Are you on Second Life? Do you have an avatar, maybe two or even three? More and more educators are teaching their classes in Second Life. Is it similar to or different from teaching web-based courses this is what Dafne Gonzalez presentation was about. Basic differences lie in the content, teaching methodology and level of interaction. For example, on web-based courses you usually deal with people who have real names; you can identify them by their photos and see them with the webcam, for example. In SL people are represented by their avatars, with both their look and gender possibly different from real life. Chances are you will be able to recognize them by their voices, but these can be altered too. I do not need to tell you what implications it has for your teaching, do I?

Another issue to consider is your facility with new tools, which, of course, you will be able to master, but you should be ready for a lot of work and a lot of practice before you fill confident in using them.

Why go on SL in the first place you could ask? For me the answer is quite simple: it brings new meaning in the classroom, makes it more activity driven and uses something our students are using anyway. Isn't it what Mark Prensky emphasized in his plenary?