A ha! Another way to expand your rear-end while staring at your flatpanel:
CSI New York in Second Life
Now, I can see this being a fun way to get hooked into SL, but it is really just an online game (and plenty of those exist already). It still doesn't sound like enough fun to trade in my slim sleep hours for the adventure though...
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Monday, October 29, 2007
Make Believe College Emerges in Second Life
Make Believe College Emerges in Second Life
I have known about Second Life, the virtual world created by Linden Labs, for some time; however, my own small adventures there were a struggle. I wasted about 12 hours, over the course of several sittings, learning how to shape my avatar, navigate the SL world, and understand the SL approach to communication and commodity (buying/building houses, shopping, etc.). Once I understood the basic mechanics of the site, I was not terribly interested in or engaged by virtual shopping, buying a virtual car, building a virtual house, or other "chores" and activities lurking on the other side of my LCD screen. I don't care, at this point, about being a twin with my avatar by ordering my own real-life matching t-shirt to match her digital version.
My initial impressions were as follows: SL is interesting but it seems a little pointless, and why am I wasting all these hours with no particular end purpose in mind? I haven't gone back since.
This article from the Chronicle of Higher Ed's Wired Campus site, however, offers a focused purpose. Now I can apply to and attend a fictional university in SL? The article offers more detail, but in summation, it's all still a game. You are not really taking classes, earning credits, and working towards a degree. Kindly State U. is advertising for faculty and staff...does that mean that it will one day truly function? Other (already accredited) universities have put content and classes online in Second Life, and I would be interested in students' reactions to the virtual learning environment.
The future potential is interesting, but for now, I have to agree with comment #5: "i do enough work at my real college… I don’t think I need another job – virtual or otherwise. :)"
I have known about Second Life, the virtual world created by Linden Labs, for some time; however, my own small adventures there were a struggle. I wasted about 12 hours, over the course of several sittings, learning how to shape my avatar, navigate the SL world, and understand the SL approach to communication and commodity (buying/building houses, shopping, etc.). Once I understood the basic mechanics of the site, I was not terribly interested in or engaged by virtual shopping, buying a virtual car, building a virtual house, or other "chores" and activities lurking on the other side of my LCD screen. I don't care, at this point, about being a twin with my avatar by ordering my own real-life matching t-shirt to match her digital version.
My initial impressions were as follows: SL is interesting but it seems a little pointless, and why am I wasting all these hours with no particular end purpose in mind? I haven't gone back since.
This article from the Chronicle of Higher Ed's Wired Campus site, however, offers a focused purpose. Now I can apply to and attend a fictional university in SL? The article offers more detail, but in summation, it's all still a game. You are not really taking classes, earning credits, and working towards a degree. Kindly State U. is advertising for faculty and staff...does that mean that it will one day truly function? Other (already accredited) universities have put content and classes online in Second Life, and I would be interested in students' reactions to the virtual learning environment.
The future potential is interesting, but for now, I have to agree with comment #5: "i do enough work at my real college… I don’t think I need another job – virtual or otherwise. :)"
Monday, October 22, 2007
Daily Reading, Sent Right to My Email
This is a daily skimming requirement, with information on academic and technological issues that relate directly to my interests in communication, technology, and university culture. Standard in most offices across campus, it appeals to faculty, administrators, and even staff. It is written on a very general level in a "news" style, so reading it is like reading a magazine.
To nicely fit my information overloaded life, I signed up for the chronicle's daily technology newsletter ("Wired Campus") and daily news digest. The site is very stingy about what it will let you see without an expensive subscription, but the technology and career-related areas are open for free. If a particular article requires a subscription and catches my interest, then I can log on to the university library and get full access.
Because I Like to Hear Myself Talk...
Well, some of my students may think so, but no, it is not the reason that I teach. Why would I choose to rack up a large sum of debt, spend two extra years in school, work in an environment where status is everything and lecturers have none, and take a job that pays way less than an entry level career in some fields? Here's the three-part answer: students, progress, and independence.
The best thing about teaching at a university is the students. Yes, the progressing semesters are kind of like the movie "Ground Hog's Day," as with each new group, you teach them some of the same concepts, practices, etc. However, the bright side of that coin is the sea of fresh faces, the changing attitudes and interests, the chance to teach it a little better the next time. I consider my students to be the cream of the crop for public universities in my state. They are generally engaged, polite, and hardworking, even if they are juggling jobs (sometimes more than one), overloaded with priorities (that they sometimes don't get straight), and struggling to find and stay on their best path. They are a perpetually fresh crowd for my stupid jokes, too.
