Using the ADDIE Model to Design Second Life Activities for Online Learners
Being an online student myself, reading the above article was very fascinating. I was not surprised to discover that the amount of students who complete their work is less with online learning than with face to face learning. The reasons for this is obvious. When students feel a lack of personal connection to their professors or classmates, they feel less of a responsibility towards the work. For instance, if an online student fails to complete an assignment they do not have to experience the guilt trip of staring his professor in the eye that would happen with a face to face meeting. When students are represented by avatars as opposed to being able to represent themselves in person, students do not have the same level of accountability.
The idea of Second Life seems like a great solution towards creating more of a personal atmosphere for online learners. The struggle is, that the profiles that people can create online can be very contrary to who the person really is. For instance, if I really wanted to represent myself as a retired millionaire man living in Hollywood (even though I am not) there is nothing preventing me from doing so. Once I am represented as a pseudo identity, my level of accountability is still not high since the student in class is not the real me. On the other hand, I can see how using Second Life as a motivational tool for online students can be beneficial. Having the professors post assignments using their voice as opposed to texts makes the professors more real. Additionally, in a Second Life environment, students can feel more comfortable expressing their ideas if they are generally shy.
Furthermore, I believe that is safe to assume that students who are doing online learning are individuals with busy lives that are trying to fit their education into their busy schedules. Online learning has the flexibility that face to face learning does not enabling students from all stages of life to succeed. With that being the case, I am not so sure that online students are looking to make friends. After all meaningful relationships are dependent of physical interaction, not virtual interaction. Additionally, I feel that online students are determined to do whatever it takes to accomplish their goals in the most effective and time efficient way possible. Therefore, I feel that the use of Second Life as a social network for online students would be unintelligent. However, I do feel that a lot can be gained from collaborations and discussions. It is important to receive feedback from people doing the same things as you. After all there are so many talented and intelligent people in the world, why not take advantage of their advice?
In conclusion, it sounds like the use of Second Life is similar to other technological devices. Second Life carries numerous learning benefits that can truly enhance student learning. Educators need to be knowledgeable with these modes of learning to ensure that students are receiving the best education possible. Educators also have to keep in mind the struggles that come along with using Second Life and evaluate if it is truly the best method of obtaining the desired results.
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