Tuesday, May 28, 2019

2019 #VWEDU The virtual worlds (MUVEs) professional learning community. Not something we have to organize. It just is


#VWEDU Virtual worlds (MUVEs) 
professional learning community.  
Not something we have to organize.  It just is

Suggestions on how to increase communication in the professional learning community of the MUVEs (virtual worlds).
The Empty Classroom
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  • Like most communities, it formed from propinquity and shared interests.
  • I like the Wikipedia description of propinquity:
  • "It refers to the physical or psychological proximity between people."
  • We virtual worlders understand about psychological proximity.
  • We have friends in who live thousands of miles away.  
  • We educators in virtual worlds collaborate with colleagues on other continents.
  • We know them as avatars, colleagues, and friends.    

So what do we need to do about it?


  • Nothing. But we can seek to expand the advantages:
  • Increase intercommunication so as to share what we find out.
  • Increase outward communication to share virtual worlds more widely.
  • We want to get the word out to the whole education community.
  • Use the hashtag #VWEDU to make your reposts easier to find.

Monday, May 27, 2019

2019 VIDEO: "I Can" A Randt & Hoisan Production


"I Can" A Randt & 
Hoisan Production
This movie was made to encourage and inspire all those who live with diabetes. From the first diagnosis to getting balanced is a process, We hope our video helps you see...you can do it! It was made for The See Yourself Health Sims in Second Life. We also hope you will visit inworld.

For new users of Second Life use this address:http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife... There are clear instructions here to help you learn the skills you need to enjoy this experience fully.
For experienced SL users, enter here: http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife...
For more information about the See Yourself Health Virtual Project and how you can join: https://www.seeyourselfhealth.com/home
Music: Eternity by Roger Subirana Mata, licensed for YouTube by Jamendo #JAM-WEB-2019-0002289
*See Yourself City where some of this movie was filmed, was designed and built by Architect David Denton, DB Bailey in Second Life, who asked us to make this film. It will will be shown in-world on this site.

Sunday, May 26, 2019

2019 #VWEDU: A mystery. Who doesn't love a mystery? Can students learn from a mystery?


A mystery.  
Who doesn't love a mystery?  
Can students learn from a mystery?  

A mystery that can only be solved by using knowledge gained from the course content.  That can work in a geography class by talking to people in a geographically relevant location.  You can do that in Skype at no cost.  For a history class, you could do that with photos of the period or with replicated scenes of the period (as in virtual worlds).

"Mystery Skype is a great tool for global connections for educators around the world. It allows classes to connect with other schools and experts to open up learning for all students. In this vlog post, I encourage teachers to jump into Mystery Skype and I provide tips to maximize their experience. I also talk about best practices for video conferencing and global connection planning."
  • But wait--there's more, after the break

Saturday, May 25, 2019

2019 #VWEDU: WRT: Blogging: Starting, building, and promoting your blog about virtual worlds (MUVEs)


Blogging: Starting, building, 
and promoting your blog
about virtual worlds (MUVEs)

A summary collection of previous articles about blogging, with focus on virtual worlds (MUVEs).

Can I make money from a blog?

  • Some do, but many use a blog to support a favorite project.
  • Google AdWords
  • Choose your goal.  To make money, you have to blog to get readers.
  • Your favorite project may not be a good subject for that.

How do I start?




Friday, May 24, 2019

2019 #VWEDU: WRITE: Seanchai WestWorld: a place for storytellers. Can I find a story here?


Seanchai WestWorld: 
a place for storytellers
Can I find a story here? 

