My MOOC overload #CMC11

Ok I am doing it again!  I thought maybe I had lost my enthusiasm for learning new things in different ways. I don’t think I lost that I think I just couldn’t carve out the time to keep track of all the opportunities.  I am turning into a junky with the latest education initiative and that is a MOOC.    So far I know of at least four interesting MOOCs going on ..two of which I am trying to participate in and two others I am considering participating in at some point.  Right now I am in Change11 and Creativity, Multicultural Communication.  You will find my posts for Creativity and Multicultural Communication on this blog and my posts for #Change11 on www.cathyandersonblog.com and posts of the other classes, if I decide to participate on other blog sites.
This course covers  how to communicate in a social networked world,  the emphasis for this course is on creativity..and also how we can solve problems creatively in a social networked world.    According to the blog about this course we will be learning about how to utilize the concepts of connectivism and connecting with others globally.  
From Wikipedia: 

In contemporary society, different understandings of multiculturalism have resulted in two different and seemingly inconsistent strategies:
• The first focuses on interaction and communication between different cultures. Interactions of cultures provide opportunities for the cultural differences to communicate and interact to create multiculturalism.
• The second centers on diversity and cultural uniqueness. Cultural isolation can protect the uniqueness of the local culture of a nation or area and also contribute to global cultural diversity. The concept of “Cultural exception” proposed by France in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) negotiations in 1993 was an example of a measure aimed at protecting local cultures.

Our communication, observations and reactions to other cultures should generate creativity and inspire us as individuals in our thought, actions and artistic activities. Other cultures have an indelible influence on us as individuals, it creates synergy when we work together.

Kate Davies, in her article, Sustainable Minds in the Alternative Journal   identified the following tenets that I believe are pertinent to this initiative:

Creating Learning Communities
First developed in higher education, there are now many examples of collaborations for learning, including spiritual, professional, online and neighbourhood communities. World Cafés, for example, can bring a diverse range of participants together to share perspectives on sustainability issues. Involvement in practical shared tasks, such as creating community gardens or building a transition town, can further stimulate active learning.

Fostering a New Cultural Worldview
A learning society for sustainability could foster the development of a new cultural worldview - one that is based on respect for the Earth and the great diversity of life on which humans depend. With its presumption of human superiority, the dominant Western worldview assumes humankind has the inherent right to over-exploit other species and exhaust the planet's resources. Developing values and beliefs consistent with sustainability will require a shared understanding of the destructive consequences of this worldview, as well as a widely-held desire to create a respectful, long-term relationship with the Earth.

.Embracing Diversity
A learning society would embrace diversity - not only different cultures and ethnicities, but also different ideas, beliefs and ways of knowing. We can learn from people who do not think like us because they challenge our assumptions, beliefs and expectations. We can learn from the wisdom of peoples and communities around the world that have proved their sustainability over hundreds or thousands of years. In the same way that the health of an ecosystem depends on its biodiversity, the sustainability of human systems depends on cultural diversity and a diversity of ideas and practices.
(Davies, K.. (2010). Sustainable Minds. Alternatives Journal, 36(5), 8,10-11.  Retrieved September 17, 2011, from Research Library. (Document ID: 2125349971).

I decided to do some research on the term “World Café” and this is what I found, I hope to explore World Cafes further throughout this term:

World Cafe :  http://www.theworldcafe.com/
The Co-Intelligence Institute:   http://www.co-intelligence.org/P-worldcafe.html

World Café Community of Practice:  http://www.theworldcafecommunity.org/
The World Café on Second Life:  The World Café is a conversational process based on a set of integrated design principles. Simple yet powerful, World Cafés can evoke and make visible the collective intelligence of any group, thus increasing people's capacity for effective action in pursuit of common aims. It is particularly effective when people come together across organizational, social or cultural boundaries to foster collaboration.
World Café Community Blog:  http://conversationsthatmatter.typepad.com/world_cafe_community/
I can’t wait to find and share more with you.  The World Café is a model of connecting either physically or virtually and exploring our world together. 

