Second Life as a Virtual Playground for Language Education

Once in a while, a book comes along that's truly accessible to a diverse audience in second language education and that moves the field forward by exploring, in depth, under-investigated actual (and in this case, virtual) classroom-based and theoretically-informed effective pedagogies. Julian Chen's book provides deep insights into the use of Second Life over a decade spanning teaching and research practices, and the chapters collectively take readers onto an exciting journey into the world of technology-mediated, meaningful and fun language teaching and learning. Much needed and highly recommended! Rashi Jain, Associate Professor in the Academic English Language Program, Montgomery College, USA A solid pedagogical guide to the ins and outs of task-based oriented learning in Second Life. Julian Chen has managed with an easy-to-follow story-telling approach to outline his experiences working with language students in a virtual world setting - many of which I personally had the pleasure of observing or learning about while Julian was in the process of conducting his research. I can wholeheartedly and especially recommend this book to any and all educators who share a passion for virtual world language learning and teaching. Many of his insights are indispensable and undoubtedly useful as they are based on the first hand experiences with language students and educators in-world. Kip Boahn, Creator of Virtlantis in Second Life, Co-owner of Oxford School for English, Freelance English Teacher Julian Chen has produced an excellent account of his experiences with Second Life as an instructional platform and as his research focus. Chen's thorough and pedagogically sound lesson outlines will appeal to educators curious about the platform's potential as an instructional tool. Readers pursuing research in Second Life or other 3D MUVEs will profit from his evidence-based approach and the wealth of resources he provides. Finally, Chen's friendly and approachable writing style make this book a terrific resource for Second Life beginners and experts alike. There is truly something here for everyone interested in Second Life within an educational context. Jessamine Cooke-Plagwitz, Associate Professor of German and Applied Linguistics, Northern Illinois University, USA This volume provides a unique window into the nature and potential of the virtual world Second Life in foreign language education. Based on the author's wealth of experience as a researcher and language educator, this accessible publication brings together theory informed insight with sound practical advice. This timely volume will doubtless prove invaluable to a wide range of practitioners and all those with an interest in the field of computer assisted language learning. Dr Mark Peterson, Associate Professor of Foreign Language Acquisition & Education, Kyoto University, Japan