On Sunday March 30 I had the experience (as the avatar 'Dirk Beatty') of doing my first ever presentation in Second Life, and it was extremely strange. It was both exactly like doing a normal presentation in front of (and with) of a group of teachers but at the same time completely different

     In case you have never been to Second Life, it is a virtual reality world which you enter via your computer in the guise of an avatar. As you can see from the picture, each person gives themselves a different name and chooses their own clothes and appearance when they enter this world. The world itself is disconcertingly real. In the picture above you can see 'Dirk Beatty' (that's me) standing at the lectern, and all the other participants sitting on their beanbags listening to the presentation.

    Thanks to Gavin Dudeney (one half of The Consultants-e, an online training organisation, and the owner of EduNation - the island where the seminar took place) participants not only heard my voice but, as you can see from the picture, they could see my powerpoint slides, read handouts - accessed by clicking on handout 'boxes' -  and even watch video clips  such as the one of Philip setting up a speaking activity, which Gavin had posted on YouTube - also by clicking on video links. In every sense, therefore, this was a 'normal' multi-media presentation. (The clips were from the DVD which accompanies my book How to Teach English).

     Except, of course, that it wasn't - because the 'real' me was sitting at a table in my flat wearing a headset with a microphone and clicking buttons on my laptop to change slides, for example, and, more disconcertingly, though I could see when people arrived (or left!), and though occasionally they approached the screens or suddenly decided to fly around for a bit - you can do that in Second Life - I could not see real faces or gauge their reaction, though they could tap out messages as the talk progressed by using the 'local chat' button that you can see bottom left in the picture.

     Nevertheless it was a fantastic experience for me. And since the talk was about how teachers develop best when they move 'out of the comfort zone' this talk seemed entirely appropriate - because I was right out of that zone while I was doing it. As one of the participants said on their feedback forms, "the idea that I could listen to (this presentation) and never leave the house is amazing".

     Is Second Life the way things will go (have already gone)? Who knows - and there will be more sophisticated versions available soon. But at the very least it opens up a new world where people can meet and exchange ideas free from the constraints of geography and vast expense, and, based on my first real second life experience, it's great fun!

    There will soon be filmed extracts  of the presentation available for those who want to see what it really looks like. Watch this space!