Hmm...

Well now that I have had to create a new blog for the most ridiculous of reasons, I suppose I should start using it...

Our first chat in Second Life was very strange. I have never used such a program, and could see the validity of concerns raised by other members of the class over it's use. Having said that, I do believe that there is value in exploring things such as Second Life as educators. How children use technology evolves much faster than the ways teachers implement technology in their classrooms. By exploring things that seem so out of the norm, I think teachers might be able to close the gap, if only by a little, between themselves and students.
During our chat there were a few of us who approached the subject of simulation activities using programs such as Second Life. One person brought up Oregon Trail (which, let's face it, everyone loves for some reason) and I was thinking of a colony simulation I used to do with my fourth graders. How cool would it be to do things such as this in a virtual world where the kids could really develop and explore things as characters?
The bottom line is I think using Second Life as a means of having class is totally weird but potentially valuable to us as educators looking to what could be a future tool in the classroom.