice are also discussed. In today’s technology infused classrooms it is within the realms of teacher educators, practising teaching and pre-service teachers explore and address effective practices using technology to enhance learning