So I created my alter persona for second life, downloaded the program, and as i was signing on to my session, anxious to discover what second life is all about and what it has to offer, my internet connection went down.
This was of course frustrating. The initial frustration was born of the inability to see what was up with second life...the secondary frustration was, "i hope this doesn't affect me adversely grade-wise."
I think this is one of the perceived problems with utilizing web 2.0 tools....i think a lot of teachers are afraid of technical failures and difficulties. We all know how to, and are taught to, have a contingency plan, but it's frustrating when one puts in so much effort towards something only to have it postponed or even fail due to circumstances beyond one's control.
However, living in fear is no way to advance...whether it's fear of a technological break down or fear of a more standard teaching exercise working, we must continue to take risks.
I hope to get on second life when the connection is up to speed (i'm writing this from the library...) and check things out for myself.
1 comment:
Sorry you were having problems. I had technical difficulties too. You bring up something the classroom teachers tell me about planning to use technology in a lesson. Have a contingency plan. I guess they should not expect trouble because it sets expectations badly but I feel it is a good idea to always have an alternate plan. Sometimes non-tech plans do not work and you may want to have a plan B. This is especially true for new teachers. There are times you have to say, "that didn't work" and try to see why and then move on.
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