We all know Virtual Worlds are used for socializing, E-Commerce, to hold business meetings and gamming; especially the gamming. The use of MMORG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Games) have skyrocketed. Microsoft reported that during the first week of its release Halo 3 players racked up more than 40 million hours by the end of the first week. While virtual worlds do all of the fore mentioned they are also used for education. They can be used to play fun educational games, to teach in a virtual classroom or share and learn from your peers. For a student with disabilities virtual worlds can be a great learning resource.
Being a student can be a daunting task especially for students with disabilities who face physical obstacles, social rejections, academic failure, medical issues and bullying. One of the most powerful aspects of virtual worlds for students with disabilities is that everyone’s avatar has the same virtual abilities. Everyone can run, jump, fly, swim, whatever the task the virtual world makes it possible no matter your handicap. Think about the impact this can have on someone who is handicapped, to see your avatar running and jumping over things to save the princess and win the game. Just to be on the same playing field as everyone else has to be a huge confidence builder. This is such a powerful tool not just for those with disabilities but for all students to learn and help develop self-esteem. Virtual worlds for education are a win win situation, the student gets to have fun interaction and spend a little extra time on their times tables or spelling words whatever the case may be they are learning and engaging in a positive educational experience.
There are many numerous educational worlds for students to visit, create and play. From the simplest to the advanced here is a small sampling to check out
http://www.webkinz.com/
Where you take care of a virtual pet and play games
http://www.jumpstart.com/
A mix of virtual world with typical interactive learning
activities in a game to earn awards
http://www.clubpenguin.com/
Virtual world from Disney that includes filtered chat
and live moderators
http://www.dimensionu.com/
Virtual world targeting math, science, and history
http://www.avatarstorytellers.com/
A multiplayer online educational virtual world designed
for classroom students ages 9-12
http://www.zulaworld.com/
Virtual exploration of science, math, and astronomy
Cindi Davis
CGS2069
I am familiar with clubpenquin and webkinz. Zulaworld sounds like a very interesting "world" to explore and I plan to do that soon. Very good post, Cindi.
ReplyDeletecrewholmes post by Donna Holmes cgs2069
ReplyDeleteI have a disability and I love doing virtual things like flying through the air whereas in real life, I couldn't do that. I will definitely check some of the links to explore. Thank you!!
ReplyDeleteRebecca Williams
CGS 2069