Teaching in SL vs. Teaching
online/blended courses:
Implications for Teacher Training
Dafne Daf
Gonzalez Smirnov
Languagelab.com
USB

SL vs. Web 2.0 teaching and learning
Are they different?
• My experience:
since 2002 blended & online
since 2007 – SL
• Actual teaching
• Planning process
• Materials design
• Social aspect of teaching

Actual teaching
Blended & Online Second Life
-Content to be •Synchronous
•Synchronous taught •Taking care of:
-Methodology •own avatar (skills
teachers should
-Mediating master)
•Asynchronous
tools • teaching tools
•students avatars
-Promote
•Sound
interaction •SL platform

Planning Process
Blended & Online Second Life
-Teacher-centered planning
•Everything available to Stds.
“… students will ….”
(autonomy):
(expected actions)
•Instructions:
•What to do Structured
- What the teacher will be
•Where to post Lesson doing
•Student-centered LPs planning
“….you will be able to….”

Materials Design
- New tools: challenge
•Materials and (basic building and
•Web 2.0 tools easily tools needed scripting skills)
available online •Free and paid - Experts needed to
services create materials
•Teacher-made
- Photoshop skills for
materials textures

Social aspect of teaching
Blended & Online Second Life
•Interaction with people •Interaction with avatars
•Real names • names
•Photos Interaction • look
•Webcams Real voice • gender
•video

Learning in SL?
Also a challenge for students:
• Aware of own skills to be able to follow the pace of the
class
• Challenge of new language
Motivation:
• Good for shy ones
• Motivating for youngsters –used to environment
– virtual games (digital natives)
• Total immersion without leaving home
Question:
Will not so young people consider SL for learning?

Implications for Teacher Training?

Personal Skills
1. Desktop Management
2. SL profile
3. Navigation
4. Library
5. Changing appearance
6. Gestures /Animations
7. Pie Menu
8. Inventory management

Communication Skills
1. Sound / Voice
2. Chat & Ims
3. Notecards

Building & Scripting Skills
1. Moving objects
2. Creating objects
3. Editing scripts

Using Educational Tools
1. Projectors &
Readers
2. Givers
3. Poll & Quiz
creators
4. Time Takers
5. Turn managers
6. Games

Using Voice Recordings
1. Recording
2. Playing
in-world

Conclusions and Thanks!
What conclusions would you draw from
this presentation?
The floor is yours!
Thanks for your attention!

SLanguages 2008
This presentation was given at
SLanguages 2008
The Conference for Language
Education in Virtual Worlds
slanguages.net