Virtual+Environments+and+Inclusion+Projects

=Susan Post =

= = = VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS =

..... ||  || Second Life is a free online virtual world imagined and created by its residents. A recent research study investigated possible psychological benefits for individuals with disabilities after using Second Life for three months. Depressive symptoms, anxiety, and loneliness significantly decreased while positive affect, satisfaction with life, and self-esteem significantly increased. Results suggest that individuals with disabilities can experience increased psychological benefits from 3D virtual environments. (Murphy, N., et al, 2012). There is a large community for people with disabilities in Second Life. Further, virtual communities provide a sense of connectedness and empower people with disabilities (Mactavish & Iwasaki, 2005). Second Life offers people with disabilities a chance to explore new worlds without the limitations of their disabilities, offering them hope and promoting a higher level of emotional functioning (Steward, S., et al, 2010).
 * **Definition**: The definition of a virtual environment is not as easy as it sounds because it holds within it a large number of opinions, formal as well as informal, ranging from collaboration in chat rooms to virtual worlds that encompasses an evironment that its inhabitants regard as self-controlled. (Bell, 2008). Other terms associated with it are Virtual Reality (VR). 1 One of the most well-known virtual environments in this context is called Second Life ®.
 * **Overview of Second Life **®** as Assistive Technology: **



Robin Springer in Speech Technology (2009, August) writes: "In real life there are catastrophic injuries and wheelchairs. In Second Life there are horseback rides and dancing till dawn. In real life there is dependence and isolation. In Second Life you can fly. Virtual worlds like Second Life...offer real-life health benefits for people who use them. Research has shown that participating in virtual worlds improves spatial awareness, hand/eye coordination, and fine motor skills. People with disabilities are often isolated, but participating in-world allows them to be free of situations they cannot control in real life. Virtual worlds are the key to the next form of the Internet, says Eelke Folmer, an assistant professor at the University of Nevada-Reno, who authored a study on accessibility in Second Life." Speech recognition software facilitates interaction among users in Second Life. However, the writer notes that Second Life does not use standard Windows application programming interfaces, therefore not everything works by voice.

The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) has set up shop on Second Life with the hopes of showing the potential benefits to educators. However, for lack of time, money, and up-to-date technology it still struggles to take hold in education. Education Week Digital Directives (Ash, 2011) offers the following tips:

1. Check the school or district network to make sure the computers meet the requirements to support the Second Life application.

2. Plan to have an in-person meeting with teachers to set up their accounts and familiarize them with how to use their avatars, known as 'residents' in Second Life.

3. Make sure that teachers navigate their avatars—or "teleport"—to a safe environment where they can learn how to move around, where they should go, and how to interact with other avatars.

4. Give teachers time and opportunities to explore Second Life on their own and direct their own learning. Being too prescriptive about what everyone should be doing can turn teachers off to using the tool.

5. Provide a list of Second Life resources and educational places to visit in the virtual world.

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 * = INCLUSION PROJECTS =


 * College Open Textbook Project

In Spring 2010, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation funded Community College Open Textbooks Collaborative which contracted with Virtual Ability, Inc. 2 to review 60 open textbooks for college students regarding accessibility. Since increasing numbers of college students have a disability, accessibility is remains an important aspect of evaluating instructional materials. Virtual Ability Inc, is a non-profit organization that works towards enabling people with a wide range of disabilities to enter and thrive in online virtual world such as Second Life.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Amputee Virtual Environment Support Space Project (AVESS)<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">3

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">This project is funded by the Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center of the U.S. Army. This Project was launched in September of 2009. AVESS created a successful virtual island for amputee suppport groups. (Thompson & Fisher, 2010). See the following video to gain a better understanding of this project:

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 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 19.2px;">**Notes:**

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 130%;">1. Virtual reality. (2011, September 23). In //Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia//. Retrieved 00:21, September 26, 2011, from []

2. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">Virtual Ability, Inc. []

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">3. AVESS. []

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 19.2px;">**References**:

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 130%;">Ash, K. (2011, June 15). Second Life struggles to catch on with educators. //Education Week Digital Directives//. Retrieved from: []

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 130%;">Bell, M. W. (2008, July). Toward a definition of virtual worlds. //Journal of Virtual World Research.// 1(1), Retrieved from: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">[]

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: large;">Mactavish, J. (2005). Exploring perspectives of individuals with disabilities on stress-coping. //Journal of Rehabilitation//, 71(1), 20-31. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 130%;">Murphy, N., Gilbert, R., Krueger, A., Ludwig, A. & Effron, T. Social-emotional outcomes of Second Life for individuals with disabilities. Poster accepted for presentation at the meeting of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology. (January, 2012). Retrieved from: []

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 130%;">Springer, R. (2009, August). Speech in a virtual world. //Speech Technology//. 14(5), p. 42.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 130%;">Stewart, S., Hansen, T.S., Carey, T. A., (2010, December). Opportunities for people with disabilities in the virtual world of Second Life. //Rehabilitation Nursing.// 35(6), pg. 254

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 130%;">Thompson, D., Fisher, A. (2010). Amputee Virtual Environment Support Space - A vision for virtual military amputee support. //Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development//. 47(6). p.VII. ||  ||