Predictions, Ahem Wish List 2011 for Second Life

I can’t really make predictions on virtual worlds or Second Life for 2011, I am not expert.  Sure I spend some time in there, have tried selling stuff, done some education related activities and gone to some events and held a few.  Second Life seems to provide a perfect virtual environment for those sorts of things.
So while I am not going to make some predictions I am going to say that I hope a few things happen that will allow us, end users, to capitalize on the potential of Second Life.  One would be that I hope that Linden Labs recognizes the potential of the SL platform for Social Networking.  The opportunity here is huge.  Showing users how to build community, use groups, and improving on the text and voice chat will be huge improvements for Second Life.   The first time or two that you, as a resident of Second Life meets someone from Russia or China you maybe hooked..that is the power of networking in Second Life!
Second Life has a tremendous resource in their users who offer classes on all of the above and more.  I have suggested before and I will suggest again that if I could immediately build my network based upon my profile, that I complete before going in to Second Life, and immediately start networking after joining would greatly improve the user experience from the start.  So if, for example my profile indicates that I am an educator with an interest in writing and Steampunk I am immediately connected with those groups and communities would hold great potential for improvement.
In my opinion Second Life is events driven.  It is probably events that first draw users into Second Life.  If you are an educator it was probably a conference, a class, or exploring the potential of Second Life for education.  Right now it is, in my opinion very difficult to search events for something that relates to your interest, or as one person complains you go to an event and there is no one there.
On any given day you will find events such as discussions on various topics from religion, to politics, to relationships, science or education.  You will also find live music with performers in pop, country, folk, and new age.  Many of these performers are seasoned real life artists who are wanting off the real life road but still want to perform and with Second Life they can right from the comfort of their home.
Would it make sense for Second Life to enhance how they assist residents in promoting and putting on events, in my opinion it would.  The future of Second Life depends upon people in world activity doing things, not just showing up and hanging out..heck we can just as easily do that in front of our televisions and with a lot less lag.
Second Life provides a great platform for role play.  I mention that and have in the past as being a key benefit for Second Life in education, creative writing, and experience history.  I visited some role play sims one of which is described as: “Friendly medieval fantasy roleplay community open to all levels of roleplay experience. Focus on story development
Medieval Role play Medieval RPG Fantasy roleplay Medieval Market Medieval Fantasy Market Shops for Rent Cottage Rentals Cottages for rent.”  http://world.secondlife.com/place/fd941958-bad8-8bc8-8875-9c9f5808e8b0
One of the cool things I came across when I visited Dubhan is the Herb Hunt noted below (what a great way to learn about herbs..): \
Herb Hunt
------------
Throughout the lands of Dubhan grow wild herbs that can be used in a variety of different ways.   Be forewarned that you may have to venture in dangerous parts of Dubhan if you wish to find all of them.
The role play on Dubhan is as follows:

The realm of Dubhan dates back to before man knew of time and space.  The large island sits far off the coast of Ireland and has been protected by an ancient elven spell which hides it from sight.  Only those with knowledge of it's exact location are able to find it's shores. 

For years Dubhan remained untouched by outsiders and only it's native races (Elves, Fae, and Satyrs) could claim it as home, but war broke out among the races, causing the magic barrier to weaken and reveal the island to a group of human knights who were sailing in search of a place to hide away an ancient relic.  These knights hid their relic deep within the land, hoping that the natural magic would keep it hidden from those who would seek to use it for evil. 

After 20 years, The Elven Wars finally ended.  The Light Elves were able to defeat their darker cousins, with the help of the other native races, but the lands had been ravaged and all had surmounted great losses.  Most of the them receeded back into their woods and mountains, remaining in hiding.   ….There is more check out the Dubhan sim in Second Life to learn more.  A few pictures below:

The Alexandria Egyptian Empire Role Play Sim:


Neo Victoria
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/NeoVictoria/16/118/700
The Machinima tutorial area which I thought was great!



Wulin, a Chinese Martial Arts Role Play sim:



Renaissance Island Role Play Sim:


Linden Labs cut many employees in 2010, but what about adding employees who can help build up the potential of Second Life in social networking, developing events, role play, and education? The potential is there I believe and if I were to do my 2011 predictions for Second Life it would be more a wish list and it would look like that!

Sl and creativity

The creative environment that SL provides is nothing to knew to those of you who may be reading this post.  But this is an ideal environment for students to learn in..it makes the definite switch from an environment in which students passively have something done to them..now they can create their learning experience.  This means they can create art, create art, create a performance type are experience, and experiment.  

The beauty of experimenting in SL is the fact that, for the most part, resources are unlimited, however the learning curve is a bit steep to get there.  But reality is..in my opinion..today's young student has a deep skill set, far beyond what I have that they bring to SL.

I think in order to foster this opportunity to create a rich immersive environment the student should have as few limitations or restrictions placed on him/her in sl.  Of course this type of opportunity only is provided in certain discipline areas, and may not work well in all areas.  When designing a course in sl the course designer must evaluate whether or not he/she is designing activities that are tied to the learning outcomes of the course.    For those who may immersed in SL sometimes it is difficult to remove your personal feelings for the virtual world learning environment and separate it from what is right for the particular course. 

HI! Reality Check

Well being somewhat new to Second LIfe I am still learning...there is as much going on there as any real world economy, life, and solar system. So I am cutting out the second life fun for a few days. I really love the live music, shopping and other things that second lifers can do. This could be due, in part, to the isolated area where I live. Enough said..I am more and more fascinated by the growth that Linden Labs is currently reporting here..
https://blogs.secondlife.com/community/features/blog/feeds/posts

Interesting! It's hard to believe that SL has such a growth economy while the rest of the worlds and world seems to be in a holding pattern right now.

So what is the draw. Second life seems to get into your head..it's the creativity and fundamentally I believe we are all creative this could be related to a story I heard..probably on NPR or something about a study that was done with elementary school aged children..at Kindergarten the kids were asked "who is an artist in this classroom.." all the kids jumped out and down and raised their hands, about the same next year..then the next year a few kids didn't raise their hands when asked, and the next year a few more, then a few more then a few more finally only one or two or none...

So it goes we lose, somehow our desire to be creative! or believe we aren't or shouldn't be...I think SL taps into this kid in us that got lost along the way ...