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Virtual learning

20 May 2009

The Chinese college, located in the centre of the island.

A new virtual island has been developed in Second Life - an online 3D virtual world - in line with innovative teaching practices in the Faculty of Arts.

The Monash Chinese island simulation represents an important development in the international relationships, research and teaching being developed by the University and the School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics.

The island, launched on 8 May by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (International) Professor Stephanie Fahey, includes a Chinese college, inn, train station, bus loop, bank, courtyard, house, canal boats, medical clinic and airport.

It is used as a basis for Chinese language and culture classes for first-year Chinese and Chinese Media Studies students.

Chinese studies lecturer Scott Grant said the island was a great opportunity to use cutting-edge technology to broaden students' learning beyond the classroom.

"The island brings formal learning alive for students through context-based practice in realistic settings and interaction with their peers and native speakers," Mr Grant said.

"By engaging students ‘in-world' they can practice what they have learned in an environment that simulates aspects of what they would encounter in real life."

Mr Grant said virtual teaching was designed to complement traditional classroom-based teaching.

"Students have different learning styles," Mr Grant said. "Some are more comfortable with lecture-based learning while others thrive more with hands-on learning such as visiting a country or completing tasks that require the use of the language.

"Our challenge is to provide students with a range of learning environments that are mutually complementary rather than being mutually exclusive."

Professor Fahey said the island highlighted the University's strong focus on internationalisation, by allowing students to interact in real-time with native speakers to learn and practice Chinese language and culture.

Monash has used Second Life since 2007 for a number of projects. For further information visit the Second Life web page.