Layout of Project Phases

The SFA Second Life Project
A faculty-led effort, supported by the Office of Instructional Technology, to investigate and potentially develop an SFA presence in Second Life for the purpose of promoting academic achievement.

OIT Commitment
The Office of Instructional Technology is supporting the project in the following ways:

· announcing the initial project launch

· appointing the first committee chair, Matthew Sutherlin

· facilitating the organization of a faculty-led project team

· providing the initial vision and focus for the project

· hosting a project website

· providing or arranging meeting rooms and labs

· providing up to $5,000 per year for 3 years for licensing, development, and support

The Initial Vision and Focus
The possibilities of what Second Life can be used for are limited only by the imagination. The initial focus of this project should be an inter-disciplinary effort to design and develop learning environments where faculty, students, and colleagues can achieve real learning objectives that align with the academic mission of SFA. The goal should not be to recreate the SFA campus or to duplicate in Second Life services that could just as easily be done using other established means or technology. The goal should be to create learning spaces where students and faculty can explore content, create new knowledge, and collaborate on real academic projects in ways that they could not otherwise do in the “First Life”.

Project Phases

The project will likely progress in phases. These phases will be adjusted by the SFA Second Life Team as needed by might be shaped as follows.

Phase I – Investigation

· Initial interest meeting

· Identify interested participants

· Explore Second Life individually and through workshops

· Brainstorm learning objectives, lesson plans, assessments,

project evaluations, research and publishing opportunities

· Identify concerns: legal, learning curves, support needs, challenges

· Sketch out draft island plans

· Decide whether and how to proceed

Phase II – Design

· Sketch out specifics of the island design

· Set priorities for the development sequence

· Recruit additional participants as needed

· Create drafts of learning objectives, lesson plans, and assessments

· Design Project evaluation criteria

Phase III – Development

· Name and Purchase the island

· Assign building responsibilities and privileges

· Provide training and support as needed

· Begin building according to design

· Preliminary testing of learning objectives, lesson plans, and assessments

· Develop Project evaluation instruments

Phase IV – Implementation

· Allow students and participants appropriate access

· Provide training and support as needed

· Conduct planned activities and/or lessons

Phase V – Evaluation and Adjustment

· Evaluate Project

· Plan next steps