An illustration of how to turn a place into a story.  Here the place is a small town in the west.  The story ideas come from things found on the town's main street.
A small town in the west 

  • Go there: Hypergrid address:
  • grid.kitely.com:8002:WESTWORLD
  • Put the HG address in the Find bar of the world map, click FindTP
  • Seanchai WestWorld on the web


Tuesday, May 21, 2019

2019 #VWEDU BIZ: Corporate Use of a Virtual World for Training Commercial Insurance Agents. Situated learning


Corporate Use of a Virtual World 
for Training Commercial Insurance Agents
Situated learning, communities of practce 
By: Donna Yager

This project is a culmination of the design and development of a virtual world for training Commercial Insurance Agents called ‘Commercial New Producer Program’ and uses a Google site as a student portal for course materials as well as a virtual world, called Training Town, as the tool for meeting within our community of practice.

Training Town

Monday, May 20, 2019

2019 #VWEDU: Mainstreaming Virtual World Learning Colloquium: Video summary and suggestions


Mainstreaming Virtual World Learning Colloquium 
Video summary and suggestions

With funding from the Carol Lavin Bernick Family Foundation and Tulane University's School of Professional Advancement, the Mainstreaming Virtual World Learning Colloquium was held on December 1, 2018. Kay McLennan (Tulane University), the moderator for the event provides the background for the event. 

Kay McLennan, Ph.D. 

Colloquium summary

Saturday, May 18, 2019

2019 #VWEDU MALET showcase: Microscope Studies Using Portable Microscopes & Smartphones


MALET showcase: Microscope Studies 
Using Portable Microscopes & Smartphones

Free web resources. Inexpensive tools.  Smart phones.  Paper-based microscopes.  Easy exploration of the world of tiny.  Away from the world of the teachers, into the world of the student.  When students choose their own explorations, they don't just learn the content.

Takeaways

  • Self-guided exploration of the microscopic world by the students. 
  • When students handle their own explorations, they don't just learn the content.
  • They learn what they can do. 

Tuesday, May 14, 2019

2019 #WVEDU: BIZ: Do we have a professional learning community (PLC) in the virtual worlds (MUVEs)?


Do we have a professional learning community (PLC)
in the virtual worlds (MUVEs)? #WVEDU

Sort of.  We have a many educational organizations and activities in virtual worlds and some loosely organized communication among them.  But they do not yet form a cohesive community with community plans or community actions. Can we form a stronger professional community?
The Empty Classroom

What is a Professional Learning Community?

We have several inworld groups that might fit into a PLC

  • Here are a few that I know:
  • Rockcliffe University Consortium (RUC)
  • Virtual Worlds Best Practices in Education (VWBPE)
  • Virtual Worlds Education Round Table (VWER)
  • Institute for New Paradigms (in learning) NPI
  • New Media Arts (NMA)
  • NonProfit Commons (NPC)
  • Community Virtual Library (CVL)
  • International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE)
  • If these groups increase collaboration, they could make a PLC 

Monday, May 13, 2019

2019 PROMO: HG: Promoting something? Your social media "timeline" could help


Use your media timeline 
to promote your project

We of the virtual worlds (MUVErs) need to to promote our projects to the unMUVEd world.  Here is another suggestion in my series of articles about promotion in the digital universe.


Promoting something?  Your media "timeline" could help

  • Your social media "timeline" is the collection of things you post or repost.
  • To be useful, it needs to be all in one place--probably on Twitter
  • You build it by posting or reposting links on Twitter.
  • Many things you repost will have a share button for easy reposting
  • You use a Twitter timeline by embedding the live stream on your web page.
  • See how I am doing it:   Muve Update 
  • More after the break
  • The embedded stream is always up-to-date.
  • Social media for the virtual worlds. Summary
  • Articles on promotion in this blog.

Sunday, May 12, 2019

2018 WW: WRT: The story at Fantasy Place: quest for the wolfbane flower Part 3, Oberon, Puck, and Wolfbane


The story at Fantasy Place: 
quest for the wolfbane flower 
Part 3, Oberon, Puck, and Wolfbane

A continuation of the werewolf  story (writer's workshop) demonstrating how a story can also be used to support learning.
Red and black cloth 
in the tree trunk

Spoiler warning:  

  • If you are reading Werewolf sequence as a story, this article will give away important information.  
  • Remember, the Werewolf story is written for illustration.
  • The story at Fantasy Place follows the monomyth template of Campbell. 

