Introduction to Second Life for Inquiry-Based Learning

Introduction to Second Life for Inquiry-Based Learning Lyn Parker and Sheila Webber University of Sheffield LTEA conference June 2008 Sheffield © The authors

Outline
Second Life: introduction
IBL and SL
An inquiry-based intervention in SL
Feedback from students, and reflection from course tutors
Educational possibilities
Questions
LTEA conference June 2008 Sheffield © The authors

Second Life
3D online virtual world, also known as a MUVE ( multi-user virtual environments )
Most things created by SL residents: SL fashion designers, architects, bakers, animal makers ….
Avatars- 3D representation of yourself – free to signup and can live on freebies, but need Linden dollars if want to own land, buy clothes etc.
Communication is through Chat, Voice and/or Instant Messaging

Practical issues
Time – operates on SL time which is 8 hours behind UK time
Software revisions about every 6 weeks, can cause problems
Need broadband and good computer with right graphics card
At Sheffield there is no access via our “managed desktop” currently
Learning curve in basics of movement, etiquette & communication inworld
Some people may have concerns about signing up for avatar or entering a dangerous space (but possibly more those not used to social software or gaming)
Max of about 40 avatars per region/island, and 45K on whole grid
Inclusion issues

Library Services in Second Life LTEA conference June 2008 Sheffield © The authors

Infolit iSchool
Successful bid to CILASS to fund island for a year
Island delivered early October; Sheila Webber has done all the development work, setting up the island and different areas for her students
Provided us with a library area
Started teaching on 22 October
Also working with Vicky Cormie, librarian at St Andrews

An Inquiry based intervention in Second Life LTEA conference June 2008 Sheffield © The authors

Context
Compulsory activity (feeding into assignment) for 1 st year BSc Information Management students in (core) Information Literacy class (21 students)
Aims for strengthening IBL approach in programme:
Help students deepen their engagement with, and understanding of, Information Management (IM) as an academic discipline
Progress students’ research understanding and skills through levels 1 to 3
No student had used virtual world before
Course tutor (Sheila) 2 librarians: in Sheffield (Lyn) & St Andrews (Vickie Cormie)

CILASS - an inquiry framework How this intervention fits in
Exploring what IBL means in different contexts: in a virtual world
Experimenting with new ideas and practice SL as learning space
Learning about ‘what works’ from students’ and tutors’ perspectives: interview/ reflection/ questionnaire
Sharing ideas, critically examining what we do: like today!
Carrying out evaluation and research: see above
Building practice and theory: investigating genuinely new research questions in the Information Management field

Inquiry in SL
In terms of inquiry skills, the Inf104 module overall is:
developing information literacy
developing skills in data collection and analysis
Students undertook critical incident interviews with SL residents (a time when they had an information need relating to a SL activity) in SL itself
Students analysed transcripts in relation to models of RL information behaviour + audited their interview technique; for an assessment (about 40% of a 20 credit module)
Interviewees were recruited via an email to SL Educators list – good response - international

Supporting activities
Class activity over 3 weeks – group research/ presentations on whether SL was dangerous (in real life)
Induction to basics of SL over several weeks (in SL)
Practice interviewing (in real life & SL)

Tutor reflections on this intervention
Students’ analysis of interview transcripts was reasonable to excellent
Since was genuinely novel research area produced some data of genuine research interest: more exciting for tutor and students
Interviewing was more authentic experience: richer commentaries on interviewing than when was a “Real World Only” exercise
Preparation for the tasks paid off in terms of achievement and attitude to SL

Tutor reflections on SL and IBL
SL a learning (and play) space – more like a classroom space than a website
Novelty of environment may stimulate curiosity
Transmissive approaches even duller in SL than in Real Life – need activity rather than content and encourages PBL or IBL approaches
Has to be pedagogic rationale with students or they may see it as just wasting time in SL
SL experiences can stimulate reflections on RL experience
Automatic transcripts if using chat – useful for reflection and analysis

Student Feedback
Some thought it was ok; some could see enhancement and interest
Technology was major frustration for them
SL did engage some not engaged by other activities

“ I'd like to take this opportunity to say I *really* enjoyed doing the interview task - I'd say it made a great use of the advantages of Second Life, connecting to people who might be geographically far, far away, and giving a more personal element to the interaction that plain chat would not have had.” (student email)

My observations
Blank design sheet for library and activities
Replicate campus buildings or open space?
Expectations of our users – preference for talking to a real person
Communication methods – flag up when online
Technical expertise or buy products?
Help with searching, security, copyright, evaluation of information, information literacy

Educational Possibilities of SL
Movement in 3D space.
Machinima - animated filmmaking within a real-time virtual 3D environment, tactics such as in an emergency response
Appreciation of space - such as in the reproduction of Roma and the Globe Theatre.
Interactions in a space - such as managing a hotel.
3D and scale - such as in the simulation of a heart murmur or molecules.
Role playing - avatars and interactions with different groups such as ageing, schizophrenia, patients or customers.
Virtual psychology and sociology. (Tom Werner, 2008)
LTEA conference June 2008 Sheffield © The authors Jeremy Kemp’s Hear Murmur http://sl.nmc.org/2006/09/25/jeremy-kemp/

Werner continued
Building and design
Clothing design.
3D exercises and testing.
Constructivist activities.
Role-play scenes from books.
Building of something to illustrate a concept.
Creative arts – writing, photography, music.
Visualisation of data – weather, planes in flight, Standard and Poor’s 500 index, IBM Wimbledon tennis.
Rapid prototyping and co-design - NASA CoLab
LTEA conference June 2008 Sheffield © The authors Sistine Chapel http://slurl.com/secondlife/vassar/165/91/24

Questions?
Contact Details:
Lyn Parker
[email_address]
Sheila Webber
[email_address]

Resources
Adventures of Sheila Yoshikawa http://adventuresofyoshikawa.blogspot.com/
Kay, J and Fitzgerald, S. (2007) Second Life in Education http://sleducation.wikispaces.com/
Kemp, J (Ed) (2007) Second Life Education Wiki: SimTeach http://www.simteach.com/wiki/index.php?title=Second_Life_Education_Wiki
Parker, L. (2008), “More questions than answers: the reflections of Maggie Kohime, a virtual librarian in Second Life”, ALISS Quarterly, Vol. 3 No 2, pp13-17. http://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/3624/2/More_questions_than_answers-1.pdf
Parker, L. (2008) Second Life: the 7 th face of the library? Program v42(3) Special issue on new technologies (in print)
Second Life Educators List (SLED)
https://lists.secondlife.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/educators

Introduction to Second Life for Inquiry-Based Learning

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