"Progress," and by that I mean basic field-related, technological, cultural change (not qualified as good or bad), is another great reason to teach. Although the fundamentals may stay the same, the ways you can express or practice or identify the fundamentals changes. Blogs, Facebook, wikis, and podcasts are all current and interesting progressive tools that help me look at teaching from different angles. The cultural and communication issues surrounding such progress are even more interesting. Making the material fresh for me and for my students is a priority. Even if they don't know it's "fresh" (because they haven't heard it from me before), I am not bored because I have new readings, new activities, new ideas on how to teach. This is a constant outlet for my creativity.
Finally, I love the peaceful and thoughtful nature of a university campus. Even when the streets are full of flip-flop clad cellphone addicts and even when decades-old internal political rivalries rage behind office doors, a university campus has an air of tranquility. People here think. They generally keep quiet in the library and in hallways. They ponder. I could never work in a warehouse full of cubicles. I like my privacy. I like to stare at the wall and think. I like to lay my head on my desk for 10 minutes after lunch (and wake up with a red spot on my forehead).
These are just the top three reasons why I love my job. Students, progress and creativity, solitude. I can't imagine being out there in the big ugly (aka "real" world).
The best thing about teaching at a university is the students. Yes, the progressing semesters are kind of like the movie "Ground Hog's Day," as with each new group, you teach them some of the same concepts, practices, etc. However, the bright side of that coin is the sea of fresh faces, the changing attitudes and interests, the chance to teach it a little better the next time. I consider my students to be the cream of the crop for public universities in my state. They are generally engaged, polite, and hardworking, even if they are juggling jobs (sometimes more than one), overloaded with priorities (that they sometimes don't get straight), and struggling to find and stay on their best path. They are a perpetually fresh crowd for my stupid jokes, too.
"Progress," and by that I mean basic field-related, technological, cultural change (not qualified as good or bad), is another great reason to teach. Although the fundamentals may stay the same, the ways you can express or practice or identify the fundamentals changes. Blogs, Facebook, wikis, and podcasts are all current and interesting progressive tools that help me look at teaching from different angles. The cultural and communication issues surrounding such progress are even more interesting. Making the material fresh for me and for my students is a priority. Even if they don't know it's "fresh" (because they haven't heard it from me before), I am not bored because I have new readings, new activities, new ideas on how to teach. This is a constant outlet for my creativity.
Finally, I love the peaceful and thoughtful nature of a university campus. Even when the streets are full of flip-flop clad cellphone addicts and even when decades-old internal political rivalries rage behind office doors, a university campus has an air of tranquility. People here think. They generally keep quiet in the library and in hallways. They ponder. I could never work in a warehouse full of cubicles. I like my privacy. I like to stare at the wall and think. I like to lay my head on my desk for 10 minutes after lunch (and wake up with a red spot on my forehead).
These are just the top three reasons why I love my job. Students, progress and creativity, solitude. I can't imagine being out there in the big ugly (aka "real" world).
I Don't Care about Readers
So this blog is starting because I had a brainstorm. The blogsphere is old enough and large enough that getting a readership requires special focus and frequent pithy insights, as well as a viral post. Therefore, generating readership should not be a blogger's first goal. We are in simply another mud puddle of information overload.
That said, why not create a blog with a more limited focus? What about something related to the job hunt? To demonstrating an interesting new way to use technology, to take a little risk of "speaking publicly" (where you risk being mundane, using bad grammar, and generally looking like an idiot), and to potentially use it as a way to show your professional habits, growth, and the occasional intersting thought?
Better yet, why not ask my students to do this, too? Actually, I am now putting the cart before the horse. I did ask my 35 students at a large public university to start their own professional blogs. The purpose is to serve as a young and growing professional's online scrapbook. These students are mostly freshmen and sophomores, with the occasional junion or senior. Imagine how cool it would be to start a blog related to your "major," including postings about
So at this point, I care tremendously about my students, who will be writing blogs like this, but very little about my other readers. Those students are who need the example on how to proceed, on how to build a neat little corner in cyberspace that can help them reach their future goals.
Other visitors are warmly welcomed but not required here.
That said, why not create a blog with a more limited focus? What about something related to the job hunt? To demonstrating an interesting new way to use technology, to take a little risk of "speaking publicly" (where you risk being mundane, using bad grammar, and generally looking like an idiot), and to potentially use it as a way to show your professional habits, growth, and the occasional intersting thought?
Better yet, why not ask my students to do this, too? Actually, I am now putting the cart before the horse. I did ask my 35 students at a large public university to start their own professional blogs. The purpose is to serve as a young and growing professional's online scrapbook. These students are mostly freshmen and sophomores, with the occasional junion or senior. Imagine how cool it would be to start a blog related to your "major," including postings about
- topics that inspire you,
- news that you think is important,
- research questions you like to ponder,
- resources you've found to read online,
- and so on.
So at this point, I care tremendously about my students, who will be writing blogs like this, but very little about my other readers. Those students are who need the example on how to proceed, on how to build a neat little corner in cyberspace that can help them reach their future goals.
Other visitors are warmly welcomed but not required here.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
