In today’s Metanomics show Dr. Leslie Jarmon, Faculty Development Specialist and Senior Lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin, discussed the creation of a statewide extension of classes and education into Second Life. This is huge project: the university system is made up of nine universities and six health centers.
Furthermore, the campuses seem to enjoy a large autonomy, and can self-organize in Second Life. However, it seems that participation by the public will be possible for certain activities and it’s quite possible distance learning will be further developed.
Leslie Jarmon talked with great enthusiasm about projects such as designing in Second Life the setting for oceanographic projects. What is important for those and many similar projects is the fact that silos between faculties and disciplines are being broken down.
The issue of adult content in Second Life is, in fact, a non-issue. As Jarmon explained, adult content is also available on the web, the (undergraduate) students are young adults and they will find in Second Life whatever they can find on the web or in the world.
The fact that the campuses are autonomous makes it difficult to get answers to some of the questions which interest me most. For instance, will this project make the content and the practices of the university communities more readily available for the public? Will it become possible to get a degree (and, more importantly, the associated skills) for a lesser fee, attending distance learning classes? What would that mean for the business model of the university?
The whole projects is still very early phase. Virtual land is being developed and the various faculties will have to learn about the possibilities and limitations of Second Life. I hope they’ll also tackle the broader questions about the boundaries not only between the faculty silos, but also between the university system and the community at large – community not only meaning Texas, or the US, but the whole metaverse – in other words, mankind!
Roland Legrand