Begin with the end in mind... Engaged & motivated students meeting learning outcomes Teaching & learning that offers students the opportunity to explore & extend themselves

Setting the scene Traditional secondary school setting with 6 x 50min lessons Subject specific & not interdisciplinary Content driven curriculum & lacks flexibility 1:1 Tablet PCs access to a diverse range of software which is leveraged for use in conjunction with VLE task design access to VLE asynchronously & from different locations Using 3D Virtual Worlds for Learning & Focus on the social commitments aspect of QA & use in a Year 7 tutorial class as part of PGD program. Incorporate into the Middle School Visual Arts Program to offer enrichment & extension opportunities with the design, construction & exhibition of digital sculptures

Feedback from the Tech Desk Build in infrastructure & lead time Clear directive & expectation from appropriate HODs / LTs An information pack of project advising what needs to be permitted through the firewall & to allow internal traffic to access necessary servers Full details of all software programs that will be used IP addresses of servers that need to be accessed Different protocols & ports required to run software Have a school tech be: a part of introduction program, be consulted during planning, &/or have access to a central help area Getting Started Deb: steep learning curve to understand what a virtual learning environment is and how it can be used as a teaching & learning tool; deep & thorough understanding of curriculum learning outcomes and key skills Jacq: familiar with VLEs & some of their educational uses and tools; no specific subject knowledge Our Plan Quest Atlantis with 7K Tutor Group beginning T4 Development & design of a unit of work ‘Art Elements & Principles’ for OpenSim immersion with proposed MS Digital Art class in early commencement period. What really happened? Myriad of ongoing technical issues – “the stuff” – lag, access, permissions Responsibilities of senior classes, VCE teaching and assessment & reporting QA trialled for 4 weeks & a decision made not to continue Art Elements & Principles unit well underway; island now available Big Question How can VLEs be used as a teaching & learning tool that will enhance learning outcomes through greater levels of student engagement and how do they fit our curriculum?

Suggest reading & digital resources prior to commencement Acknowledge & allow for the time and resource commitment required to establish infrastructure A technical kit with contacts, clear specifications and list of all software & web based applications; Tech staff involvement in project introduction; active consultation during implementation Torley Linden & Noob Be Gone ‘how to’ videos List of Educational Communities in SL & RG; wikis / blogs PD should include IT Curriculum/ Teaching support staff DEECD team of experienced VLE users; teachers; techs to coach implementing school teams

Using Quest Atlantis in the year 7 tutorial program with a focus on SOCIAL COMMITMENT The unique quality of missions / quests and the focus on social commitments made Quest Atlantis very suitable for the personal growth & development program in Year 7. Technical issues = frustration Motivation to engage inworld Students didn't want to read the quests “too long” Teacher stress on in-world etiquette for chatting may have been inhibiting QA back story generally not of interest Some did missions and enjoyed them Most students really wanted it to work – our experience could have been very different “why would i want to chat in QA when they are sitting right beside me?” “everything is monitored”

The VW only a tool – to be used in the delivery of the curriculum content. We immediately noticed how easy it was to be distracted from our purpose whilst inworld Acquisition of skills to be immersed in a VW took many hours &lots of concentration – and it can divert focus from the curriculum content. Can legitimately incorporated into the visual arts because it is a visual 3D environment which has the capacity to offer enrichment and extension opportunities in the delivery of the art curriculum as students have the potential to build and construct sculptures which ordinarily would not be possible due to the constraints of materials, location and space. Assessment: in a VLE the establishment of rubrics would provide the criteria and the guidelines for student learning. Anticipate that the VLE will provide greater scope for peer assessment – again, legitimate not tokenistic. This is because they would be required to base their assessment on the guidelines that are well established in the faculty and are aligned with the mandated VELS reporting and assessment requirements. We would use these existing rubrics and guidelines and tailor them to meet specific projected learning outcomes. Our response to the incorporation of a VLE is soundly based in the Art curriculum because of the visual and interactive nature of the environment. Using Open Sim in the Middle School Visual Art Program Notes: resources Art Elements & Principles Rubrics VELS standards wiki