Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
Classroom management
but the content would be generated by the students.
However, the teacher will sometimes need to take
on the role of technical helper and make sound
checks with their students at the beginning of the
class to ensure that nobody has sound problems.
Some other issues related to teachers and their
role in the learning/teaching contexts concern the
concepts of team teaching and teacher training.
In this environment, classroom management plays
a vital role as it is a new environment both for
teachers and for learners. Thus, the teacher should
scaffold student work, giving them the overall
purpose for each activity, with detailed instruc-
tions and examples and making sure that they
have understood. Making comprehension checks
can be challenge because of the lack of or limited
range of facial gestures, haptics and body language
so the teacher has to look for new techniques to
check comprehension. Another important issue
that teachers have to deal with are disruptions in
class which can be of different nature. The first
disruptive element is related to sound if students
don't have their volume well adjusted or if they
don't use the right headset. Sound problems may
generate echoes (not only for the person who has
the problem but also for the rest of the partici-
pants), background noises (barking dogs, crying
babies, ringing telephones), or electronic static.
Another disruptive element can be that of avatars
using uncommon shapes or costumes (demon or
monster avatars - use of weapons or inappropriate
clothes). Finally, because of the anonymity of a
MUVE, students may come in late, disappear in
the middle of the class, or have 'phantom avatars'
in class (the teacher may physically see the avatar
but in fact the student is away from the keyboard).
It is important that the teacher establishes criteria
for dealing with these problems before they occur
and sets rules for adequate behaviour to avoid
class disruption.
Team Teaching
Team-teaching (teacher plus helper) is a feature
deployed uniquely for the beginner courses to
aid the main teacher who can only speak in the
target language. Team teaching is used to model
pronunciation, and how activities are done, as well
as to provide help - including technical help - to
individual students. It is not strange for students
to experience technical issues when coming to
class and it is important that they find a supportive
environment as well as some assistance.
Teacher Training
Teachers have two learning curves to overcome.
The first curve consists in becoming familiar
with the MUVE environment and learning how
to move around it. The second curve relates to
MUVE pedagogy. The latter largely consists of
a process of realisation that much real life best
practice has transfer value into the new context.
A 'good teacher' in a MUVE is first and fore-
most a 'good teacher' in real life who adapts to
the constraints and affordances of a MUVE. The
adjustment time that instructors need to feel con-
fident does need to be borne in mind. The learn-
ing curve is considerably easier through teacher
training courses as, during the training course,
trainees will be trained in those MUVE skills of
benefit to teaching (such as learning how to build
3D-objects) as well as exploring insights on how
to teach in this environment.
Simulations and Role Play
for Language Learning
Long held as a critical activity which gives stu-
dents sociocultural practice in the target language
that they may need to access in the real world,
its (i.e. roleplays) drawback has always been the
“unnatural situation of the classroom” (Living-
stone 1983). The enormous amount of suspended
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