Use of Second Life in K-12 and higher education: A review of research Chris Inman The University of Alabama TERC Conference April 4, 2009

What is Second Life? Launched by Linden Labs in 2003, Second Life is a 3-D virtual world environment that can be accessed through the Internet.

Second Life Client Interface

Second Life has become a popular destination for educators and non-educators alike. Educators are choosing this particular virtual environment because they believe that Second Life allows for manipulation of space and time, presents a high degree of realism with minimal risk, and provides a great venue for informal learning situations (Pence, ).

Virtual Denny Chimes in Second Life

Research Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify and review empirical research studies on the use of the virtual world of Second Life in education (both K-12 and higher education).

Guiding Questions 1. How is Second Life used by students and teachers? 2. What types of research methods (qualitative and quantitative) have been applied using Second Life in K-12 and higher education settings? 3. Of the research conducted thus far in Second Life, what are the related findings?

Methodology The search of relevant literature was conducted over a seven- week period, beginning on Saturday, January 24, 2009 and ending on Saturday, March 14, Conference proceedings from the following conferences were searched: Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education Conference (SITE) presented by the Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE), the AECT International Convention presented by the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT), and the National Educational Computing Conference (NECC) presented by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE).

Methodology Continued… The following were also searched: Educational Technology Research and Development, the Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, the Journal of Research on Technology in Education, and the Journal of Computing in Teacher Education. Moreover, the EdITLib Education and Information Technology Library housed by AACE was also searched. Third, the following research databases were searched for the term "Second Life": Academic, Academic OneFile, Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost, Education Full Text, ERIC, and PsycARTICLES. Finally, a broad search of the term "Second Life" was conducted using Google Scholar.

What did I find? A total of 27 empirical research articles were found between 2003 and 2009.

Findings Research Method Distribution

Sample Size of the Studies

Data Collection Instruments and Methods Used Survey/Questionnaire17 studies Data Transcription11 Statistical Analysis (SPSS, etc.)7 Interviews6 Case Study Approach3 Ethnography3

Education Level of Focus

What were teachers/educators doing in Second Life? Teaching course/facilitating course/13 studies As part of a course Conducting an experiment 5 Participating as ethnographer 3 Conducting a survey 2 Building simulations 1 Examining use of space 1

What were students doing in Second Life? Group work/project5 studies Role-playing4 Attending lectures/seminars2 Playing/creating games2 Answering a survey1 Exploring the design and use of space1 Virtual Tour1 Studied Second Life1

Researchers Identified 4 Primary Problems Student acceptance of Second Life as an educational tool or environment Technical problems and lack of staff support Steep learning curve Potential for distraction and exposure to incorrect or inappropriate content

Researchers Identified 7 Potential Uses for Second Life Facilitating role-play activities, including exploration of gender roles Distance education Simulations and games Group work and group projects Student-centered teaching and learning strategies based on constructivist principles such as problem-based learning Build/create virtual community To foster and encourage student communication, collaboration, and social interaction

Four Primary Recommendations by Researchers Establish a clear connection between course objectives and activities in Second Life Incorporate technical training and support into any planned Second Life activity Create scaffolded learning activities for students so they can practice inside Second Life and acclimate to the virtual environment Design and construct different spaces to encourage different types of student interaction

Conclusions Neither method of research (qualitative or quantitative) is more predominant in Second Life at the moment Second Life activity for educators/teachers is almost entirely a higher education activity Educators are using Second Life more for student- centered forms of education instead of teacher- centered methods Students are primarily engaged in student-centered, group-based, project-based, forms of learning Educators/researchers have identified a set of problems, a set of possible uses, and have also given recommendations

Recommendations Between 2003 and 2009, 27 research studies were located that focused primarily on Second Life in education. If educators are to continue to use Second Life as an educational tool, then more research must be conducted to discern its strengths and weaknesses.

More Recommendations If educators are to use Second Life they should do these four things: – Make specific connections between course learning objectives and Second Life activities; if students cannot see the point in using Second Life they will lose interest – Make sure your computers can handle Second Life’s operating requirements and have trained support staff available to help students – Design different types of space to encourage intended types of interaction (i.e. classrooms, collaborative zones, social areas, etc.) – Create activities that build on each other (scaffolded learning) so that students can practice; incorporate activities that groups can complete together so that they do not feel lost or confused

Final Recommendation Based upon this review, educator use of Second Life is almost entirely concerned with higher education. Additionally, age restrictions on Second Life (ages 18 and up) make it difficult to conduct learning and research in Second Life with K-12 students. Additionally, age requirements and restrictions in Teen Second Life (ages 13 to 17 years) make it difficult for teachers to gain access. Second Life and Teen Second Life, while both operated by Linden Labs, are two mutually exclusive worlds. With all of this information in mind, I believe that it is time to reconsider the use of Second Life in K-12 education. Instead, I recommend that teachers, educators, and researchers develop a new three-dimensional virtual world specifically for students in K-12 education that is both safe and appropriate for teaching and learning.

The End…for Now!