Managed Learning in 3D Multi User Virtual Environments

Maintaining student engagement is a major concern in higher education, especially when concepts become more sophisticated and coursework becomes more complex. Shared online virtual worlds are attractive in that they have the potential for supporting student engagement through novelty and intrigue whilst
providing a programmable environment that can be tailored for educational purposes. This paper presents two case studies illustrating the use of such multi-user virtual environments (MUVE) for education, in the context of credit-bearing assignments in Human Computer Interaction (HCI). While there is considerable interest throughout academia in using MUVEs academics can experience many challenges when exploring various possible use-cases. The studies presented in this paper were conducted to identify some of the critical issues such as student perceptions, privacy, ownership, access to practical work for assessment purposes, maintaining an association between institutional and virtual world identities, and the achievement of learning outcomes through the use of MUVEs for teaching and learning. Through developing an awareness of the challenges that are encountered in MUVEs for managed learning, and describing how to address them, this paper contributes towards their significance as an educational resource which can inspire and engage students.