From the T&L in SL Discussion board (names used with permission):
Learning spaces is a subject of continuing debate between your instructors. One instructor, MissAnnie (Ann Jeffery) is an advocate for the abandonment of formal mimic-RL learning spaces (classrooms and ampitheatres) in SL in favor of experiential and immersive learning spaces.
The other instructor, MsMauri (Mauri Collins) is of the opinion that they have their place. Humans are encultured into the formal learning space from the moment they first step into a preschool classroom and it can reduce cognitive load to be learning in familiar (if dysfunctional) learning spaces.
Both agree that “bottoms in seats” learning spaces do not meet all the learning needs of all adults all the time.
I agree that we have to find more immersive ways to use SL, but I have to say I agree with the way MsMauri states her opinion here. I have watched many people coming into SL and I see them struggle with the process of building skills in-world. Experienced gamers tend to acclimate more quickly but still the learning curve is steep. Students and instructors who go into SL for the sole purpose of instruction still require a varying degree of skill to function. Whether the level of skill is high or low, I see the process of scaffolding or transitioning new users into the environment as vital to a positive experience. Using tools (like powerpoints) and settings (like replication of RL) that are familiar seem to be one way to do this.
Once I was showing SL to a group of faculty on campus (in RL at UND) and one person saw a building in-world that he recognized from real life and he became very excited…I believe it helped him identify with the unfamiliar environment. I perceive other tools that are replications of RL as the same potential benefit. I do believe that the amount of RL replication should be minimal but I think it has a place as scaffolding. As the learner matures as an SL user, as the educators in SL grow and come with new and innovative ways to use the space, as more research is done and as the environment itself evolves, this need for scaffolding may lessen.
