Conclusion

=Conclusion =

Innovation in Virtual Worlds has been significant over the past decade and these innovations include 3D graphics, lighting, realistic artificial intelligence, the development of more simplified and user friendly virtual reality tools and sensing controllers. Over the past few years virtual worlds have also moved from being simply a gaming or social interaction platform to a more sophisticated 3D platform that present real educational possibilities.

Virtual worlds can provide the opportunity to experience, empower and provide a sense of self that was not possible not so many years ago in one dimension elearning. These innovations in virtual worlds include the development and enhancement of Second Life, Sloodle, Playstation Home and and other Open Source virtual worlds.

However our research has led us to the conclusion that although the innovations in the area of virtual worlds and their implications for education have been significant there is still some way to go before this technology is considered mainstream and is viable for widespread use. The reasons for this include the lack of technical experience in the teaching sector, the technical ability of the students, the software and hardware required to effectively operate the software and the inability to assess and monitor student input in virtual worlds.

The development of Sloodle and other similar systems which have the ability to integrate or “mash up” virtual worlds and a Learning Management System (LMS) has however seen a great leap forward in bringing this technology to the mainstream of education and provided teachers with the ability to assess, monitor and evaluate students in a virtual world.