Barry Joseph Keynote at SLCC2008–Why Second Life Can’t Tip

Barry Joseph delivered a WONDERFUL and engaging 50 minutes to us at SLEDcc2008 in Tampa. In addition to the several hundred on-location attendees, at any given time we had 30-40 or so people at a distance enjoying his talk from the feeds and at one of the three locations in Second Life there were approximately 25 avatars, also from all over the world. Didn’t see it? No problem. Sit back and enjoy. And hey, share it with at least one dubious colleague :

Visit the CoverItLive blog for the Second Life Educators 2008 Conference here.

Or just watch the Mogulus.com feed.

Using the Mogulus video-on-demand feature you can now watch:

• Keynote with Claudia and Pathfinder Linden (more info here)
• (The working group on Student Conduct/Institutional Policy was NOT recorded on Mogulus - It will be uploaded when the recorded content shown in-world is made available.)
• Case Study: The 2nd Life/Real Life Divide, Rockcliffe U.
• Keynote with Sarah Robbins-Bell (more info here)
• (1/2 recorded session) Integrating SL in Humanitarian and Development Training
• Workshop: Building Educational Communities in SL with AJ Kelton

The new year is officially underway here at my school and today is our second day with students. For me personally, it’s incomprehensible to think of missing today to attend the Second Life Education Community Conference, now underway as we speak in Tampa, Florida. Still, as I peruse the wiki, twitter feed, Flickr stream, and a smattering of blog posts, I am astounded at the quality of this event, which is, unless I’m mistaken, effectively the first year it has run as a dedicated conference-within-a-conference.

At last year’s Second Life Community Convention, the education track featured some of the best and brightest researchers, practitioners, and STUDENTS in the metaverse. I know, I saw them and met them. I was there.

When the conference organizers (of SLCC, not SLEDcc) made the decision to have the event the first week in September, it was because that was the very best decision they could have possibly made given the available venues. Many in the education community (particularly K-12) were upset, including me. These things happen. Nonetheless, it’s VERY CLEAR that the people who committed to SLEDcc made a GARGANTUAN contribution to the event.

Take a look at this program. No, wait. Take a look at THIS program first. That is the overall Second Life Community Convention program for 2007. The items in GREEN are education track events. Unbelieveable!

This is by NO MEANS a slight on the people who put together SLCC 2007. Far from it! We would not be where we are today if it were not for them. But when you consider the depth, breadth, style and substance of the programs listed, you have to (in my view at least) agree that education is really, truly driving development in the metaverse. While businesses have come and gone, the educational community is thriving in Second Life. The reason? Dedicated individuals like Chris Collins, Jonathan Richter, Jennifer Ragan-Fore, Jeremy Koester, Scott Merrick, and so many others. You guys are KILLIN’ ME! I want to be there with you, but I *NEED* to be here with my students. :/

How far have we come? Check out the first-ever SLEDDies award competition. That’s the award rubric at the right. Look at those categories. Usability. Technical execution. Crossover & communication. Skills transferance. Innovation. What we are seeing here, folks, is the emergence of a new instructional medium, driven by educators, people woring with actual students on actual lessons in actual classrooms in actual schools, but also virtually, pushing the boundaries of learning into exciting new dimensions.

To be sure, Second Life is NOT the be-all and end-all virtual world. Far from it. No one claims it is. Many people, however, rightfully (in my view) claim that Second Life is, today, the most powerful, flexible, AVAILABLE and easy-to-use virtual world platform available today. It’s natural for educators to flock to an awesome, FREE, cutting-edge tool. The fun part: watching what these creative, driven, professionall learners come up with, and to imagine what learning will be like for our children’s children, whether it involves Second Life or some other immersive 3D environment. Educators are at the forefront of virtual world development!

Ok, gotta get going … I really, really wish I was there, but the bell will be ringing soon and I’ll have a class full of youngsters to care for. Enjoy the conference, congrats on pulling it off, and keep on innovating!

Best,

-kj-

Hey, a quick post to note the locations inworld where you can catch streaming content live from Tampa over the weekend beginning tomorrow, Friday, Sept. 5. The entire schedule of inworld events is at the SLEDcc wiki, but the quick list of streaming locations is this:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/ISTE%20Island/128/124/25
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Rockcliffe%20I/206/134/40
http://slurl.com/secondlife/Muse%20Isle/171/146/30

Cheerio, and I’ll be the man/avatar behind the camera for most, if not all, events! Maybe I’ll sneak up behind you in SL and sit down to join you!

Scottmerrick Oh

Thanks to Jeremy Kemp for this news:

Announcing: Second Life Educators (SLED) Mixer
Friday, 9/3, 7-9pm Eastern daylight time

The Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, in partnership with the mixed reality performance program Kidz Connect, and the Applied Research in Virtual Environments for Learning (ARVEL), a special interest group of the American Educational Research Association, are hosting a mixer for those interested in virtual learning research and mixed reality performance as cultural exchange.

Come unwind while getting inspired! We will offer refreshments
and computers if you’d like to show off your Avatar. Finishes at 9pm.

Only a few blocks from the hotel - at the TECO Theater, in the Patel Conservatory at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center.

This is a kickoff social event for the Second Life Education Community Convention.

