Case Study
This study
was conducted by Prof. António dos Reis and Prof. Xabier Basogain (Bask Country
University) to evaluate the potential of Second Life as a VLE.
In our case
study, we used the following avatars to present our research and make a more dynamic
interaction.
Shrek
Barak Zapatero
Barak Zapatero
ProfEinstein Raie
Mme. Curie
Seminario
Zubiria Rauch
IT took
place during more than one year (2008 and 2009) in order to evaluate the pedagogic potential
and offer some guidance to our students to use Secondlife.
Our research
was made by assisting events, participating in conferences and seminars and
made virtual tours in SL. Reports were made
based in screen capture and participating in activities in SL and presenting facts.
Our
research steps were as follows:
- · Second Life overview and overview
- · The “avatar” how to increase skills and performance.
- · Create your avatar and a SL environment
- · Analysis of most important Universities SL campus
- · Participation in debates and conferences in SL environment
- · Compare SL with other MUVES platforms
- · Evaluate SL as VLE
- · Conclusions
We continued our observation conserning SL up till now.
No evolution in SL was identified in the last years as a learning environment.
Only improving avatar designe and social tools were introduced.
- SecondLife contentes produced:
01 Second Life as VLE - introduction Shrek´s opinion
02 Introduction to Secondlife EN
Create your
avatar and installing the application.
3 0 Basics of SL and the School of the future 1m15
Improving the avatar skills
3 1 Avatar didactic communication intro 2m
3 2 Basics of avatar didactic communication
3 3 Avatar voice skills 4m20
3 4 More avatar voice skills 45s
3 5 Avatar speech gestures 1m5
3 6 Avatar lip synchro 2m
3 7 Eliminate key typing sounds 1m10
3
8 Avatar no names overhead 1m1
3 9 Not be removed because sleeping 1m20
3 10 Copy your chat 1m25
3 11 Create
your community 2m30
3 12 Instant messages to groups 2m40
https://youtu.be/GIE0k4fgvg4
04 Seminars and
debate about SL
Contents about education methodologies and technologies related with distance learning were tested in SL environment. Producing video tutorials using avatars and SL sceneries were made, based in previous works already made and tested.Strong and weak points were identified and reported in the conclusions of the project. But we have to use complementary video producing tools to guaranty the quality of the audio and inserting a screen share aplication to present slides with acceptable pedagogic quality.
4 01 SL and Education Methodologies
4-02 SL and what is learning
4-03 SL What is teaching
4-04 SL and from Behaviourism to
constructivism
4-05 SL from Elearning 1.0 to 3.0
4-06 SL Synchronous and
asynchronous activities
4-07 SL in all education levels
05 10 Maijores universities in real life and in Second Life
Although the 10 major universities in real life are
present in SL, with own SL campus, when visited they were empty and with no
activity reported.
Virtual tour:
06 Debates, lessons and conferences
in Second Life
We are reporting conferences and debates that we have participated in SL and you can have an idea about how dose it works.
6-03 Conference debate – in Spanish Language
6-031 Olc (Online Learning Conference) 090219_SL2-0
Aprender a enseñar a usar SL como EVA (entorno –Virtual de Aprendizaje)
6-032 olc_090219_SL2-1
Del elearning 1.0 a el elearning 3.0
6-033 olc_090219_SL2-2
Aspectos generales del uso de SL en educación
6-05 Aula Faro Hispano
6-031 Olc (Online Learning Conference) 090219_SL2-0
Aprender a enseñar a usar SL como EVA (entorno –Virtual de Aprendizaje)
Del elearning 1.0 a el elearning 3.0
Aspectos generales del uso de SL en educación
6-05 Aula Faro Hispano
7 Conference about SL at Ponpeu
Fabra University - Jorevir09 Education Conference - (Spanish language)
8 SL as Social
environment
9 Analysis of ActiveWorlds - webcats
presentation and comparing with SL
10-1 Secondlife conclusions (English)
10-2 Conclusiones sobre SL (Español)
Final coment
Before we conclud it is important to define what it means a VLE - Virtual LEarning Environment as pedagogic and didactic environment.
A VLE is an
education none presence environment on which we can use with quality:
1. Control access to our students. In SL
we can create it!
2. We can use virtual classrooms. In SL
we cannot use it!
3. We can use a LMS to present
asynchronous contents on demand, in video or text format. http://areis-en-lms.blogspot.pt/
In SL we cannot use it! http://ar-en-wp4-01present.blogspot.pt/
Having a information and control system about student´s participation and learning progress;
In SL we cannot use it!
In SL we cannot use it! http://ar-en-wp4-01present.blogspot.pt/
Having a information and control system about student´s participation and learning progress;
In SL we cannot use it!
4. We can make online tutoring, with
asynchronous http://ar-en-wp4-02publish.blogspot.pt/ and synchronous activities:
http://areis-en-otutoring.blogspot.pt/
Presenting slides synchronous with the narration;
Present with a permanent good audio from the presenter and control the audio from the participants;
Use none verbal communication tools from the presenter:
In SL we cannot use it!
http://areis-en-otutoring.blogspot.pt/
Presenting slides synchronous with the narration;
Present with a permanent good audio from the presenter and control the audio from the participants;
Use none verbal communication tools from the presenter:
In SL we cannot use it!
As we
mentioned before SL has a good potential for teen and lower age’s students, but
it was necessary that the necessary pedagogic and didactic tools would be
developed and integrated in SL to be a VLE to be used with quality in the
teaching process.
SL is a
nice social environment, but it has strong limitations to be used as a Virtual Learning
Environment.
In fact Second
Life only advertises the application for social purposes, not for education.
Final Conclusions
n
We need technologies
but only together
with methodologies and improving teachers
skills we can
improve the quality of teaching
and learning.
n
What to do?
n
Conclusions 1
n
Convert:
n
Schools into “factory of dreams”
n
Teachers into a “multimedia wizards”
n
Conclusions 2
n
Is it SL a solution?
n
Is, no doubt about it. It looks like it has an enormous potential;
n
but…
- We need to integrate it with
complementary tools (LMS and Screen share aplications)
- Teachers and teenagers have to
be integrated in the same environment.
- The quality of the audio should
be improved. It is seldom damaged, distorted and none functioning;
- Slides and video presentations
tools should be improved and no cost per image presented;
- SL application is not friendly user, it requires a big teacher´s training;
- But SL have been used successfully for teaching languages;
- It is necessary a strong PC with a very good performance;
