Professional Development Activity :: Digital materials/resources and emerging technologies

Today I have decided to base the professional development activity for the topic 'Digital Materials / Resources and Emerging Technologies' in the INF330 assessment on using a new technology.  For this I have taught myself how to use the virtual world game Second Life (http://secondlife.com/), as I have an interest in learning how virtual games could benefit children's learning.  It has also been found 'the fastest growing demographic of virtual world users is children between the ages of 5 and 9' (Marsh, 2011, p. 103).

To start in Second Life, the website asks you to design your own character. I chose a slightly gothic looking lady and called it The Quiet Librarian.  It takes about an hour to download all the bits necessary to run, then when you're ready you can open it and take off.  It didn't take me long to figure out the basics to Second Life.  The arrows on the keyboard moved my character around (though it does look very odd, not a normal walking motion), and the tabs on the screen allowed me to chat to others in the room or search and teleport to another world.  I teleported myself to the Illumination Library (designed and owned by Second Life Literary Foundation) and clicked on an item marked as Daniel Defoe's 'Robinson Crusoe'. I was able to read the book via a link to a webpage (not in the Second Life screen).  My computer is very slow so it wasn't the best experience.  It was interesting to see what a virtual world game involves, and how easy it is to take part.

Virtual worlds, such as Second Life, have been designed to help people communicate with others without leaving the computer.  This is a great benefit when children cannot travel to a classroom or library easily.  But is this an ideal place for children?  Long periods of play in the virtual world could affect a child's social skills, as 'children who play these games would see less of a distinction between their online friends and real friends; virtually socializing might be just as fulfilling as a Friday night party. And they would be more likely to participate actively in their own entertainment, clicking at the keyboard instead of leaning back on the couch' (Stone, 2010).


References:

Marsh, S.  (2011).  Young children's literacy practices in a virtual world: Establishing an online interaction order.  Reading  Research Quarterly, 46(2), 101-118.
 
Stone, B. (2010, January 9).  The children of cyberspace: Old fogies by their 20s.  Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com