Naace 2nd lifers, first meeting July 4, 2007
Posted by Gareth Davies in meetings.trackback
Around a dozen of the 29 strong group met for the first time in Second Life last night. I must admit I was half an hour late so probably missed the rules, but was made welcome all the same.
I found the interactions of greatest interest. Most people, because it was the first time they had met together, or maybe met people with a purpose, in Second Life, wandered off the agenda. Jenny asked for questions, but I certainly had not prepared any - something I’ll do for the next meeting. This meant that discussion ranged from the practical (how do I do this and that), to the more pedagogical (how could it be used in education). The latter something we have to think about once we have some experience. Since many knew each other in real life, having different names and visual representations that look very different was at first very strange. Although some had attempted to mimic their real physical appearance as best they could, others had clearly not. We even went round and introduced ourselves perhaps for psychological reassurance, I’m not sure. I’m sure this will wear off and we’ll get more comfortable about this.
The practical session was also rather interesting, in that it was very similar to a real session. Some learners dominated, some held back and watched. Some got frustrated when it did not work for them first time, some managed it first time. Jenny as teacher was patient and gave encouragement. While this was realistic, what struck me was the lack of other space and body language signs, but they were beginning to emerge. For example, I got irritated when another avatar stood in front of my view, and actually felt at one stage that someone was stand too close to me. What there wasn’t was a protocol for queuing (no one had found the ‘hands up feature’). This was particularly noticable when putting messages on the noticeboard, as it could only be done one at a time. In real life gestures would have given these visual signs.
Looking forward to the next meeting.
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