What are virtual worlds?
Virtual worlds are online environments within which individuals interact and explore. The environment can be based on the real world, such as a medical lab or ancient city, or on the realm of fantasy or literary settings. When in a virtual world, one takes on an online persona, or avatar, to represent the user. This avatar can move throughout the world and interact with objects in the world, all according to the designers. Online virtual worlds give access to people across the globe and allow users to connect with each other in addition to their virtual environment.
Who uses virtual worlds?
Virtual worlds are especially popular today in online gaming and are sparking students’ interests for use in education. In response to this interest, some institutions are simulating real-world situations in a virtual world. This practice has the added benefit of allowing students to act out social interactions or practices which can be hard to establish otherwise. Rather than having students visit a medical lab or another country, for example, creating a virtual environment may be more cost- and time-efficient. Virtual worlds are being explored across the disciplines, from physics to history to world language education.
Why should I use virtual worlds?
Using virtual worlds is a fun and different way to expose students to educational material. When in a virtual world, students can partly disassociate themselves from their online avatar, taking away inhibitions and allowing students to experiment and try new things without fear. Virtual worlds can also give the opportunity for a less structured environment where students have the freedom to make their own decisions and initiate learning individually. In using a virtual world, students are immersed in material and learn by doing.
Examples of use in education:
English
Ball State University used Second Life to teach an English class focused on writing for academic research.
http://www.bsu.edu/students/admissions/article/0,1370,135131-9886-47624,00.html
Law
Harvard used Second Life for a law course that held mock trials within Second Life.
http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/cyberone/
History
Elon University created an environment within Second Life where students answered important questions about science and technology by participating in a historical game set in 19th-century England.
http://trumpy.cs.elon.edu/metaverse/steampunk/
Medicince
Harvard students use River City to research illnesses within the virtual world. Students keep track of clues that hint at causes of illnesses, form and test hypotheses, develop controlled experiments to test their hypotheses, and make recommendations based on the data they collect.
http://muve.gse.harvard.edu/rivercityproject/
For more information:
A paper regarding the use of virtual worlds for studying real-world business.
http://terranova.blogs.com/terra_nova/2007/05/studying_realwo.html
A paper discussing the educational possibilities of a massively multiplayer virtual world called Second Life.
http://www2.kumc.edu/tlt/SLEDUCAUSESW2005/SLPresentationOutline.htm
A blog discussing online learning environments. This blog discusses the pros and cons of virtual worlds in education and lists some example virtual worlds currently being used.
http://schibs.net/necc/?cat=16
A paper that lists numerous virtual environments used for education.
http://wwwic.ndsu.edu/wwwic/docs/JNCA-99.rtf
Adapted from 7 Things You Should Know About Virtual Worlds, Educause, June 2006