Utilizing Virtual Worlds in Education: The Implications for Practice

Multi User Virtual Worlds are becoming a valuable educational tool. Learning experiences within these worlds focus on discovery and active experiences that both engage~students and motivate them to explore new concepts. As educators, we need to explore these environments to determine how they can most effectively be used in our instructional practices. This paper explores the current application of virtual worlds to identify meaningful educational strategies that are being used to engage~students and enhance teaching and learning.

Design and Teach Your Course

Carnegie Mellon provides information for designing and teaching a course here...

Astronomy in Second Life: A User’s Perspective

While a bit dated, the following information can be a guide to developing a learning environment at virtual worlds for your astronomy class...
Second Life (SL) is a multi-user virtual environment that is not limited to adult social entertainment. SL is also a 3D playground for innovative instructors and education/outreach professionals in the sciences. Astronomy and space science have a presence in SL, but it could be so much more. This paper describes some of the current astronomy themed spaces in SL and briefly discusses future innovations. Review more, click here...

It’s All About Social Media. Or is It?

Just not for students any more...Collaboration is a valuable learning tool. By enabling a rich collaborative experience, the organization as a whole can benefit from captured intellectual property and a more engaged workforce. Social media can help bridge the gap between people and solutions, building stronger communities and relationships. In this article from the Winter 2012 issue of Training Industry Quarterly e-magazine, we will examine how to build a sustainable and productive social experience to increase satisfaction and retention. Click here to review several articles on the subject...

How the Brain Learns

Donald Ford, PhD, notes, "We have known since antiquity that the seat of learning is the human brain.  But it has only been in the last decade that neuroscience researchers have been able to go inside the brain and observe how learning actually occurs at the molecular level. " Click here to read more...

Learning is not sufficiently valued...

For centuries, trainers have believed that the classroom is the optimal mechanism for transferring learning. Today's digital revolution is challenging this long-held assumption. To read more, click here...