The Story of My “Second Life”

It’s been days since I’ve blogged – crushed with multiple of RL priorities at the moment including preparations for two presos at an upcoming EdTech conference at Kean University starting Friday – but wanted to take a moment to let everyone know that the edublog award voting for 2007 is now underway and the virtual worlds category is filled with great contenders, including EdTech Island, Jokadia Island, Schome Park, Second Life in Education, and Suffern middle school in Second Life.

VOTE NOW – CLICK HERE!

This is a little odd … EdTech Island and Jokadia are both terrific main grid Second Life builds, not blogs … Schome Park (currently leading the voting, BTW) is an awesome Teen Grid project (I’m there with my Teen Second Life after-school club members) but is not a blog, Second Life in Education is THE ONLY WIKI YOU WILL EVER NEED about Second Life (but it’s not a blog) … the only blog in the list above is Peggy Sheehy’s Suffern Middle School / Ramapo Islands blog, http://rampoislands.blogspot.com/, which chronicles the adventures of Peggy’s school and students as they blaze the virtual education trail for the rest of is.
Hmmmm, ok then! I am confused. Are we voting for the best BLOG or the best Second Life build or the best Second Life resource? This makes my decision hard because all are so deserving.

• EdTech Island offers a wealth of resources and was one of the first edtech-focused builds in Second Life, as far as I know. It’s a must-see on every educator’s list upon arrival into Second Life.
• Jokadia Island is similarly awesome, but what I like most about it (other than the proprietors, JoKay and Sean, who are wonderful) is how the island actually USES Second Life to TEACH second life. I love the presentation space they’ve created, it really shows how easy it is to leverage the unique affordances of Second Life to deliver knowledge.
• Schome Park, in the short time I’ve been involved with the project, has completely blown me away in terms of the people, structure, accomplishments and FUN evident from all their work. We are only now tapping into their vast base of knowledge and kindness. Truly a terrific organization and team effort.
• Suffern Middle Schools, however, gets my vote, hands down … due to Peggy’s unmistakable contribution as an early adopter, the variety and depth of projects she has going on in her school right now, her tireless support of Second Life as a conference presenter, and her general awesomeness. Go, Peggy! (You’re going to need the votes – Schome Park is off to a huge start!)

Best of luck to ALL – but I must say (and I bet Peggy is thinking this too) – no one nominated Global Kids? Sheesh!

-kj-