Links:

Overview: http://www.kidzconnect.org/sled08-mixer/
Kidz Connect: http://kidzconnect.org/
ARVEL: http://www.arvelsig.com/
Patel Conservatory: http://www.patelconservatory.org/
Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center: http://tbpac.org/
SLEDcc schedule:
http://sledcc.wikispaces.com/Program+%26+Events

–Jeremy Kemp

Image credits: Rochelle Mazar’s blog

If you’re planning to attend the SLCC in Tampa, Florida (or inworld in one of the many venues that will be hooking up to it) next week, you may be confused by the multitude of internet presences. This is a hands-built event, and the history of its Web iterations reflects that. Its online “face” started out with a Wordpress blog, moved to a  new address that basically revised its Wordpress design but maintains the blog look and aspect; and then, to my mind thankfully, blossomed into a very tidy and comprehensive wiki. That’s the one you want, ya’ll.

Let me be very clear: This is NOT a criticism, only an observation, and an attempt to highlight the process by which beginning efforts can, with community collaboration (and in a very short time) become extraordinarily rich and helpful. Useful linkage means everything to busy people. This site has it!

The SLCC Wiki!

Posted by Scottmerrick Oh

Metanomics “On the Spot” - Fleep Tuque Discusses SLEDcc 2008

On Monday, Metanomics host Robert Bloomfield (SL: Beyers Sellers) put Education Correspondent Fleep Tuque “On the Spot” about the upcoming Second Life Education Community Conference 2008 (SLEDcc), part of the official Second Life Community Convention in Tampa, FL from September 5 - 7th.

(Click the image to view video)

Fleep discussed the genesis of the SLEDcc name and gave an overview of the six conference strands and upcoming sessions in Tampa.  She also talked about the SLEDcc Working Groups, a new component of this year’s program, that will bring participants together to address four topics to generate useful resources for members of the Second Life education community.  Educators are invited to contribute to the SLEDcc Working Group discussions in the SLEDcc08 group on RezEd prior to the conference:

• Developing Template Language About Second Life for Course Syllabi/Parent Notices
• Creating an Institutional Use/Student Code of Conduct Policy for Second Life
• Organizing a Directory of Institutions & Courses Using Second Life
• Feedback to Linden Lab:  What Would Educators Like from Linden Lab in the Next 1-3 Years?

SLEDcc will also have a full program in-world, with streamed sessions from Tampa and an exciting schedule of tours, socials, poster sessions, and presentations.  Register for the in-world SLEDcc here!

Metanomics Guest - David Kaskel on Language Lab

Following the “On the Spot” segment, Beyers turned to the show’s main guest for the day, David Kaskel (SL: Edgeware Marker), CEO of Language Lab.  Language Lab teaches foreign languages in Second Life and their novel curriculum uses a staff of instructors and actors to immerse people in a foreign land, where they must use the native tongue in homes, restaurants, dance halls, job interviews and even airports.

Learn more about Language Lab’s innovative use of virtual worlds for language instruction - click the image above to play the video!

Helloooooo, all. Scott Merrick, here. I’m Scottmerrick Oh in Second Life and I blog frequently at my little Oh! Virtual Learning effort. I’ll be doing some cross-posting when I feel that’s appropriate, but this little introductory post here is mostly to let you know about our blogging resource at ISTE Island, the Blogger’s Hut. Designed to be informative and fun, sorta the way learning should be, it’s there for any and all educational bloggers, not just those of us covering our favorite MUVE. There’s a brief inro to blogs, there are links to videos, and there are now two windows of blogbuttons so that you can go find new blogs for your RSS feed aggregator simply by browsing the blogs that result from clicking the buttons.

Every month, a polling station collects votes for the featured Blog-o-the-month whose RSS feed will be displayed all month in the RSS object, allowing quick scan of subject headers. Clicking on the RSS box will open up the featured blog for your reading enjoyment. This month, it’s Jeff Agamenoni’s “From Mr. A to Mr. Z” and I’m pleased that Jeff (Henny Zimer in SL) is not one of your long-running blogstars, but a relative newcomer to the discipline: That’s the beauty of democratic vote, ya’ll! I love Jeff’s fresh-from-Montana perspectives on teaching and learning and the wonder he shares with us as he discovers new tools for teaching.

Come see me at ISTE Island, where I occasionally docent, along with the dozens of other teacher-volunteers who do so, and by all means vote for your favorite blog for RSS display the month of September: This month we’re choosing between four stellar examples of leading edge thought about teaching and learning. The predictable thing to do, of course, is to list them here, but I’d rather have you visit this SLurl and check them out!

See ya at SLCC!!! Oh, and if you can’t get there, I’ll be streaming some sessions into ISTE Island from Tampa. Either way, I hope to see you there!!

Posted by Scottmerrick Oh (Scott Merrick)

The Education arm of the Second Life Community Conference is planning The SLEDccademy Awards, a contest for building and showcasing exemplary educational builds in SL - with votes starting early August and the winners announced live in Tampa for each of 6 categories (streamed inworld if possible):

• Games and Simulations
• Mixed Reality Learning
• Theory, Research, & Practice
• International and Diverse Learning
• Tools and Projects
• Special Populations & Events

Before nominations and voting can begin, however, the committee would like to create a rubric for each category. What qualities make a tool the best in Second Life? What outstanding features does a mixed reality learning exercise contain?

We need your help to develop these rubrics!  Leave a comment suggesting a quality you think should be included on one of the rubrics. Be sure to tell us which category the rubric item is for. Feel free to leave more than one.