Virtual worlds have been characterized as a fancy IRC client which more often than not represents a technology that is as much a barrier to the average user as it is a help. Educators are criticized as much for their lack of imagination and ingenuity in the use of these platforms when lectures and presentations are more often limited to simply being a unique way to present PowerPoint slides. This presentation discusses the reasoning behind why virtual worlds represent a competitive environment for collaborative learning despite these short comings. This discussion uses leadership theory and knowledge emergence as its theoretical framework

1. Kevin Feenan, PMP, MBA
SL: Phelan Corrimal
Rockcliffe University
March 29, 2009

2. • Vision
• Objective
• Dialogue
• Practice
• Context (Ba)
• KM Assets
• Environment

3. • Dialogue
– Synthesis of
Contradictions
– Explicit Driven
• Practices
– Synthesis of
Action
– Tacit Driven

4. • quot;The practice, acquired from exemplars, to group
situations into similar setsquot; – Kuhn, T.
• Defined through problems not solutions
• Regrouping of objective forms
• Thinking, not translating
• Shared context
• Shared community

5. • Rivaly
• Suppliers
• Buyers
• Substitutes
• New Entrants
• Silos reinforced by
technology
• Tangible Assets
• Horizonal & Vertical
Integration Threats

6. Web 1.0 Web 2.0
• •
DoubleClick Google AdSense
• •
Ofoto Flickr (Social Networks)
• •
Akamai BitTorrent (P2P)
• •
mp3.com iPhone
• •
Britannica Online Wikipedia
• •
personal websites blogging
• •
Evite Eventbrite
• •
domain name speculation search engine optimization
• •
page views cost per click
• •
screen scraping web services
• •
Publishing participation
• •
content management wikis
• •
directories (taxonomy) tagging (quot;folksonomyquot;)
• •
stickiness syndication

7. Web 1.0 Web 2.0
• Passive Observer • Active Participant
• Driven by External Agendas • Driven by Social Narratives
• Socialization agenda is
controlled by 3rd parties
• Internalization is a
consequence of competitive
rivalry between forces

8. • Neutral Ground
• Social Leveler
• Conversation is Main Activity
• Accessibility / Accommodation
• Regulars / Familars
• Lack of Pretension
• Playful
• A Home Away from Home
– rootedness,
– feelings of possession,
– spiritual regeneration,
– feelings of being at ease, and
– warmth.

9. • There is only one virtual world
• Avatar = Mental Anatomy
• Avatar = Replacement for sensorimotor sytem
• Avatar Identification = Consciousness
• Changes the relationship with the physical
body.

10. • Rethinking concepts of
self within a virtual
context
• Re-examination of
knowledge emergence
with focus on
practices, not dialogues

11. • I am my avatar and my avatar is me however I
am not bound by any agreements made by my
avatar on my behalf.
• Fracturing of the concept of self
• Internal (actor) / External (agent) personias
• Sub-conscious elements are more accessible
• By-pass conscious filter mechanisms

12. • Practices, not dialogues, will define web 3.0
• Socialization is Agent-Centered
• Internalization is Actor-Centered
• Combination/Externalization are Network-
Centered
• Individual controls the process
• Instructor's role is as a knowledge asset within
the network

13. • Networks of Practice
– Not defined by the
technology
• Knowledge Assets
– Increases options
• Niche Markets
– Combination of
Dialogues
• Value Proposition
– Patterns of increased
effectiveness

14. James, L (2009) University of Hawaii
Maslow, A. H. (1954) Motivation and personality. New York: Harper and Row.
Nonaka, I., & Toyama, R. (2005). The theory of the knowledge-creating firm:
subjectivity, objectivity and synthesis. Industrial and Corporate Change, 14(3), pp.
419-436.
Oldenburg, R. (1999). The great good place: Cafes, coffee shops, bookstores, bars, hair
salons and other hangouts at the heart of a community. New York: Marlowe &
Company.
O’Reilly, T. (2005). What is Web 2.0. Retrieved on November 2, 2007 from
http://www.oreilly.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html
Porter, M. E. (1980). Competitive strategy - techniques for analyzing industries and
competitors. New York: The Free Press
Seamon, D. (1979). A Geography of the Lifeworld. New York: St. Martin's Press.
Steinkuehler, C., & Williams, D. (2006). Where everybody knows your (screen) name:
Online games as “third places”. Journal of Computer-Mediated
Communications, 11, pp. 885-909.