I walked on the face of the sun...
- Virtual Educator U
- Dec 6, 2018
- 2 min read
Updated: Dec 9, 2018
Seriously, back in 2009 in the 3D World called Second Life, within a SIM (Simulated Island), on the NASA Virtual Campus, I...well my Avatar, walked on the face of the sun.
“NASA's presence in Second Life is just one of several ways the agency's Learning Technologies Project is using cutting-edge technology to help meet NASA's education goals. These goals include attracting and retaining students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, disciplines; strengthening NASA's and the nation's future workforce; and engaging Americans in NASA missions.”
By incorporating images, video, gaming, 3D Worlds, synchronous classrooms, asynchronous classrooms, and more, educators are able to create innovative, engaging opportunities for learners to access knew information in a variety of ways that foster analysis, creativity, and effective evaluation. With the advent of social media, there has a emerged a new learning style that thrives in the digital social environment.
These are just a few of the many other ways Virtual Education taps into existing digital habits to create an optimal environment for learners to thrive. Back in 2009 M. Koyanagi argued that
“students should be able to independently explore an information space to obtain content, higher level concepts and learn how to learn.”
This is transforming the old paradigm of a teacher putting knowledge into a student. By cultivating a study of a broad range of subjects with cost effective options that encourage a depth of inquiry, Virtual learning paths meet Learners where they are.
Shy and "awwwkwaaard" are pretty much synonymous with adolescence. 3D Worlds are one device people employ to overcome challenges mastering social learning curves. While teaching in a live audio and video production class for teens, I began seeking ways to help students translate a love of social media to the application of design for social media. This is how I discovered the world of Virtual Education back in 2009.
*Self paced *Learner driven *Portability *Accessibility *Speaks to multiple learning styles
are just a few of the many qualities that Virtual brings to the world of Education. The innovations that we are seeing today will have far reaching implications for Education as a whole. I am curious about how it will impact Constructivist Theory and Practice.
“In this model, teachers guide students as they explore the many paths before them. As students explore new concepts and incorporate them with previous experiences, the teacher is confident that the relevance of the information will emerge. By posing problems and providing relevant materials and information, the constructivist teacher nudges the student into understanding the relevance of that new knowledge (Mayer, 1996). “
Carter, B. (2018). Virtual Harlem. [online] YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pL1z2Z-_0Gg [Accessed 15 Apr. 2018].
Carwile, J. (2018). A Constructivist Approach to Online Teaching and Learning. Inquiry, [online] 12(1), pp.Spring 2007, 68-73. Available at: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ833907.pdf [Accessed 15 Apr. 2018].
Koyanagi, M. (n.d.) Putting courses online: Theory and practice. Retrieved March 10, 2006, from http://www.ils.unc.edu/disted/cmi/final2.html
Mayer, M. (1996). Is it constructivism? Retrieved March 10, 2010, from http://www.sedl.org/pubs/sedletter/v09n03/construct.html
Nelson, Charles, and Rebecca Nelson. “Second Life: Open Education and Virtual Worlds.” Live Lecture, Berkman Center for Internet and Society, 12 Nov. 2008, 6:00 pm, cyber.harvard.edu/node/96123.
Smith, H. (2018). NASA - Virtual Education. [online] Nasa.gov. Available at: https://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/virtual-education.html [Accessed 15 Apr. 2018].
Comentarios