A recovering Virtual World Junkie responds...

In this third and final blog post this week for EAC 539, I was asked to review another student's blog and react to their initial post.  After reading Megan Glancy's opinions on Second Life, I sprouted horns and decided to play ... Devil's Advocate for the tool Second Life. 

I should probably disclose my history with massively multiplayer online games.  Among the first major MMOs was a game called Everquest, which I played for several years.  I was an active raiding member of one of the best guilds in the game, Triton of the Povar server.  For those that need context, this is the equivalent of holding down a full time job.  A raider in my situation at the time would put in at a minimum, five hours of raiding a night, every night except Fridays.  Also of note is the need for non-raiding time to prepare one's avatar/character for raiding by way of gaining experience, completing quests for access to raid zones and gathering useful raid consumables. 

Patented Triton Victory Shot

Besides teaching me that victory should be celebrated, (see Froglock photo above) the game taught me many other lessons that have transcended the game and worked their way into my professional life.  Things like fostering relationships with management and co-workers, conflict resolution in diverse populations, working in teams, goal setting and even how hard work will pay off in rewards and recognition.  This is why when I read Ms. Glancy's opinion that she saw little value in Second Life for teaching sociology concepts I was perplexed for a number of reasons.  

First, Second Life and similar online environments deeply engross their users in the environment.  If this can be cultivated in a useful manner, then students will spend far more hours "studying" than they would otherwise, at least my thirty plus hours a week playing Everquest suggests this could happen.  

Secondly, virtual worlds at their very core embody sociology.  In some cases, they create societies of their own with complex social structures, not simple mirrors of our own real world social groups.  In other cases, virtual worlds allow for exploration more abstract concepts like the effect of society on its members. 

As an example of this type of exploration, Koles and Nagy explored the question, "Who is Portrayed in Second Life: Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde?" in the Journal of Virtual Worlds Research.  This piece addressed how identity is shaped in an online environment.  Is the avatar just an extension of the real life identity or something radically different.  Conclusions reached in the article included how social orientation was the most pronounced for the virtual identity.  Seems like this could spur a lively debate about the role of society in determining self?

Another approach to how virtual worlds might be applied to the study of sociology by leading students through how to conduct research of sociology concepts.  A virtual world seems like an excellent place to gather data.  You could have students canvas a virtual world to interview rather than have the expense of conducting real world interviews. 

Finally, today in politics a debate between the halves and the have-nots is raging.  Conservatives recently have been accused of not caring about 47% of the population because they do not pay income taxes.  A similar social concept was explored in second life by Hans Geser in his paper "A very real Virtual Society," where he talked about the distribution of wealth in Second Life following a U-shaped curve, with high amounts of non-owners and owners but few in between or "middle class" residents.  Exploration of similar themes might be great for class discussions or projects in Second Life.

In conclusion, I understand it might be hard to integrate virtual worlds into courses, but I do think there is some value in exploring these structures.  As you mentioned there is a learning curve to all virtual worlds, but the time it will take for most 18-22 year old users to get up to speed today will be minimal because many of them will have experience with gaming and those who do not are more willing than ever to collaborate by seeking aid from their peers.

The Virtual Promised Land?

            Since its launch in 2003, Second Life has been the recipient of much scrutiny from audiences ranging from academics to news media.  Second Life early in its history was a source of much buzz with people convinced it would pave the way for a new kind of "virtual life."  This life would feature new economies as well as new educational opportunities.  Today, Second Life is still being seen as a tool in the arsenal of distance education due to a number of strengths the system provides, but do these strengths outweigh the limitations?

            According to Vesely, Bloom, and Sherlock, distance education classes have a dropout rate up to twenty percent higher than traditional courses.  Research suggests the solution to this problem is for professors to create a sense of community in distance education classes so that students will stick around.  On the other hand, massive virtual worlds boast broad user bases and are typically very good at building communities that remain engaged for long periods of time.  For example, World of Warcraft, the biggest virtual world currently, boasts over nine million subscribers and has maintained high subscription numbers for several years.  (Holisky, 2012)  Therefore, it is easy to see why so many academics and universities initially turned their attention to Second Life, due to the great promise these types of worlds hold to solving one of the major problems in distance education. 

            Unlike most virtual worlds, Second Life is not simply an educational game.  Second Life is whatever people decide it should be.  Tools exist for users to carve out their own piece of real estate and do with it what they please.  Many universities such as NC State used these tools to create virtual universities.  Other organizations and people sought to create a diverse range of online learning experiences.  Some of these experiences range from the recreation of "real world" spaces, like the Sistine Chapel.  While others simulate concepts like the water cycle or allow for exploration of an animal cell.  In fact, all this creation itself is educational lending itself strongly to core educational philosophies like constructivist thought.

