Second Life
Linden Lab, the company that created and runs SL, has sold more than 100 islands for educational purposes, at about $1,000 each plus $150 monthly maintenance (Lagorio). Owners of islands have more sophisticated controls over the virtual experience, including the ability to make their land public or private (invisible to others).
SL’s education community is growing: subscribers to its education list serve number more than 1,000; at least three islands run by library groups are open to the public; and universities are collaborating by lending space on their own islands or sharing ideas (Lagorio). Graduate students doing research or teaching in SL have formed a mobile colony that holds discussions with experts in subjects like online ethics or aesthetics. Seton Hall, in South Orange, N.J., presented its SL teaching methods at a recent conference held on New Media Consortium’s island, and the MacArthur Foundation held a panel discussion called “The Future of Digital Education” on Harvard’s island (Lagorio).
According to Claudia L'Amoreaux at Linden Lab, the San Francisco company that created Second Life (SL) at least 300 universities around the world teach courses or conduct research in SL (Michels). In Texas alone, academics at some schools are finding SL can help teach complicated concepts with 3-D models, build collaborative networks for projects and explore the possibilities of virtual worlds.
Texas academics are engaging SL from a variety of angles. At Trinity University in San Antonio, new media students design and implement promotional campaigns in SL in Aaron Delwiche's "Virtual World Pr ...