Second Life and Access for the Disabled and Homebound

2014 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 147-151
Author(s):  
John W. Traphagan ◽  
Katherine Sanchez
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual Communities ◽  
Community Building ◽  
Internet Technology ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Care Managers ◽  
The Disabled ◽  
E Learning

Internet technology has opened up new vistas for the creation of communities in virtual environment. Research is beginning to emerge that focuses on the use of virtual communities in areas such as e-learning and the potential for use of virtual worlds for both therapy and community building for individuals who are disabled, homebound, and isolated. Second Life, which is a product individuals can join free of charge, has the potential to function as a tool to help care managers and others to work with disabled and homebound individuals in the process of creating social interaction. This article explores Second Life and offers some suggestions for future research in this area.

Does Second Life Mark the Beginning of a New Era of Online Shopping?

2011 ◽  
pp. 232-247
Author(s):  
Jang Ho Moon ◽  
Yongjun Sung ◽  
S. Marina Choi
Keyword(s):  
Social Presence ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Online Shopping ◽  
Social Dimension ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Ongoing Research ◽  
New Era ◽  
Shopping Experience

In this chapter, the authors explore the unique social dimension of shopping in virtual worlds, namely Second Life, by examining the role of avatar-based interactions in determining consumer shopping experience. To this end, an overview of Second Life, and other similar virtual worlds, is provided. This chapter then introduces the concept of social presence and offers a conceptual discussion of how avatar-based shopping in virtual environments is distinctive from shopping in other Web environments. Next, the authors present the preliminary findings of the ongoing research study investigating how consumers’ interactions with salespersons and peer consumers via avatars influence their shopping experience in Second Life. This chapter concludes with a future prospect of virtual worlds and directions for future research.

Second Language E-Learning and Professional Training with Second Life®

2011 ◽  
pp. 207-227 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Edwards ◽  
Mercedes Rico ◽  
Eva Dominguez ◽  
J. Enrique Agudo
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Professional Training ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Degree Programs ◽  
Constructivist Learning Theory ◽  
The Social ◽  
E Learning ◽  
University Degree ◽  
Social Constructivist Learning

Web 2.0 technologies are described as new and emerging for all fields of knowledge, including academia. Innovative e-learning formats like on-demand video, file sharing, blogs, Wikis, podcasting and virtual worlds are gaining increasing popularity among educators and students due to their emphasis on flexible, collaborative and community-building features, a promising natural channel for the social constructivist learning theory. This chapter addresses the application of e-learning in university degree programs based on exploiting the practical, intensive and holistic aspects of Second Life® (SL™). Although the specific framework dealt with is English as a foreign language, it seems feasible to assume that the learning processes are equally transferable to other disciplines. In light of the aforementioned premises, the outlook of e-learning 2.0 approaches require action research and shared experiences in order to back up or challenge the claims and expectations of the academic community concerned with best practices in education.

Virtual Worlds for Science Learning

2010 ◽  
pp. 263-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mick Grimley ◽  
Trond Nilsen ◽  
Roslyn Kerr ◽  
Richard Green ◽  
David Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Science Education ◽  
Learning Theory ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Constructivist Teaching ◽  
Online Game ◽  
Research Directions ◽  
Relevant Theory ◽  
Future Research Directions

This chapter proposes that the use of virtual worlds for science education is warranted and fits well with contemporary learning theory in the context of constructivist instructional approaches being desirable and that learners learn best when they are engaged in active mental processing. Over recent years, games have become increasingly social, supporting massively multi-player online game experiences and then evolving into virtual worlds, such as Second Life, which show significant promise for educational uses. This chapter introduces the field of virtual worlds, and then discusses relevant theory and research. The authors describe the potential of virtual worlds for education by emphasizing how they can be leveraged as an effective tool for constructivist teaching techniques. In addition, the authors present some of the literature that supports their use for science education. This chapter concludes with practical concerns and some possible solutions in the context of future research directions.

The Use of Virtual Worlds for Developing Intercultural Competences

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 51-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisiane Machado ◽  
Amarolinda Zanela Klein ◽  
Angilberto Freitas ◽  
Eliane Schlemmer ◽  
Cristiane Drebes Pedron
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Intercultural Competence ◽  
Design Research ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Educational Method ◽  
Exchange Program ◽  
Sense Of Presence ◽  
Conversational Learning

In this research, the authors present a framework for developing Intercultural Competence (IC) and use Tridimensional Digital Virtual Worlds (3DVW) as environments for developing Intercultural Competence. They developed an artifact, via Design Research, constituted by an educational method using the 3DVW Second Life® as the place for a virtual exchange program between 92 Brazilian and Portuguese master students. The results of the authors' study indicate that the 3DVW can be used for the development of IC because it allows rich experiential and relational/conversational learning opportunities, especially due to the affordances of immersion/sense of presence, social interaction, content production and knowledge sharing.

