Idaho Vandals in Second Life

Avid SecondLifer and Administrator at the Idaho Department of Science and Technology, Brian Dickens, sent over this news about the University of Idaho opening a virtual campus in Second Life.  I have to wonder if this is a move to get new students or just provide a way for existing students to make it to class without leaving their dorm room.

Building a Better Virtual Campus

MOSCOW, Idaho – Last summer, the University of Idaho began constructing a fifth campus. In only a matter of months, the entire site, including two classrooms, a commons area and a building bearing a striking resemblance to the Moscow campus Administration Building, was ready for classes to begin. And the entire project only cost a scant $2,600.

But you can’t find the campus anywhere on a map, at least not on one of the Earth. The campus was constructed in Second Life, a virtual reality computer environment that simulates real life.

Tapped to design the university’s virtual island, Brian Cleveley – who teaches classes in the University of Idaho’s program in virtual technology and design (VTD) – didn’t want to simply recreate the main campus as so many other universities have done. Instead, he asked what rules needed to be followed, which could be stretched and which were made to be broken. Through these and numerous other questions, and a design class continuously updating the virtual campus, Cleveley is building a better virtual campus.

“It’s not about games,” said Cleveley. “It’s about an extension of the University of Idaho into virtual reality. It’s bringing design into the virtual world. You wouldn’t build a town without thought to design, how it’s laid out and its infrastructure. How is this different?”

The campus island, dubbed Idahonia, is accessible to an increasing number of current and prospective students. Second Life was launched in 2003 by Linden Research and already has more than 13 million registered accounts from across the globe. Participants create a virtual representation of themselves to explore the Second Life world, converse with other users via text or live audio chat, create their own environments, or even work at virtual jobs earning “Linden dollars” used to upgrade their clothing and personal belongings.

The program also has become an increasingly valuable teaching tool for long-distance learning. Traditional online classes consist of audio or video clips, reading materials and slide shows, and may be conducted via real-time instant messaging in a chat room. But in Second Life, people actually can see each other (or at least their avatars), sit in a classroom, observe a teacher next to his or her presentation and converse in real-time.

After the University of Idaho had finished construction of its Second Life campus, Greg Moller, associate professor of food science and toxicology, donned his avatar guise called “Aristotle Voom” and offered two classes in toxicology.

“Necessity is the mother of invention,” said Cleveley, referring to the need for better ways to teach classes online. “We saw a need, so we’re finding a way.”

Cleveley’s capstone design class is writing a design document for Idahonia, and developing new gestures and actions for teachers to use in the virtual world. This will pave the way for future students and teachers to add on to the existing campus, or update old buildings in a cohesive way – in the Vandal way. For example, when teachers use a movie or PowerPoint presentation in Second Life, their virtual selves don’t have to just stand next to the screen like a bump on a log; Clevely’s designers are creating the ability to gesture and accentuate points with lifelike movements.

But not everything has to be lifelike. Theoretically, students could be floating hundreds of feet in the air in a massive jumble listening to a teacher speak.

“If you were having a presentation from Stephen Hawking, would you be in a library, or in a fantastic representation of String Theory?” asked Cleveley. “In Second Life, we’re not obligated to follow the rules of the tangible world; they may not apply. So the question is how far should we push?”

The two futuristic classroom domes on campus are located more than 350 meters above the main Administration Building. Circular domes serve as a screen for videos and slide shows. Some classes are even taught on the grounds of the island around a camp fire.

“We could recreate classrooms on campus, but what works in real life may not work in Second Life,” said Cleveley.

Cleveley opted to build two islands with structures similar – but not identical – to buildings on the Moscow campus as representations of landmarks and ideas. The main island features an Administration-inspired building; the second island – designed and updated by a capstone design class in the VTD program – features representations of the four main segments of campus life in Moscow.

A structure similar to the Idaho Commons – the center of Moscow’s campus both figuratively and physically – contains information and enough Vandal gear to equip one’s avatar alter ego. Education is represented by a likeness of the main library, where each college maintains an information booth. Student life comes in the form of the Student Activity Center, complete with a gigantic climbing wall. And the massive “tree of life” contains three branches providing information on the different living environments in Moscow, including on campus, off campus and Greek housing.

The result is a virtual world that can give prospective students a Moscow experience without ever having to step foot in Idaho.

“In no way is the intent to replace anything in the real world,” said Cleveley. “It only serves to enhance what already exists.”

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About the University of Idaho
Founded in 1889, the University of Idaho is the state’s flagship higher-education institution and its principal graduate education and research university, bringing insight and innovation to the state, the nation and the world. University researchers attract nearly $100 million in research grants and contracts each year; the University of Idaho is the only institution in the state to earn the prestigious Carnegie Foundation ranking for high research activity. The university’s student population includes first-generation college students and ethnically diverse scholars. Offering more than 150 degree options in 10 colleges, the university combines the strengths of a large university with the intimacy of small learning communities. For information, visit www.uidaho.edu.

Image via Wikipedia

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