            Creation and collaboration in Second Life has been made easier with time and new technology.  Today, Second Life can integrate a variety of Web 2.0 tools allowing users to accomplish any number of tasks.  Second Life can serve as an online meeting space much like Skype or Blackboard Collaborate.  Presentation areas within Second Life can even allow for virtual conferences.

            Second Life isn't without faults.  There are a number of Second Life users who design and promote adult oriented content meaning educators must use extreme caution when using Second Life.  Due to the nature of Second Life, load times or "rezzing in" for objects can be a slow process.  The graphics are a bit dated when compared to modern video game graphics and this can turn some users off who have more sophisticated tastes.  Finally, there is the issue of Linden Lab, the creators of Second Life, deciding to take away the education discount that helped many universities afford to keep a Second Life presence.  This may likely be a poor decision on their part as academia seems to be one of their greatest allies.

            Second Life offers a look at what the future of education might be, students participating in a diverse range of topics within countless locations and collaborating with people around the world.  The catch is Second Life, despite its many strengths, is mired in the present.  Second Life must evolve and overcome its limitations if it will be the educational utopia its proponents wish it to be.

A Glimpse of the Future of Online Education with Edmodo

"Building Community" by Professor Curt Bonk of Indiana University was a very eye opening experience that tied together many of the ideas taught to me by various educators through the years.  While the lecture was aimed at building an online community, the idea that resonated within me was that building online communities is very similar to building offline communities, just with a different set of tools.

Blueprints (The Planning Stage)

Building a structure requires materials, tools, plans and management expertise.  Building an online community is no different.   In the place of materials you have the students or participants, the tools are the technological components, the plans can be the instructor's vision and finally the management can refer to the instructor themselves.  Bringing all these things together to create a vibrant community is no easy task.

When contemplating an online community it helps to establish your vision and goals so you know what you are working towards and can foster attitudes that support that mission.  Things to consider are:
• Allowing users to create an individual identity through icebreaker activities or creating profiles
• Develop a shared mission or purpose statement allowing all participants to contribute ideas
• Establish community habits or shared experiences to create a unique group identity
• Encourage use of photos and videos which elicit emotional responses within the community
• Provide ample opportunity for feedback, contributions or knowledge sharing

Raising the Roof (The Building Stage)

The reason the "Building Community" video resonated with me is due to experiences I've had this semester with my own middle school age students.  I've struggled with how to incorporate all the different personalities in the classroom while accomplishing the goal of educating them.  Middle school students perhaps more than any other group struggle between defining themselves as individuals and trying to find their identity within the group due to the unique stage of becoming a teenager.  I've found that creating an online community can help with this struggle.

The online community portion of my classroom has centered around my adoption of Edmodo as a tool in the classroom.  This community is still evolving as I seek to gain the attention of the students, allow them to develop as individuals and create a classroom environment online.  The advice given by Professor Bonk has been instrumental in helping me come up with ideas to foster the growth of this community.

Lessons Learned

Professor Bonk suggested introductions, icebreakers and creation of profiles and I think this was an excellent idea.  My initial Edmodo experience just had the students fill in their profile information, but as I've looked over profiles I have learned so much about each student and their motivations.  I did not opt to do a full icebreaker/introduction activity since my our Edmodo experiment began seven weeks into the school year, but I'm seriously considering having students complete one over track out because I realize I know so little about their motivations due to the comments made online.

Professor Bonk suggested creating logos, rituals and shared forms of identity among classes, and this is another area I feel merits my attention.  These types of activities create motivation and participation especially among students who yearn for recognition.  Often we forget how important recognition is and in the case of my students many of them struggle with finding ways to stand out in a positive light.  I think our online community can help alleviate this dilemma.  At the same time, other students can contribute feedback and given time develop a more lively community.

Finally, Professor Bonk suggested making sure your virtual space was one in which people could not wait to come back to.  This is an area where I've given a great deal of thought towards.  My recent attempts have been to add funny content area videos, game apps, and polls in addition to the required homework assignments.  This is an attempt to associate Edmodo with fun and WORK!  Thus far, I seem to have about fifty to seventy percent of the students attention based on assignment completion rates.

Questions Moving Forward

The biggest question on my mind moving forward is how to sustain interest in Edmodo along with how to get the students to take over a more active role in generating community content.  In the short term, student involvement in Edmodo should also help with classroom discipline issues related to student boredom or disinterest.  The bigger picture however, is that through Edmodo and online learning, students will develop 21st century skills that will pay dividends in their future endeavors.