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Three-dimensional virtual worlds such as ''Traveler'' and [[Active Worlds]], both of which appeared in the 1990s, were the next important development. ''Traveler'' included the possibility of audio communication (but not text chat) between avatars represented as disembodied heads in a three-dimensional abstract landscape. Svensson (2003) describes the Virtual Wedding Project, in which advanced students of English made use of ''Active Worlds'' as an arena for constructivist learning.<ref>Svensson P. (2003) "Virtual worlds as arenas for language learning". In Felix U. (ed.) ''Language learning online: towards best practice'', Lisse: Swets & Zeitlinger.</ref> The [[Adobe Atmosphere]] software platform was also used to promote language learning in the Babel-M project (Williams & Weetman 2003).<ref>Williams C. & Weetman C. (2003) Babel-M: A virtual environment for the promotion of language learning, [http://www.parapal-online.co.uk/prof/atmosphere_design.html ''Paragraph PAL''], 23 June 2003.</ref>
The 3D world of [[Second Life]] was launched in 2003. Initially perceived as another [[role-playing game]] (RPG), it began to attract the attention of language teachers. 2005 saw the first large-scale language school, [[Languagelab.com]], open its doors in Second Life. By 2007,
Many universities, such as Monash University,<ref>Monash University: http://www.monash.edu.au/international/dvc/virtualworlds/monashsecondlife.html</ref> and language institutes, such as [[British Council|The British Council]], [[Confucius Institute]], [[Instituto Cervantes]] and the Goethe-Institut,<ref>Goethe-Institut: http://www.goethe.de/frm/sec/enindex.htm</ref> have islands in Second Life specifically for language learning. Many professional and research organisations support virtual world language learning through their activities in Second Life. [[EUROCALL]] and [[CALICO (consortium)|CALICO]], two leading professional associations that promote language learning with the aid of new technologies, maintain a joint Virtual Worlds Special Interest Group (VW SIG) and a headquarters in Second Life.<ref>EUROCALL/CALICO Virtual Worlds SIG: http://virtualworldssig.ning.com</ref>
Recent examples of creating sims in virtual worlds specifically for language education include the EU-funded NIFLAR project,<ref>Networked Interaction in Foreign Language Acquisition and Research (NIFLAR): http://niflar.ning.com</ref> the EU-funded AVALON project,<ref>Access to Virtual and Action Learning live ONline (AVALON): http://avalon-project.ning.com/</ref> and the EduNation Islands, which have been set up as a community of educators aiming to provide information about and facilities for language learning and teaching.<ref>EduNation Islands wiki: http://edunation-islands.wikispaces.com/</ref> NIFLAR is implemented both in Second Life and in [[OpenSimulator|OpenSim]]. Numerous other examples are described by Molka-Danielsen & Deutschmann (2009),<ref>Molka-Danielsen J. & Deutschmann M. (eds.) (2009) ''Learning and teaching in the virtual world of Second Life'', Tapir Academic Press, Trondheim, Norway.</ref> and Walker, Davies & Hewer (
Since 2007 a series of conferences known as SLanguages have taken place, bringing together practitioners and researchers in the field of language education in Second Life for a 24-hour event to celebrate languages and cultures within the 3D virtual world.<ref>[http://www.slanguages.net/home.php SLanguages]</ref>
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