Incorporating 3-D virtual world instruments into corporation marketing, education and entertainment is beginning to change the way that people communicate, said Joe Sanchez, School of Information assistant instructor, during a speech at the J.J. Pickle Research Center Wednesday evening.
During his speech, which was sponsored by UT's Texas Advanced Computing Center, Sanchez showed more than 80 attendees the images of a virtual world, called Second Life, which has provided a 3-D social network service to more than 6 million users since 2003.
Second Life is a virtual space created by users which includes performing centers, libraries, museums, teaching environments such as UT's island, which Sanchez created for his class, a corporation presenting room such as a Toyota plant, and community connection spaces like a Virginia Tech monument, Sanchez said.
"Virtual spaces will be more prominent in the Internet world," Sanchez said. "That will be a new way we interact with information, and the Internet revolution will include something like that."
Sanchez has incorporated Second Life into his undergraduate class since last fall semester and will offer a new course entitled "Working in Virtual Worlds" next fall, he said. Students will work on team projects to create community events or small businesses in Second Life, he said.
"Students' responses to Second Life are mixed," Sanchez said. "When they go there by themselves, they didn't enjoy it much. They expect more like video games. But Second Life is not a game, it is an environment to connect with people."
Second Life is an efficient instrument to better interact both in and out of class, but Sanchez suggests educators wait to use it as a learning tool until it becomes easier to use and improvements have been made.
Catherine Smith, director of marketing at Linden Lab, the creator of Second Life, said it's exciting to see unique ways in which Second Life is being used, and the platform provides a flexible environment for educators interested in distance learning and cooperative work.
Leslie Jarmon, a graduate school lecturer will introduce Second Life to her graduate course "Communicating Across Disciplinary Cultures" this fall semester. Students will use it to test and improve their communication strategies learned from in-class lectures, Jarmon said.
In order to guarantee every student could become familiar with the instrument in advance, Jarmon said graduate students with interests should contact her by e-mail before registering in the class.
"From an educational perspective, it is an exceeding, engaging and compelling teaching and learning environment," Jarmon said. "It has a great integration with the real life by providing real information, culture knowledges and contacts of [a] real person."
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