Thursday, November 21, 2019

Multiverse Masters Open Educational Practice design science museum and support center for educators in virtual worlds.




The above link is the short edited version. 
The video below is 5 minutes longer and follows the provided transcript.



Welcome to Multiverse Masters. My name is Salie Davis, and this is my final project for my master’s program at Empire State University of New York for Learning in Emerging Technologies, with a master’s Certificate in Teaching in Emerging Technologies. Behind me you will see just part of Multiverse Masters Educational Support Center. 

Multiverse Masters is actually a four sectioned Island, the educational center is the main Island, within this main island is educator supports, tutorials, and ideas, so educators  can come here and collect free resources that are open source, they can find items that I myself have created to share with the open source community, they can find tutorials, lesson examples, and more.  

When they arrive at Multiverse Masters they will come to this area and find navigational aids that will help them get to the areas they need the most support in. When you first arrive, at Multiverse Masters you can see the welcome area, you are welcomed by Suny Sweet, the School Girl and the Multiverse Master themselves. Those are in scripts and may be future tutorials on the blog and website so that educators can reproduce them. Examples include badges and introduction boards, again these may be future tutorials for educators as well as papers, for example how badging can be used in gamification and learning. 

There are full tutorials and lesson examples such as this one which is a storyboard and film tutorial and lesson plan. These include slides shows and activities, assignments and assessments. With permissions people could do these lessons here or copy and reproduce similar lessons on their own virtual world. 

That is what the purpose of this island is, to give inspiration, support, ideas and tools to educators so that they can see what they can do in these environments with their students. I found that having lots of navigational tools was very important so that educators could come and find exactly what they were looking for, these include navigational arrows, as you can see they point to the speaker prep lounge, which teaches educators how to create presentations themselves and offers different options for presentations and lectures. 

This navigational board with landmarks shows the whole Island including the immersive learning area, the student area, which educators can duplicate as restricted areas on their own islands for students. In the upper part is an educational lesson-based adventure and fantasy world that may be removed and redesigned but will be cataloged on the website and blog as well.  

This is how Multiverse Masters, with it blog and website, along with its ever-developing virtual space will become a museum for virtual design science, and open educational practice examples.  When exhibits or areas are removed, they will be cataloged and can continue to inspire educators.  

The Island currently features resources for avatars, avatar clothing, with lots of teleport options to get you directly to where you need to go. Other navigational tools have just the main Island, and link to the websites, blogs, YouTube channels, Facebook and other resources.  

You can also hyper grid from Multiverse Masters to other grids all over the world.  The navigational aids here give visual representations to the different support areas and exhibits, I wanted to give people the option to browse freely and interact with the objects such as this light share.  More exhibits are upstairs, and even more can be accessed at the train station. 

The train station itself is designed to be immersive in its build. Inside the Train station office is scripts and navigational supports to help instructors in their own designs. The information signs give note cards on the exhibits and you can teleport to the different exhibits listed here. 

These examples are complete curriculum with assignments, some supports and assessments, videos, quizzes etc.  The interactive aspects of this area help the instructors decide which areas are most beneficial for them to visit.  

Some of it of course is just interactive fun, bikes that can be rode, food items given that the avatar can eat, but it is all a part of the engagement in this environment. The original design was an open source design that I altered. I have added areas for news and open simulation community blogs, supports and sites, such as the virtual library. 

The shops were also pre-designed open source that I added to for the benefit of educators who themselves must learn how to use the tools in this virtual environment in order to teach students effectively with in it. Going upstairs, there is the ESC and GSC rooms, supplies for avatars, and avatar accessories and classroom examples that include the free resources to replicate them. These include presentations and student examples from ESC. 

These areas show educators the various ways they can set up their virtual classrooms and the various tools they must present information and interact with their students.  The computers in the virtual world actually work for browsing the internet, each independently, you can play videos that are pre-loaded, leave notes, or instructions on white boards,  You can place pictures and easily edited sticky notes, slide shows,  allow student to drop notes in the "mail" or leave short text messages, all in the world,  or write on graffiti boards. 

All of these allow for synchronous and asynchronous learning. and different classroom environments. Above us is links to different student Islands from ESC as well as college and GSC websites.  There are lots of options for communication, exploration and the sharing of information. 

Even when the student is alone in the virtual world, they can interact with all the non-player characters and objects to learn and be directed. One example here, is Professor Brown.  Other options include note cards and choice scripts. Some are just for fun. These displays show formal and informal learning environments and provide the tools educators need to reproduce these environments as well as try out the various forms of communications and ways of presenting information. Although this area is outside the educational center and will be changed, here is the example of the active and immersive educational area. 

