Developing a Second Life Academy: Bridging the Implementers' Learning Gap

As Second Life (SL) continues to gain interest at the college and university level, the greatest challenge during early inception focuses on faculty and supporting staff and their ability to fully understand SL's capacity as a teaching tool. Even with these limitations, many early implementers are becoming ensconced in SL by acquiring land and creating offices, learning and other interactive spaces. Many begin to plan out academic activities within SL without a clear understanding of SL's capabilities or current limitations. Meeting the needs of these early implementers requires the ability to level-set staff and faculty understanding by presenting them up-front with the techniques, concepts and capabilities of current SL educational efforts. By providing structured training and facilitating open dialogue, coupled with hands-on interaction in- world, faculty and staff are better able to plan, build out, and maximize the inherent academic capabilities that are characteristic of a virtual environment.