Second Life is a virtual world like none other. I believe it is growing exponentially. Groups are being created, land is being secured, and many Linden dollars are being spent. What a concept!
When Dr. Wyly had us meet in Second Life for our MLR class, month 1 of the program, I thought Second Life was a little creepy, but I also enjoyed it. I laughed a lot as one of my classmates kept trying to manipulate her avatar to sit in a chair, and I even enjoyed being able to have a sip of champagne (unfortunately, the tiny bubbles aren’t much fun virtually). I still have to admit that I’m not 100% comfortable with Second Life, but a lot of strange people don’t really inhabit the educational world in Second Life. (I had a naked avatar continually bump into me one of the first few times I was in Second Life – a little strange.)
I have been an ISTE member since June and have enjoyed “attending” some of the seminars they have to offer. I have to say that this is one of the big draws for me in Second Life. To be able to meet up with fellow educators and “interact” with them is an advantage of SL. But, I have been struggling with how to use Second Life with my fourth graders.
How funny, I was just reading a resource for Second Life in elementary education, and it talks about running in to naked avatars – I’ve gotta use this article! (ContentMatters)
My two daughters love being online and “connecting” with other children in cyber space. The frequent Club Penguin, Webkinz, and Girlsense, just to name a few. In these “worlds” they interact with children their own age through their own avatars – penguins, stuffed animals, and boutique owners, respectively. As a parent, I have not been skeptical nor have I found these sites to be creepy. They are, in fact, very similar to Second Life. However, I feel that these sites are safer for the children (Sabet). Why? They are policed constantly. How do I know this? Well, one of my daughters got in trouble with the law! I had forgotten about this until just a few seconds ago. Basically, someone visiting our house found my daughter’s password to her penguin and used it to say mean and inexcusable things to other members of the Club Penguin community. I know what you were thinking: "Yeah, right. It’s the proverbial friend who stole the password. That’s what the mom thinks. It’s really her own child.” Well, Club Penguin safety officers confirmed the time and date of the infraction and we were away for the weekend. Anyway, the point is that while Second Life is great for adults, I'm not sure I can be convinced it's also appropriate for elementary classrooms. I think these child-friendly arenas are better suited for our younger technology specialists!
References
http://sabet.typepad.com/bijanblog/2006/12/webkinz_world_s.html
http://www.contentmatters.info/content_matters/2007/04/webkinz_social_.html
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