This area is a gamified learning environment with quizzes, and mysteries, where the student interacts with the environment and non-player characters to receive clues, answer questions for clues and rewards, gather tokens and go on quests. This is where the light share comes in handy. You have the bright day light and the scary night. 

As you can see it really changes the appearance of the environment and sets the mood for adventure. That was my quick tour of just some of the aspects of Multiverse Masters  designed to inspire educators and help them in their virtual exploits. Thank you very much for watching.

Monday, September 16, 2019

Magic 8 ball tutorial and script



default
{
    touch_start(integer num_detected)
    {
       float a= llFrand (1.0)*26;
       integer b = llRound (a);
       if (b == 0) llSay(0,"As I see it, yes");
       if (b == 1) llSay(0,"It is certain");
       if (b == 2) llSay(0,"It is decidedly so");
       if (b == 3) llSay(0,"Most likely");
       if (b == 4) llSay(0,"Without a doubt");
       if (b == 5) llSay(0,"Outlook good");
       if (b == 6) llSay(0,"Signs point to yes");
       if (b == 7) llSay(0,"Cat");
       if (b == 8) llSay(0,"Definitely");
       if (b == 9) llSay(0,"You do realize I am inanimate?");
       if (b == 10) llSay(0,"Reply hazy, try again");
       if (b == 11) llSay(0,"Ask after tea time");
       if (b == 12) llSay(0,"Better not tell you now");
       if (b == 13) llSay(0,"I cannot predict");
       if (b == 14) llSay(0,"Concentrate and ask again");
       if (b == 15) llSay(0,"Don't count on it");
       if (b == 16) llSay(0,"My reply is no");
       if (b == 17) llSay(0,"My sources say no");
       if (b == 18) llSay(0,"Outlook not so good");
       if (b == 19) llSay(0,"Very doubtful");
       if (b == 20) llSay(0,"So now you need my help?");
       if (b == 21) llSay(0,"Better you shouldn't ask");
       if (b == 22) llSay(0,"You call that a question?");
       if (b == 23) llSay(0,"Why not?");
       if (b == 24) llSay(0,"If that's what you want");
       if (b == 25) llSay(0,"You tell me");
       if (b == 26) llSay(0,"You even need to ask?");
    }
}

Tuesday, May 14, 2019

Story Board Film Project at Multiverse Masters Virtual World on Kitley





Introduction:
In re-purposing the Federal Consortium for Virtual Worlds (FCVW) lobby, that was used to introduce new users on how to maneuver within the virtual environment during the 2015 FCVW conference, I analyzed the section that was set up with four slides to introduce camera controls and considered how I could turn it into a group project. The learning objectives would be as follows.








Camera Controls:

Participants will review key features of the camera tool in Open Simulator. The following features will be reviewed, For new users the Quick Start Guide for Using a Kitely Virtual Reality Island at https://multiversemasters.blogspot.com/2019/04/quick-start-guide-for-using-kitely.html will be provided. Participants will learn camera controls in the virtual word for looking and zooming, by reading slides in the virtual world. The participants will learn how to view objects and zoom, and how to use the - keyboard and mouse controls. The participants will learn camera control for taking a snapshot in the virtual world. The participants will learn the camera control for mouse look in the virtual world. For advanced users the lesson plan can include a comparison of different world viewers as they relate to these tools.

This gives an adaptable approach to three levels of students for customization of the curriculum and is beneficial when creating groups. Groups can be created based on levels of ability or mixed specifically to blend levels for the benefit of the group activity. The level of the student can be determined during the pre-reflective aspect of the course.

Participants will be using a virtual world viewer to access assigned tasks and resource materials. They will need to access the Kitely grid and will be provided with a document with instructions on how to access multiverse masters on that grid. Participants will be asked to participate in at least five discussion groups in world to introduce themselves, complete a group project and to reflect on the goals learned.

The initial in world live meeting and discussion group and introductions is where participants will introduce themselves and offer any experience they have had working with Open Simulators and Virtual Worlds. In addition, participants will share how they will use this information in their personal or professional goals. Supports within the virtual world will direct participants to a slide show instruction on where to go inside the virtual world to find the different tools they will use and the assignments. This slide show will be used as the initial demonstrating source and will also be located on the supporting website. The participants can review this and all other supports at will. This will encourage repetition and formative learning opportunities.







