This course will examine the theory and practice of pedagogy in virtual environments, such as:

• Second Life
• Open Simulator
• Project Wonderland
• Croquet
• Alice
• Scratch
• Other commercial and open source gaming/simulation packages.

Students will read and discuss relevant literature, and examine the psychology of pedagogy, cognition, identity construction and social interaction in virtual worlds.

Students will also design and construct significant learning artifacts including:

• Scripted teaching and learning objects
• Educational machinima ("films" created using virtual world software)

Expected student background:

Student should be interested in using virtual worlds for educational or training purposes, whether in K-12, university, or corporate/government settings.

No programming experience is required. Prior experience in EPSY 590 NET will be helpful, but is not required.

Hardware and software requirements:

• Windows XP/Vista, Mac OS X, or Linux machine which is capable of running the course software. This will require a reasonably powerful and up-to-date system, as these packages are rather demanding when it comes to processor speed and graphics capability. (need links here so potential students can make sure their machines can run the software)
• High-speed Internet connection required (1.5Mbps+)

• Instructor: Tony Hursh
• Teaching Assistant: Hee Young Choi