Virtual worlds are one of the most promising and interesting lines of research and development in e-learning. Also, the recent maturity of 3D virtual world platforms like Second Life or OpenSimulator has made it possible to deploy such systems at a low cost in schools, colleges or companies. Therefore, these virtual world platforms have enabled the development of cost-effective virtual laboratories. However, there are few empirical studies to support the educational value of Virtual Worlds for Procedural Training (VWPT), especially when they are equipped with automatic tutors. In this paper we present an empirical study that provides evidence in favor of the educational value of virtual worlds. To be precise, we describe the evaluation of a biotechnology VWPT implemented on top of OpenSimulator. We have implemented an automatic tutor within this virtual laboratory in order to supervise and guide students during task practice. This tutor is configurable and can be reused in different VWPTs. This facilitates the development of VWPTs. This virtual laboratory has been evaluated by domain experts (university professors) and students over a three-year period as part of a university course. The analysis of this evaluation has shown good results for usability, user satisfaction and perceived educational utility. It has also served to demonstrate that the virtual laboratory is resilient and reliable. This supports the applied technical approach.


    Access

    Download


    Export, share and cite



    Title :

    A cost-effective approach for procedural training in virtual worlds



    Publication date :

    2017-01-01


    Remarks:

    Journal of Universal Computer Science, ISSN 0948-695X, 2017, Vol. 23, No. 2


    Type of media :

    Article (Journal)


    Type of material :

    Electronic Resource


    Language :

    English


    Keywords :

    Classification :

    DDC:    629





    Training my car to see using virtual worlds

    López, Antonio M. / Villalonga, Gabriel / Sellart, Laura et al. | British Library Online Contents | 2017


    Virtual Worlds, Virtual Exploration

    LAmoreaux, Claudia | NTRS | 2006


    Computer-Based Procedural Training

    Cordell, Captain Tom | SAE Technical Papers | 1991


    Demographics of Virtual Worlds

    Spence, Jeremiah | BASE | 2008

    Free access