Participants will have access to links that are created in the virtual world to supplemental resources for participants on each of the defined goals. A second live meeting and discussion group in the virtual world allows participants to reflect on goals learned using the virtual world and website supports and reflect on the group project. Participants may share how they can relate and use these features in their personal and professional goals, any challenges or features they did not understand and respond to at least two of their colleague’s postings in the virtual world chat. This is beneficial since the instructor can save the chat dialog, as can the participants for future reflection.

During this second group meeting, tasks are assigned within the virtual world that can be done independently or with partners and as a group. This allows participant choice and flexibility based on learning styles and student resources such as time. The groups are formed at this time to conduct live meetings without the instructor present to complete a collaborative project. The groups can be chosen by the instructor based on the student’s abilities as shown in the first and second meeting, their preferred time zones, and other relevant factors. This group project will exemplify the different tools and techniques learned in camera controls within virtual worlds.

Three live meetings will be required by each group and other communications needed to complete the project.  Each group member will be responsible for completing their own summary report of each live meeting including attendance. Each member will be responsible for completing a peer evaluation which will be assigned by the instructor. Each group member will be responsible for submitting the culminated project. By requiring these assignments from each group member, the instructor will get a complete picture and can compare the evaluations of each student as well as the peer evaluations of each student to best analyze the successful outcome of the lesson.

Participants are assigned tasks within the virtual world, for example, each participant will be required to submit camera shots taken showcasing the use of each of the features discussed in the camera shop module. Various suggested options will be provided in the virtual world to increase interest and participation. Additional options are encouraged as approved by the instructor.






Rubric:

Goal one:

Complete the four camera control activities. 1. Camera control and zooming 2. View objects and zoom 3. Camera control snap shots 4. Camera control mouse look. For each of these assignments provide a snapshot of your screen, titled with your name and the activity number.

1 point Provided at least one snapshot. 2 points Provided 2-4 snapshots that did not clearly reflect the learning goals. 3 points Provided 2-4 snapshots -2 of which clearly reflect the learning goals. 4 points Provided 3-4 snapshots of which 3 clearly reflect the learning goals. 5 points Provided 4 snapshots of which all 4 clearly reflect the learning goals.

Goal two:

Take 5 unique snapshots showing the camera control skills learned using unique angles and zoom lengths. These snapshots will be part of the group project and story board.

1 point Provided at least one snapshot. 2 points Provided at least two snapshot that showed unique angles and zoom ratios. 3 points Provided at least three snapshot that showed unique angles and zoom ratios. 4 points Provided at least four snapshot that showed unique angles and zoom ratios. 5 points Provided at least five snapshot that showed unique angles and zoom ratios

Goal three:

Two class live in world meetings, introduction, discussion, culmination and reflection. The chat transcript can be saved by the instructor to gauge level of participation. Participants will be expected to respond in chat to at least two of their classmates’ posts.

1 point for each meeting totaling 2 points Participant attends the meeting but does not engage in the discussion. 2 points for each meeting totaling 4 points Participant engages in the discussion. But does not give feedback. 3 points for each meeting totaling 6 points Participant gives feedback but does not engage in the initial discussion. 4 points for each meeting totaling 8 points participant engages in the discussion but only responds to one classmate in the chat. 5 points for each meeting totaling 10 points Participants engages in the discussion and responds to two other classmates in the chat.

Goal four:

Two project-based group discussions. Using a note-card and the drop function of the in the virtual world mailbox participants must reflect on how the information was received in each of these two project discussion groups, how the information can be applied, and any misunderstandings. Participants are asked to give peer feedback to at least one group member. This peer will be assigned by the instructor and a copy of the feedback submission will be provided to the instructor via note-card in the drop box.

1 point for each group discussion meeting totaling 2 points Participants attended the meeting. 2 points for each meeting totaling 4 points Participants attended the meeting and submitted a note-card that clearly reflected at least one of the goals of the assignment but did not submit peer feedback. 3 points for each meeting totaling 6 points Participants attended the meeting and submitted a note-card that clearly reflected on at least one assignment goal and submitted peer feedback. 4 points for each meeting totaling 8 points Participants attended the meeting and submitted a note-card that clearly reflected on all the goals of the assignment. but did not submit peer feedback. 5 points for each meeting totaling 10 points Participants attended the meeting and submitted a note-card that clearly reflected on all the goals of the assignment. and submitted peer feedback

Goal five:

Reflection and final project feedback with live meeting. There will be two forms of anonymous peer feedback options One will be a vote and a badge awarded for the best project. The second will be an evaluation of how the group performed submitted to the instructor via a note=card dropped in the mailbox in-world. There will be two options for non-anonymous peer feedback, where each participant will evaluate the work and participation of one group member to provide to that group member and provide to the instructor. There will be an opportunity throughout the course to vote on whether the assignment goals are understood. This will give immediate feedback to the instructor on the need to clarify goals.

