BYOT Network

Session Title: Avatar Me! Designing Virtual Communities of Practice

Session Details

Tuesday, March 12, 2013, CoSN 2013, San Diego, CA, 9:45AM-10:15AM – Room: Nautilus 4

Session Description

As students and teachers begin to interact within a virtual world, a unique opportunity unfolds for learning within a community of practice. Because users can create anything they can imagine, a virtual world is an excellent tool for creativity, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking.  Learn from the multiple perspectives of a school district, higher education, and an international expert on how virtual worlds are being used today.  Come learn about this open-source 3D environment where educators transport their students to far-off lands and places of the imagination, such as the Berlin Wall during the Cold War or a castle in the Medieval era.  Discover how this emerging technology facilitates student learning, agency, community, online safety, and digital age skills.

Session Outline

Introduction to Virtual World Learning

• Definition: A virtual world is an online community that takes the form of a computer-based simulated environment through which users can interact with one another and use and create objects. (Wikipedia)
• This session is an introduction to concept of learning communities within virtual worlds.

Perspectives of Virtual World Learning

Panel participants introduce themselves and briefly discuss their experiences in virtual worlds:

• Second Life – Bernajean Porter describes experiences in Second Life.
  • Digital Storytelling in Second Life – Learning & Leading with Technology
  • Hands-on Learning in the Virtual World – Learning & Leading with Technology
• NOBLE – Jill Hobson provides an overview of NOBLE (New Opportunities for Better Learning Environments).
  • NOBLE – http://www.forsyth.k12.ga.us/noble
  • A Noble Experiment in the Virtual World – the Journal
  • University of North Georgia Interns in NOBLE
• Minecraft – Tim Clark explains the use of Minecraft/Eden with mobile devices
  • Minecraft Wiki
  • MinecraftEdu

Benefits of  Virtual World Learning

• Digital Age Skills – The 4C’s of Digital Age Learning in Virtual Worlds
  • Problem-solving for building/planning (critical thinking)
  • Designing and constructing the world (creativity)
  • Working with others to innovate (collaboration)
  • Discussing ideas, topics, and concerns (communication)
• Rigor – Culmination of Digital Age Skills
  • Driving question to pull together the digital age skills
• Agency – Explanation of how students “Own the Learning”
  • Closed/Shared and Open questions/topics/tasks
  • How do students establish ownership and territory?
• Online Safety – Ethical issues of working within virtual worlds
  • Importance of protecting privacy
  • Ensuring age-appropriate content
  • Focusing on responsible use
• Community – How community develops
  • Building of objects in virtual space
  • Negotiation of rights and responsibilities

Strategies for Virtual World Learning

• Personalize It – Students design their avatars.
  • Customizing an avatar so that a student can develop voice
  • Becoming something different to fulfill a role or complete a task
  • Changing an avatar along with the changing needs of the student
• Establish Norms – Establish guidelines for virtual world behaviors.
  • Explaining the non-negotiable expectations
  • Negotiating student opinions about appropriate use
  • Modifying norms through on-going practice
• Differentiate – Expect that students will differentiate roles/responsibilities.
  • Encouraging the differentiation of roles (builders/socializers/gamers)
  • Utilizing the strengths of the different learning styles/behaviors.
• Engaging Challenge and Purpose – Focus student engagement.
  • Providing time to learn the new tools in context of the challenge
  • Creating a sense of belonging
• Build Together – Learn alongside the students.
  • Flattening the typical teacher/student roles
  • Doing what cannot be done in the real world – simulations/experiences
  • Participating as co-learners within the world.

Additional Resources

• The Association of Virtual World Educators
• The Noble Virtual World – Forsyth County Schools
• Mr. BYOT – @MrBrotherton (Mitch Brotherton)
• Knowclue’s Wiki – @knowclue (Marianne Malmstrom)
• World of Warcraft in School – @peggysheehy (Peggy Sheehy)
• Gamification of the BYOT Classroom (BYOTchat Archives from 11/29/12)
• Bill’s Video Story of Living in Second Life
• ISTE SIGVE [Virtual Worlds]
• Building 3D StoryWorlds
• Video of Fires of Genocide [Second Life Immersive Experience]
• Ramapo’s Video Story of Frost StoryWorld
• Machinima Examples – Resources

About the Presenters

Tim Clark, Ed.D.
Coordinator of Instructional Technology
Forsyth County Schools
Email: tclark@forsyth.k12.ga.us
Twitter: @byotnetwork

Jill Hobson
Director of Instructional Technology
Forsyth County Schools
Email:  jhobson@forsyth.k12.ga.us
Twitter: @hobsonjill

Bernajean Porter
President
Bernajean Porter Consulting
Email: bernajean@digitales.us
Twitter: @bernajeanporter