Second Life
One of the most important purposes of an educational environment is to promote social interaction among users located in the same physical space. However, technological advances has enabled the use of innovative learning tools like virtual reality for the purpose of education in a way that collaborative. Virtual reality is a tool that assists students with learning and knowledge retention, it allows students to explore and move around their classrooms while learning. According to authors; Shiang-Kwei Wang and Hui-Yin Hsu, one of the newest forms of this technology is Second Life which is a platform of endless possibilities. They believe that, “Educators should explore the possibilities of engaging and improving online learners’ motivation, thereby increasing the likelihood of achieving desirable learning outcomes.” From the article we can see that Second Life (SL) was designed to enriched learning by experience, providing a near-real life experience that strengthens a sense of social presence or encourages multi-level interaction that exemplifies the (1) relationships between students and content, (2) relationships between instructors and students, and (3) relationships among students. Moreover, this tool promotes educational efficacy and constructivism in a way that allows learners the freedom to discover information relevant to his or her interests in an attempt to construct their own meaning.
Lonzil, I agree that virtual environment provides a place where students are able to interact with their peers, teachers and even contents.
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