Virtual Learning Community Briefing

admin — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 19:52:46 +0000

Campus Leads meet Second Life officials

On August 25, 2009, pioneering representatives from all 16 University of Texas System campuses convened in Austin, Texas to lay the foundation for the Virtual Learning Community Initiative (VLCI). Funded by the UT System Transforming Undergraduate Education grant, this spearheading project is extending operations of each of the 16 UT campuses into the online virtual world of Second Life. Leslie Jarmon, Ph.D., the Primary Investigator for the statewide proposal, is a Faculty Development Specialist and Senior Lecturer in the Division of Instructional Innovation & Assessment (CIE/DIIA) at the University of Texas at Austin.

Campus Lead Bob Sterken talks to the team

The VLCI is taking an approach of learning together, discovery and exploration. During the day-long briefing, the new virtual learning community team members first familiarized themselves with Second Life resources, met Linden Lab liaison staff “in-world”, and shared highlights about the existing virtual world climates at their respective campuses.

Campus Leads Sunay Palsole and Oneita Burgess

The team brainstorms

The animated discussion quickly developed into a full-fledged brainstorming session about key ideas for moving forward. Each campus will set out with three Second Life islands, which will be used for anything from class meetings and office hours to 3D interactive tours of the human body and emergency room simulations. The VLCI team considered island nomenclature, methods for involving faculty and students, how to give the best training in building and scripting, and how to address concerns such as security and privacy.

Campus Leads David Ford, Bruce Niebuhr, Bob Sterken and Jane Lemaster

Lynn Jones Eaton (CIE/DIIA) and Campus Lead Susan Franzen

A communication plan was outlined for the coming year, during which the team will hold twice-monthly meetings in Second Life. The VLCI will be aggressively collecting IRB approved data and media of all kinds to document and share their experiences with the world and further virtual world research at the institutional level.

Campus Lead Mike Sullivan talks with PI Leslie Jarmon

Campus Leads Joe DeCristoforo, Bruce Niebuhr and Kimberly Ashley

Like the internet in the early 90s, the University of Texas System is setting a precedent in the use of virtual world technology for education. The VLCI is exploring how the quality of the learning experience can be enriched using the affordances of the virtual world while lowering the cost of delivery. Simultaneously, this exploration will be creating a vibrant learning community in Texas and in Second Life all along the way.

Campus Leads Jane Lemaster and Mike Sullivan

Pat Francis and Jeff Cole (UT System)

Campus Leads Sarah Jones, Kimberly Ashley, Jennifer Cuthbert and Abby Kratz

The team meets their Linden Lab concierge in Second Life

Virtual Learning Community Initiative » team meetings

Virtual Learning Community Briefing