Go there

Friday, May 10, 2019

2019 COMEDY: April 2019: Lauren's place, Tuesday at 5:00 PM Pacific, NSFW


April 2019: Lauren's place,   
Tuesday at 5:00 PM Pacific NSFW

April collection of comedy from Lauren's place:  WyNott,  Catboy, Randy, Synnove, Amouretta, Selby


      Tuesday, May 7, 2019

      2919 #VWEDU: LIBR: Teaching About Fake News--The EdTech Vlog with Matt Harris, Ed.D.


      Teaching About Fake News--
      The EdTech Vlog with Matt Harris, Ed.D.


      New century skills:  Recognizing and handling fake news.  Fake news is abundant on the internet.  Education needs to prepare students to deal with it.


      "Fake News is a pervasive issue in schools these days. It has now become incumbent on schools to help students develop the skills need to deal with fake news on the Internet. In this vlog post, we discuss the definitions of fake news and approaches to help students determine which information is valid and not when they search the Internet."

      Monday, May 6, 2019

      2019 #VWEDU: Edwardian Era: Coopersville. The Titanic. Kitty hawk. Filling stations. Mary Pickford. The Entertainer


      Edwardian Era: Coopersville.  
      The Titanic.  Kitty hawk.  Filling stations. 
      Mary Pickford. The Entertainer


      A region depicting the early part of the 20th century. A little over 100 years ago.   Definitely a historical period.  With attention to historical accuracy, this could be a good location for a "mystery history" challenge.  Indeed I offer you such a challenge: If you did not read the text, would you be able to deduce the period from just what you see in the pictures here?  

      Coopersville arrival point
      • Go there, HG address:
      • grid.kitely.com:8002:Coopersville
      • Put the HG address in the Find bar of the world map, click Find, TP

      Sunday, May 5, 2019

      2019 #VWEDU BIZ: Notes for the entrepreneurial educator.


      #VWEDU Notes for the 
      entrepreneurial educator.


      The new breed of educator: Entrepreneurial.   Some of what educators do in the normal course of their work produces things and skills of value to other educators and to other educational institutions. Or those things would be of value if they were marketed

      Saturday, May 4, 2019

      2019 #VWEDU MALET showcase: Making and Tinkering – Stop Motion Animation Project: By: Marian Read


      #VWEDU Making and Tinkering
      Stop Motion Animation
      Project: By: Marian Read

      The project uses maker-centered pedagogical principles such as inquiry, play, imagination and innovation and Papert’s constructionist pedagogy, which includes hands-on learning or learning-by-doing and using technology to build artifacts.  The feedback from one teacher is illustrated, highlighting how stop motion animation could help students practice narration of a story in a second language (French).

      This presentation explores Stop Motion Animation as a making and tinkering activity that can be conducted with students in the classroom.   It describes maker-centered pedagogical principles such as inquiry, play, imagination and innovation and Papert’s constructionist pedagogy which includes hands-on learning or learning-by-doing and using technology to build artifacts. 
      The project illustrates the writer’s prototype professional learning resource for teachers, which provides practical information from setting a challenge to suggestions for linking stop motion animation with the curriculum. 

      Takeaways

      Friday, May 3, 2019

      2019 MUVE: HG: Ruth and Roth 2.0 Mesh Avatar Project HGluv is home to a version of Ruth and Roth


      Ruth and Roth 2.0 Mesh Avatar Project
      HGluv is home to a version of Ruth and Roth
      Updated 5/4/2019

      Ruth and Roth 2.0 are low-poly mesh bodies, specifically designed for OpenSimulator. They are built to use standard Second Life(TM) UV maps using scratch-built open source mesh bodies by Shin Ingen with other open source contributions from the OpenSimulator Community.
      Arrive at HGluv
      "NOTICE:  This is not the "Official" distribution point for the Ruth avatar.   This is a modified version that we are developing to eventually share with the main group."