Second Life and Education

Second Life is a virtual world in where anything that can happen in the real world can happen there.

Here's an introductory video, if you haven't heard anything about it before (taken from the main page of the website)

Second life, as mentioned before, can host anything that the real world can offer. In fact, it can do one more thing that real life can't: allow you to fly...

There are 14 million registered users of Second Life. This thing is no joke. 1 million people use it every month! And the numbers are said to be growing...

What does Second Life mean? It means creating another identity, possibly one you've always wanted to be. It means trying new things you haven't tried in your real life. It means experimenting with things that you've been too scared to do in real life because of the harm it can cause.... have you ever wanted to travel Moscow, alone? Have you wanted to talk to anyone you found interesting while in Paris, but were too afraid of what they might think of you or what might happen to you? With second life, all that is next to you is your computer while you explore other worlds, other worlds which mimick ours on Earth and others which have been made up.

What does this mean for you as a teacher? Or as a learner? That you can use second life to explore other lands and to learn other languages. You can instruct your students to visit Spain, or Argentina, or Colombia so to practice their Spanish and to see what it looks like. Watch this video below:



You can even visit certain universities in second life. Sweden's School of Economics, Arkansas State University, and University de San Martin de Porres are examples of university campuses which you can explore online. I have even heard of the ability to take classes and to receive real life credit through second life!

Even governments are in on it too, take a look at what the British Council has made!


What are the downsides? Well, just like real life, second life is not a closed environment. Make sure your students are well-matured adults, as harm is not just physical but can be emotional as well, something that second life cannot protect against. Try making a class avatar and exploring places as a class. Try finding more appropriate "venues" in second life's map for practicing language. Finally, remember that it is just second life, and there is a whole world out there. If second life makes talking to others in Italian more interesting, thank second life for the catalyst in thought and find penpals or 'live mocha' buddies for your classroom!