5 - 10 points Participant engages in one of the five feedback opportunities based on quality of feedback. 11-20 points Participant engages in two of the five feedback opportunities based on quality of feedback. 21-30 points Participant engages in three of the five feedback opportunities based on quality of the feedback. 31-40 points Participant Participates engages in four of the five feedback opportunities Based on the quality of the feedback. 41-50 points Participant engages in all five feedback opportunities based on the quality of the feedback. A grading rubric details all the necessary requirements of the project. Based on outcome, the instructor will be able to assess if learning was successful.
·         5 points for camera control activities
·         10 points for quiz ( 1 point per question, ten questions total)
·         5 points for snapshots for group project
·         10 points 2 class meetings
·         10 points 2 project group meetings
·         10 points peer feedback (graded by peer evaluation)
·         50 points reflection and final project feedback participation.
In the assessment plan I choose the criteria based on pre-activity reflection, so participants could process before hand what they already knew and hoped to learn. I used participation as a heavy factor in determining assessment outcome to encourage peer led learning and feedback, especially peer feedback was also important. This, again, was to encourage group participation and peer led learning. In the assessment I wanted to include both summative and formative techniques, relying heavier on formative due to their benefits in group activities and continued lifelong learning skills.

The Formative Assessment will include a self-assessment of the participants understanding of how virtual world skills can be learned, taught and assessed within the virtual world. This can be compared to the follow up self-assessment at the end of the story board film simulation.

The initial introduction discussion task allows the participants to share a little about themselves and how they may be using
the virtual world environment in their personal or career goals. The basis for this task is to begin building a community for collaboration. It permits participants to get to know each other, see what they are thinking, and find any potential similarities they could build on. Further, this task allows the instructor to see how participants are using the virtual world and any prior knowledge they may have on the subject. The introductions will assist in determining participant level within the virtual world and adapt the course as needed to best serve the participant’s needs (e.g., new, beginning, or advanced).

Participants are required to participate in the introduction discussion. This meeting will be recorded by the instructor and a link provided to the participants for review. Participants will be asked to introduce themselves during this initial discussion, by posting their goals and their experiences in the in the virtual world chat. The chat transcript can be saved by the instructor to gauge level of participation. Participants will be expected to respond in chat to at least two of their classmates’ posts. This meeting will be recorded. The recording of the discussion group offers insight for the instructor on how the information was received, how the participant sees the information being applied, and any misunderstandings that are missed during the live meeting. By sharing a link to the video of the discussion group, this encourages the participants to synthesize goals learned to strengthen meaning.

The live meet in this environment continue to build the community and stimulate peer support/feedback. The requirement will be for project groups to meet for a minimum of two group discussions Communication received through the in the virtual world messaging system will also allow the instructor to be able to provide feedback during the group projects.
Participants are required to participate in these two project-based group discussions. Using a note-card and the drop function of the in the virtual world mailbox participants must reflect on how the information was received in each of these project discussion groups, how the information can be applied, and any misunderstandings. Participants are asked to give peer feedback to at least one group member. This peer will be assigned by the instructor and a copy of the feedback submission will be provided to the instructor via note-card in the drop box. This will include a 10-point anonymous peer evaluation provided to the instructor.
Because peer assessment will be a major factor, Peer rubrics will be provided to the students. An example of a peer rubric would look something like this. For this example, it would have more detail to encourage feedback, and could be supplied anonymously to the peer or for the instructor only.

On a scale of 1-10 how would you rate the level of participation and collaboration of your peer? 1 being peer did not participate or meet expectations and 10 being peer exceeded expectations with participation and support.

There will be an opportunity throughout the course to vote on whether the assignment goals are understood. This will give immediate feedback to the instructor on the need to clarify goals. The introduction and culminating live meetings are forums for the instructor to assess how everyone understands the goals as well as to go over any remaining misunderstandings. These meetings are an opportunity for the participants to receive live instruction, clarification of goals, and time to reflect with instructor and peer feedback, on ways to apply the features of the virtual world viewer camera controls to personal and professional goals and projects. The live meetings build community. Participants will be expected to respond to at least two other participants comments in chat in the virtual world.

Peer voting will be used to encourage creativity in the assignment and assist the participants with understanding how to assess virtual world learning. Peer feedback will also be submitted to paired participants through the in the virtual world messaging system and dropped via a note-card in the in the virtual world mailbox.

