An integrated framework for simulation-based training on video and in a virtual world

Abstract

Becoming a skilled professional requires both the acquisition of theoretical knowledge and the practice of skills relevant to one’s profession. When learning by doing, students consolidate their knowledge of domain-specific facts by applying them as necessary to accomplish the tasks involved in their profession. Simulation-based learning methods are a family of methods that enable this learning mode. New computer related technologies, including high performance networking, high definition displays, distributed multiplayer game engines, and virtual worlds, bring new opportunities for simulation-based learning methods and systems. In this work, we describe our software framework for specifying simulation-based lesson plans and their implementations on two different platforms: a video based tool and a virtual world environment. We discuss the software architecture of the system, illustrate its functionality with an example lesson on how to conduct oneself in corporate interviews, outline our plans for experimental evaluation, and argue for its usefulness in today’s efforts to creatively use virtual worlds for educational purposes.

The computer-mediated communication (CMC) classroom: a challenge of medium, presence, interaction, identity, and relationship

“…These friendships require less frequent maintenance, but provide some emotional support, fulfill a social learning function, and meet an interpersonal need for appreciation (Greenhow & Robelia, 2009). Second Life provides new opportunities for developing social relationships in a virtual community in which a person can communicate and participate in new types of activities (Chodos, Naeimi & Stroulia, 2009;Esteves, Fonseca, Morgado & Martins, 2009;Harrison, 2009;Tudor, 2007). This virtual community facilitates active communication and provides a site for educational exploration, collaborative learning, simulation activities, and the acquisition of knowledge, its application and synthesis (Boostrom, 2008;Hudson & Degast-Kennedy, 2009;Lee, 2009).…”

“…An astute educator can work with these influences to facilitate a polite, inclusive CMC classroom culture that is less hierarchically structured, facilitates more equal participation, and helps introverted communicators feel at ease while engaging in discussion (Ho & McLeod, 2008;Rice & Markey, 2009). Students can learn not only from the teacher, but from each other, and through personal exploration and discovery (Chodos, Naeimi & Stroulia, 2009;dos Santos, 2009;Esteves, Fonseca, Morgado, & Martins, 2009;Herold, 2009;Jarmon, Lim, & Carpenter, 2009). …”

A framework for monitoring instructional environments in a virtual world

“…The last component of our SCA tool automatically adds annotations of all recorded actions to a video recording of the in‐world activity during a simulation, using the AVA service (Chodos et al , ). For each parsed action, a text caption is added to the video at the time that the action occurred.…”

“…The ACM is a representational model of a student's actions (exploratory movement, experiences with objects and social interactions) within a VW simulation. The SCA provides the necessary components for recording a simulation trace and analyzing it to support teachers in their assessment of student learning, and potentially to enable student's reflection (Chodos, Stroulia & Naeimi, ; Chodos et al ., ; Chodos, Stroulia, Kuras, Carbonaro & King, ). In other words, the ACM model specifies what is measured about the avatar's behaviour, while the SCA tool collects, analyzes and presents the measurements.…”

Blending a Three-Way Technology into A Language Acquisition and Development Course for Pre-service Teachers

“…With the benefits of advanced technologies, virtual worlds (VWs) are emerging as a huge potential platform for teaching and learning (Chodos, Naeimi, & Stroulia, 2009;Coombs, 2010;Wankel, 2010). As more and more supports and ideas emerge for using a VW in higher education, it is developing rapidly as a part of BL (Yahaya, 2007).…”