Second life: The educational possibilities of a Massively Multiplayer Virtual World (MMVW) – (external article)
I have just read this article. I am thinking about how I can use a Massively Multiplayer Virtual World (MMVW) in my teaching area (language). The virtual world such as ‘Second Life’ seems to be attractive for students. However, in real language learning students have to look at people’s facial expressions, gestures and hesitation etc when they are talking to someone. Because of this they can learn cultural differences (eg: intonation and gestures etc). Antonacci says we can choose our avatar and also we can change it. Also, he says that the students who have physical disabilities wouldn’t be looked down on by others in the virtual world. However, the students have to live in the real world and they have to deal with the difficulty and also we have to help and learn from them. If the students with physical disabilities found the virtual world comfortable, I think they would eventually run away from reality and start living in the 3D world.
Antonacci mentions the importance of the idea of constructivist learning. This is true in that students can create their own characters and stories etc. However, it is important for educators – especially language teachers – to focus on real communicative practices which connect to the world outside the school, not to the virtual world.