Advancing Learning Through Virtual Worlds

2010 ◽  
pp. 556-572
Author(s):  
Steve Mahaley ◽  
Robin Teigland
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Learning Activities ◽  
Learning Activity ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Implementation Challenges ◽  
Incoming Students

Higher education institutions and corporations are increasingly exploring new pedagogical methods to align with learning styles of incoming students and employees, who are amazingly adept at using Web 2.0 applications. This chapter explores the use of virtual worlds, in particular that of Second Life, in educational activities by organizations such as higher education institutions or corporations. We begin by introducing virtual worlds with a particular focus on Second Life. We then provide an overview of the benefits of this environment for learning activities before presenting a set of potential learning activities that can be conducted within Second Life. We then discuss an in-depth example of 3D teaming-one learning activity within Second Life conducted by the authors. After a discussion of implementation challenges, we then present areas for future research.

scholarly journals A Typology of Virtual Worlds: Historical Overview and Future Directions

1970 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul R. Messinger ◽  
Eleni Stroulia ◽  
Kelly Lyons
Keyword(s):  
Social Networking ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Virtual Communities ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Historical Overview ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Platform Design ◽  
Profit Model ◽  
Five Elements ◽  
Collaborative Play

Virtual worlds constitute a growing space for collaborative play, learning, work, and e-commerce. To promote study of this emerging realm of activity, we suggest a typology adapted from C. Porter’s (2004) typology of virtual communities. The five elements of the proposed typology include (1) purpose (content of interaction), (2) place (location of interaction), (3) platform (design of interaction), (4) population (participants in the interaction), and (5) profit model (return on interaction). We argue that this five-element typology facilitates identification of (a) the historic antecedents of virtual worlds in gaming and social networking, (b) future applications of virtual worlds for society, education, and business; and (c) topics for future research.

scholarly journals 3D Interactions between Virtual Worlds and Real Life in an E-Learning Community

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ulrike Lucke ◽  
Raphael Zender
Keyword(s):  
Learning Community ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Real World ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual World ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Learning Platform ◽  
E Learning ◽  
Learning Scenarios

Virtual worlds became an appealing and fascinating component of today's internet. In particular, the number of educational providers that see a potential for E-Learning in such new platforms increases. Unfortunately, most of the environments and processes implemented up to now do not exceed a virtual modelling of real-world scenarios. In particular, this paper shows that Second Life can be more than just another learning platform. A flexible and bidirectional link between the reality and the virtual world enables synchronous and seamless interaction between users and devices across both worlds. The primary advantages of this interconnection are a spatial extension of face-to-face and online learning scenarios and a closer relationship between virtual learners and the real world.

scholarly journals 3D Assistive Technologies and Advantageous Themes for Collaboration and Blended Learning of Users with Disabilities

2011 ◽  
pp. 25-69
Author(s):  
Georgios A. Dafoulas ◽  
Noha Saleeb
Keyword(s):  
Learning Environments ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
Assistive Technologies ◽  
Full Potential ◽  
3D Virtual Worlds ◽  
E Learning ◽  
Design Requirements ◽  
3D Virtual Learning Environments

The significance of newly emergent 3D virtual worlds to different genres of users is currently a controversial subject in deliberation. Users range from education pursuers, business contenders, and social seekers to technology enhancers and many more who comprise both users with normal abilities in physical life and those with different disabilities. This study aims to derive and critically analyze, using grounded theory, advantageous and disadvantageous themes, and their sub concepts of providing e-learning through 3D Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs), like Second Life, to disabled users. Hence providing evidence that 3DVLEs not only support traditional physical learning, but also offer e-learning opportunities unavailable through 2D VLEs (like Moodle, Blackboard), and offer learning opportunities unavailable through traditional physical education. Furthermore, to achieve full potential from the above-mentioned derived concepts, architectural and accessibility design requirements of 3D educational facilities proposed by different categories of disabled students to accommodate for their needs, are demonstrated.

scholarly journals Virtual Worlds Come Of Age

2010 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuart Barnes
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Real World ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Virtual Communities ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Channel Activity ◽  
Brand Building ◽  
Successful Case ◽  
Media Hype

Virtual worlds have been purported to provide a fertile bed for marketing and brand-building for real-life companies. In Second Life, for example, there was a flurry of media hype and activity by companies in the period from 2007-2008. Several years on, however, the reality is that most of the big name brands have pulled out of Second Life. One of the reasons for this is the poor level of value generated for customers by the virtual brand experience, poor interactivity, a lack of brand and channel fit, and inadequate understanding of virtual communities. Recently, a new form of more targeted brand offerings has emerged. Branded virtual worlds, many of which are targeted at the youth segment, are growing rapidly. Many of these worlds attempt to bridge the gap between the real and virtual worlds, including advertising and real-world tie-ins, as well as subscriptions and digital micro-transactions. This paper examines one such virtual world, buildabearville.com, and its real-world counterpart, Build-a-Bear Workshop. This successful case study has become increasingly important in driving revenues and cross-channel activity for the company. The paper rounds off with conclusions and implications for practice in this very new area of investigation.

3D Virtual Worlds in Higher Education

2011 ◽  
pp. 212-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucia Rapanotti ◽  
Shailey Minocha ◽  
Leonor Barroca ◽  
Maged N. Kamel Boulos ◽  
David R. Morse
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Interaction ◽  
Active Learning ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
Second Life ◽  
Knowledge Construction ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Learning By Doing ◽  
3D Virtual Worlds ◽  
3D Virtual World

3D virtual worlds are becoming widespread due to cheaper powerful computers, high-speed broadband connections and efforts towards their tighter integration with current 2D Web environments. Besides traditional gaming and entertainment applications, some serious propositions are starting to emerge for their use, particularly in education, where they are perceived as enablers of active learning, learning by doing, and knowledge construction through social interaction. However, there is still little understanding of how 3D virtual worlds can be designed and deployed effectively in the education domain, and many challenges remain. This chapter makes a contribution towards such an understanding by reporting on three notable case studies at the authors’ own institutions, which have pioneered the use of Second Life, a 3D virtual world, in higher education.

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