Participants are required to participate in live meetings and the peer feedback activities. Each participant will have time to address peers and offer feedback anonymously and in person. There will be two forms of anonymous peer feedback options One will be a vote and a badge awarded for the best project. The second will be an evaluation of how the group performed submitted to the instructor via a note-card dropped in the mailbox int the virtual world. There will be two options for non-anonymous peer feedback, where each participant will evaluate the work and participation of one group member to provide to that group member and provide to the instructor. The instructor will be able to gauge interest and understanding by each participant’s participation and feedback.

The Summative Assessment will include the completion of tasks assigned within the virtual world. The final project captures the knowledge learned by allowing each participant to produce their own snapshots using the features discussed.  Participants will have the opportunity to create a story board film project using the snapshots as a group (or individually with instructor permission).



Monday, April 15, 2019

Quick Start Guide for Using a Kitely Virtual Reality Island






Quick Start Guide for Using a Kitely Virtual Reality Island
n  GET AVATAR:  go to www.kitely.com and click Create Account or Sign In > complete the information, including reading the Terms of Agreement; gather your sign in information from the method chosen  NOTE: keep track of your avatar name and password; no one can reset this for you1-min video   https://youtu.be/NabtMAEYPNI 
n  GET VIEWER:  go to www.firestormviewer.org/downloads/ > choose your operating system > choose one of the download options THAT HAS OPENSIM in the name > follow instructions to put it on your computer – 45-sec video  http://youtu.be/TTFbcovfO-c?hd=1   ; the viewer is downloaded to your computer
n  GO TO LOCATION DIRECTLY:  to visit any Kitely island you:  open the Firestorm viewer on your computer by clicking its icon > in the viewer window, type avatar first and last name > click the drop-down arrow for Grid, and select Kitely > type the name of the island to be visited (if you leave this blank you will go to the Kitely Welcome Center the first time) > click Login and within about 45 seconds to two minutes (depending on the Island size) you are brought to the island – 1 min video   https://youtu.be/vJFoPDkWqDU  (Marian Island is often used for a SUNY starting point. For this activity visit Multiverse Masters)
n  Or, CHANGE TO A DIFFERENT ISLAND:  if you want to get to a different island, once you are on a Kitely island, click on the Map icon on the bottom of the Kitely window > type name of desired island in the Find textbook > click Find > once the island appears, (Multiverse Masters) click Teleport – 1 min video  https://youtu.be/MkElWmk2kLo 
n  USE SPEECH AND TEXT:  to have your avatar speak, you click-on the small-box in the top right of the microphone icon on the bottom of the screen (a check mark is added) and then you click on and off the larger microphone icon itself to speak (you click this icon off when you do not want to speak to prevent audio feedback within the virtual space);  to use text, type in the text-entry, chat space on the bottom left > press Enter – 1 min video  http://youtu.be/1l0PtPwtpz8?hd=1 
n  ADJUST SPEECH, if necessary: if you do not see green waves come out of your avatar’s head when you try to speak, on the top menu, click Avatar > Preferences > Sound and Media > click the Voice tab in the middle top of the dialog box > testing the Audio Device Settings features until you select the right device > click OK – 1-min video  http://youtu.be/UZebuDCgvj8?hd=1 
n  MOVE YOUR AVATAR:   move avatar using the arrow keys on your keyboard or by using the Walk/ Run / Fly icon on screen bottom where you first select whether to walk, run or fly and then determine the direction; you can teleport too, which is not reviewed here – 1-min video  http://youtu.be/KxH_hLQtqAE?hd=1 
n  CHANGE YOUR AVATAR’S VIEW:  hold Alt on the keyboard > cursor becomes a magnifying glass > click on a distance item & with Alt still held scroll in/out with mouse to zoom in/out; and/or click Avatar (on top menu) > click-on Camera controls > use camera wheel to change views – 1 min video  http://youtu.be/adPRg8bMaAI?hd=1 
n  TAKE SNAPSHOT:  click Snapshot icon on screen bottom > to save on your computer, click Save on disk > browse to desired location  > select image type > click OK – 1 min video   http://youtu.be/BYQDLqOBwV4?hd=1 
n  SIT ON OBJECTS: right click on chairs and other object > select Sit Here - .5 min video  http://youtu.be/spuyKPZgHRQ?hd=1 
n  MANY MORE OPTIONS:  This Quick Start Guide only highlights the most salient of many features, from avatar customization to instant messaging, that are available.   Experiment by reviewing the menus and testing the effect on your avatar, by going to the Kitely Welcome island, by learning within your course activities, and/or using this more advanced guide to consider other features.   However, for most classes, you are only going to be using the virtual-reality spaces as meeting spaces without using any of the many advanced features.