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Teaching and Learning

Write-up of the design of the Philosophy pilots presented in recipe form.

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Learning Recipe 1: MUVEs table d'hote

MUVEs à la Nouvelle Cuisine

 

This menu originates from philosophy discussions held in Second Life and can be modified to suit a variety of occasions including one-off banquets or as part of a larger festival. 

 

 

Ingredients

  • 1 VLE with forums
  • 1 Meeting point within a Multi-User Virtual Environment
  • 5-12 Distance Students
  • 1 Tutor
  • 1 MUVE support expert
  • 1 Topic for discussion

 

Preparation Time

  • Tutor: 2-5 hours
  • Students: 1 hours of orientation in MUVE if n00bs.

Cooking time

  • Pre MUVE activity in VLE: 3 days
  • 2 x 1.5 hours session in MUVE
  • 2 x Post MUVE activity in VLE: 2 days - max 1 week.

 

Starter

Marinade students and tutor in MUVE orientation session covering the following: 

  • Walking around
  • Text chat
  • Sitting down
  • Teleporting

 

Relevant Text short-hands including the use of ellipsis the use of avatar names and any other appropriate shorthand such as lol and np. See stockist for additional options: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMS_language 

 

Experiment according to taste.

First Course

Dice a discussion theme into small chunks including:

  • Topic
  • Guidance
  • Key terms
  • Timeline

 

Mix these chunks with students in a VLE forum. Use tutor to facilitate discussion and frame ideas until breadcrumb thread emerges. Allow 2–3 days for mix to prove for comprehension. At this point your mixture should be twice its original volume. 

Before proceeding onto the main course use a tutor summary of the discussion so far to aid digestion and describe the main course.

 

Main Course

 

Blend students and tutor in the MUVE allowing time for social aperitif (15mins) 

Shape mixture into a discussion of appropriate size and shape using the following utensils: 

 

  • Breakout groups of 3-4 students
  • Robust tutor involvement
  • Ideas tenderiser

Allow 15 minutes’ social digestion time and to anticipate dessert.

 

Dessert

 

Select finest morsels of main course discussion and knead into an initial forum post to encourage students’ appetite for reflection. Simmer discussion for 2–5 days. 

Cheese platter

Optional course to complete the meal which traditionally consists of a form of assessment.

Coffee and mints

Evaluate meal and make notes on this recipe card to improve dining experience for future occasions.