Virtual World Workshop sessions – ICTU Annual Conference 2013

Here’s your chance to experience the educational environment in our North Coast TAFE Virtual World with your very own avatar.

“To understand the man, you must first walk a mile in his moccasin.”
North American Indian Proverb

Join Alex Miller for one of three available workshops (see Agenda) on Wednesday November 27th.

Session 1 – 10:30 – 11:15am
Session 2 – 1:00 – 1:45pm
Session 3 – 2:30 – 3:15pm

The session will cover:

• Quick intro – any questions on the basics (covered in Getting Started)
• A tour of our North Coast TAFE learning environments and their purpose
• Basic building of objects in-world (uploading learning resources) using Working in world instructions – virtual world 2013

In order to cover the above, here is a list of things you need to do before the session:

1. Receive your avatar log-in details from Alex
2. Using your own laptop (which you will need to bring along to the workshop), work through the Getting Started instructions (already provided), which includes; downloading the software, accessing the grid, moving around, communicating
3. Download and print the Working in world instructions – virtual world 2013

This is going to be fun! Can’t wait to see you all there.
Alex

We made the news team!

Look!

Our North Coast TAFE Virtually Hyperconnected project made the Manning Times! Woot! Great job Taree business students & teachers and special thanks to our business mentor Meredith Collins – @videosocialcode

Manning River Times – Virtual business with international potential

You can read the online article here – http://www.manningrivertimes.com.au/story/1618656/virtual-business-with-international-potential/

Recordings from Social Business Matters!

Cast your minds back to March…

It was early in our Virtually Hyperconnected project and we had the wonderful Meredith Collins come to Taree campus to talk to us about Social media in business and about measuring return on investment (ROI). We were joined virtually by other students and staff from north Coast TAFE and some of our industry contacts, including the Virtual Enterprise Australia team. After the presentation, Meredith joined the students (to whom she is the Business Mentor) to workshop the project, her needs, discuss how they could support her and how she could support them, true User Based Design! You can view the social media activity from the event on our storify page.

Click here for the complete set of recordings from this event.

Here are some of the key takeaways and questions

Social Business Matters – Key Takeaways and questions from NCTAFE on Vimeo

And here is some event feedback from participants.

Social Business Matters – Post event Feedback from NCTAFE on Vimeo

Virtual Trade Fair event

Congratulations to our wonderful North Coast TAFE business administration students from Taree campus. What a fabulous event!

Led by teachers Deborah Kelly and Marie Power, and supported by their business mentor, Meredith Collins, NCTAFE business administration students students held a Virtual Trade Fair. The Virtual Trade Fair was to replace the physical Trade fair that students are required to develop and host for their course assessment event.

To find media from the event, you can view any off the links below.

• Video recordings of the event (vimeo)
• Social media streams from the day (storify)  – view all social media from the project here

Here are some snaps from the day.

Virtual Trade Fair

You can view more project details and project case study on the National Vet eLearning Strategy Wiki.

Students up working and collaborating at 1:30am!

Well it’s finally here, tomorrow is our Virtual Trade Fair. North Coast TAFE business students have been busy preparing their booths for some virtual trading and visits from international visitors between 11:00 am and 13:30pm AEST, tomorrow (Monday May 27th). This event forms a major part of their assessment for their business studies and North Coast TAFE. If you haven’t contacted me for a guest avatar and pre-event training, then you’ll miss this amazing event. Luckily though, I shall be recording it, so stay tuned for the video.

What makes this event really special is not just the work that the teachers have put in, but the many, many hours that the students have spent collaborating and working with each other, the teachers, industry contacts and their business mentor, you only have to look at the classes private Facebook group (to which I am lucky to be privy), to see the high level of engagement with this project and its subject matter. It is also evident on our project Facebook page, and tweets (#virtualhype), many of which have been collated on storify (part 3 details the preparation for the Trade Fair).

I have seen this group of students in-world on several occasions late at night, weekends and more recently into the early hours of the morning. So, I am left with some questions that I hope you will add to in the comments below and that the students will respond to honestly (perhaps sometime after the main event).

Questions for the students

• Why are you working in-world at such unusual hours?
• Have you engaged in the social media side of your learning? If so, has it affected/ changed the way you learn?
• Has the industry collaboration added value to your studies?
• What have you learnt from this experience?
• What aspect has been the most challenging?
• How as the reduced number of students/ project participants affected your journey?

Looking forward to reading your questions and responses.

What happens when billions of things are connected to the Internet?

The scenario below sounds like a disaster waiting to happen, doesn’t it? Maybe not! What happens when billions of things are connected to the Internet? You get an extra five minutes sleep, your coffee is made and your car is warmed up that’s what will happen!

“While social networks (network of connected people) is reaching saturation, the ‘internet of things‘ (network of connected things, as well as things and people) is gaining traction. By 2020, there will be 50 billion things connected to the internet! Every person, animal, and thing could be connected.” Digital Deja Vu. 

Here’s a realistic scenario from Cisco’s blog:

How to enable Voice Chat in-world

I just made a video!

How to use the Voice Chat in the NCTAFE virtual environment

Project Update 2 – The Virtual Trade Fair

Are you ready for our Virtual Trade Fair?

Right now we are very busy preparing for our Virtual Trade Fair on Monday May 27th.  The Trade Fair will operate between 11:00 and 13:30 pm.

What will happen?

Students will meet and greet guests at the booths they have been busy designing and conduct trading using virtual currency (‘tokens’) with virtual world guests. Clients and guests include other staff looking at the potential use of virtual worlds in education, business contacts and even some international attendess (think of the money they are saving on flights!!)

How are we preparing for the event?

Students and project members have participated in virtual world training sessions alongside Trade Fair guests, business mentors, Virtual Enterprise Australia staff and interested North Coast TAFE staff.  Currently, students are busy creating booths for virtual trading.  Our business faculty teachers, Deb Kelly & Marie Power are guiding the students with creation of marketing collateral for the booths, brochures for trading, developing presentations and much more.

We’re also busy promoting the event to ensure that we have plenty of virtual visitors to keep our student busy! Here are some images of our spaces and training.

getting the voice chat working

Leaning on the desk

Get your tokens here!

the progress of student booths

Inside the Trade Hall – rear view

Student avatar – out of uniform!

North Coast TAFE Chill-out lounge

Student booth 1 – early development

NCTAFE Conference Center

Inside the Trade Hall – reception view

Presentation methods in-world

Student booth 1 – almost ready!

training participants

Like our Virtually Hyperconnected Facebook page for Trade Fair information and updates.

Like our Virtually Hyperconnected Facebook page

Getting down to business!

Creating lanyards for our avatars in preparation for our Virtual Trade Fair on Monday . What do you think?

Staff Lanyard for our Virtual Trade Fair

Student Lanyard for our Virtual Trade Fair

A world filled with opportunity for those willing to embrace it

The Hyper-Connected World from Leo Dornelas on Vimeo.