![]() Users do not pay to have a basic account, but they pay a fee to create additional basic or premium accounts. There are three types of accounts: basic, additional basic, and premium. The first step to starting your second life is to download the proprietary software available at the SL website and create an account (see Figure 1). It is most frequently used for socialization and interaction among users who come from different backgrounds and represent a range of ages-it should be noted that teenagers are not allowed in SL’s main grid. ![]() Second Life is a 3D virtual world created by Linden Labs and designed by its own residents. This review aims at describing SL’s main features and discussing affordances and constraints that should be taken into consideration for the adaptation and implementation of SL in the language classroom. In spite of what sounds like positive feedback that attests to SL’s potential as an educational tool, concerns have also been pointed out. Even though SL was not specifically designed for educational purposes, its educational benefits have been investigated and tested in the classroom, while anecdotal accounts of successful uses of SL have been published online in Blogs and Wikis and discussed at conferences. Virtual worlds like Second Life (SL) offer learners opportunities to collaborate, explore, and interact. Thus, understanding how to use new technologies to enhance learning is necessary to ensure these new learners’ needs are being met. However, these changes cannot be disregarded in favor of the more comfortable chalk and board lesson. Prensky calls these students native speakers of the digital world, a world that presents challenges for teachers educated in a less technologically-oriented era. 318)Īlthough reactions toward the benefits of using virtual worlds for educational purposes vary (Stevens, 2006), it has been acknowledged that today’s students have different abilities and expectations compared to the learners of just a few years ago (Prensky, 2001). (Rymaszewski, Au, Wallace, Winters, Ondrejka, Batston-Cunningham, 2007, p. Virtual worlds like Second Life represent the future of human interaction in a globally networked world, and students who have grown up with the Internet naturally swim in these waters. We live in a world that is becoming more networked every day, and the internet has grown into an essential medium for communication, socialization, and creative expression. Linux: reasonably modern 32-bit Linux, 800 MHz Pentium III, 512MB, NVIDIA GeForce 2, 1024×768 screen resolutionįree for a basic account U$9.95/month for an additional basic account or a premium account Windows: 2000, 800 MHz Pentium III, 512 MB, NVIDIA GeForce, 1024×768 screen resolution Ethical Standards for Authors and Reviewers.
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