Collaboration: The Roadmap Forward takes place May 12-14 at the National Defense University in Washington, DC (or attend virtually.) Registration is now open:

http://www.ndu.edu/irmc/fcvw/fcvw10/index.html

The three day Immersive Education 2010 Summit takes place April 23-25 at Boston College. More information is available here:

http://mediagrid.org/summit/

Date: September 25, 2009

Contact: Macquarie University in Sydeney, Australia: Learning and Teaching Center http://www.mq.edu.au/ltc/

Event blurb: The MQUncon 09 is a FREE event for educators to connect and share ideas and solutions around using educational technology in learning and teaching. It is being hosted by Macquarie University and the Islands of jokaydia in Second Life.

More information: http://mquncon09.pbworks.com/

The State University of New York Institute of  Technology held a conference yesterday entitled, “Integrating the Virtual World: Creating an Intersection with the Virtual and Real to Enhance Learning.”

The conference was an excellent opportunity for those working in the field of immersive learning to network, share ideas, and to address common problems, from the technical, such as connectivity and bandwidth issues in the classroom; to the pedagogical, such as convincing an institution that immersive teaching is valuable.

Keynote speaker Bret Ingerman described the obstacles and rewards encountered by Vassar College  as they made their foray into the virtual world of Second Life. A common concern is convincing administrators that a five thousand dollar investment in a Second Life island is worthwhile. However, the ability to engage students in a virtual environment is priceless. An example was the ability to create sculptures to scale, allowing students to have a real feel for the artwork represented and to interact with the objects in a way that is not possible by looking at a photograph in a book. Ingerman also cited Vassar’s recreation of the Sistine Chapel - one of the most popular sites in Second Life – as an example of putting the medium to good use. Students who may never have the opportunity to visit the real site can get an up-close look at the intricacies and the scale of the work by visiting it in Second Life.

A hands-on session presented an opportunity to encounter and resolve the real problems of teaching in Second Life. Many of the attendees were new and had to create their accounts before they could log in. We also encountered extreme lag due to bandwidth issues. Terry Keys and Larry Dugan provided a great example on keeping the instruction going through technical difficulties — something everyone is likely to encounter at some point in an immersive learning environment.

After lunch, Chris Egert of Rochester Institute of Technology gave a presentation on RIT’s M.U.P.P.E.T.S. program, providing examples of student work and describing the process of teaching in a virtual world.

Roundtable discussions included a talk led by Alexandra Pickett encouraging the use of SUNY Live as a resource and point of collaboration for educators working in Second Life; Chris Egert giving further detailed information on the M.U.P.P.E.T.S. program; and a discussion of the student experience in virtual learning.

The final session of the day was led by Larry Dugan of Finger Lakes Community College. He spoke about the combined use of books, movies, and gaming to teach The Lord of the Rings, which was met with overwhelming enthusiasm from students. He will be teaching the course again this summer, due to high demand.