Spotlight on Digital Media And Learning

Nearly six months after the conclusion of the program, are there skills or knowledge you took from the program that have since proven useful (specifically outside Second Life)? For me, the turning point of Camp GK was in the middle of the “Race to the bottom” scenerio, when I realized that the name of the game actually meant what it said, that everyone was going to lose if we didn’t all stand together.

What would you identify as the key aspects of Second Life as a virtual world that allowed for the experience to be so compelling and educational, in ways that are hard to achieve offline? We had a diverse selection of people from different parts of the world, all with different views on how things “really” were and what things should be like. This made the environment much more rich and diverse than if we had been sitting in a building in California or New York with several local kids.

What are two “best practices” from Camp GK you would recommend to others interested in using virtual worlds for education and activism? I’d say to be prepared for things to go in directions you never even thought possible. That can be good or bad, in the case of Camp GK, I’d say it was definately for the better, as we ended up with almost a subculture after 4 weeks together, and we were able to acomplish some pretty amazing things that we hadn’t even considered at the outset of camp.

-Since the First Camp GK in Teen Second Life, I can say with confidence that I have gained many social skills. I can hold out a meaningful debate, and I learned tons about important world causes. There were also some things I learned more about in Second Life. I made many friends, and I think I can type ALOT faster :]]

-I think the key aspects about putting this into a virtual world such as Teen Second Life, as Malarthi said, attracts teens from all over the globe; with a general interest.

-The things that I really enjoyed most about camp, and I found the most affective was the fact that the Global Kids leader played the popular dance parties into a learning environment. They used something that all the teens love, and got them to relate. You also need to prepare for anything. The sim could crash at any moment; and your going to need to have some sort of ‘crash-control.’

What would you identify as the key aspects of Second Life as a virtual world that allowed for the experience to be so compelling and educational, in ways that are hard to achieve offline?

I think that the Scripting and Building Engines are one of the key aspects of Second Life that allow for experiences like Camp Global Kids.
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What are two “best practices” from Camp GK you would recommend to others interested in using virtual worlds for education and activism?

Well I think that the one mic and popcorn system was good for allowing people to express thier ideas freely when at times keeping it quiet when its needed.

For those new to the program, I will pop in occasionally to clarify some terms.

“one mic and popcorn system” were various formats we established for having a conversation. With the “one mic” system, one camper spoke at a time. We gave campers lightbulbs they wore over their head; when they clicked on them they were added to a speaking cue; nothing technically controlled who spoke when so, when in One Mic mode, the teens would choose to observe the light-bulb-organized speaking order.

Popcorn style meant that anyone who had something to offer should do so immediately, whether or not anyone else was speaking. We might use this when asking campers to brainstorm an issue.

Summer camp in Second Life?  I laughed at the idea at first.  Why why i ever go to a camp on SL?  A good friend of mine, Mercury Metropolitan, first told me about camp gk.  As an intern for GK, he did a great job at getting people interested, such as myself.  I have never been to a summer camp so the idea of going to a virtual one was slightly ironic.  But, i filled out the form and got accepted, along with a few of my friends, which was a major plus because who would want to go to camp without your friends?  So how was it?  Better than expected.  Rafi, Lori, and everyone else who worked on the activities actually put alot of effort into making them engaging, entertaining, and even funny at times.  One of my favorite activities was the human barometer where the instructor would ask us questions and we the campers would jump on different signs on the ground that corresponds with our opinion on that issue/statement.  We did this activity a few times during camp gk so we could get a feel for how the other campers felt.

Nearly six months after the conclusion of the program, are there skills or knowledge you took from the program that have since proven useful (specifically outside Second Life)?

—-During My Time in Camp GK, I Learn So Much About the World Around Me That I Never Knew About. Using the Knowledge Given to Me, I Was Able to Educate My Peers and Even Teachers About Issues Around the World. Having Global Kids on My Record Has Also Helped Me With My Volunteer Work.

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What would you identify as the key aspects of Second Life as a virtual world that allowed for the experience to be so compelling and educational, in ways that are hard to achieve offline?

—-Well, One Thing That Definitly Made the Camp a Whole Lot More Fun Virtually Than it Would in Real Life, is Fact That We Had People From All Over the World! If We Had This Camp Physically, Then Only a Certain Amount of People From One General Area Would Have the Open Opprotunity to Have This Experience. I’ve Also Made Many Friends That I’m Still in Contact With From GK. Plus, On Another Note, We Got to Use All This Fancy Stuff and Far-Out-There Objects That Would Cost a Boat Load in Real Life. ;P

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What are two “best practices” from Camp GK you would recommend to others interested in using virtual worlds for education and activism?

—-I Really Enjoyed the Fact That We Could Go Around, Tell Our Stories, and Express Our Opinions. Everyone Actually Cared, and Was Interested in What We Were Doing. Also, The People in Charge: Barry, Rafi, Lori, Zach, and Merc. You Guys Let Us Be Ourselves, Haha, I Even Held a Conversation on the Band Cake With Lori Once. Letting Teenagers Express Who They Are While in a Learning Environment, That Adds to the Fun and the Impact of What You Were Doing For Us. Thank You.