Emerging Technologies
The Learning Technologies Program has established itself in a leading role in the use of emerging technologies as tools to further learning and education. Notable in this area is the FAS Virtual Worlds Project, which includes not only FAS, but a strong and diverse group of partners. FAS has begun to organize what is hoped will become a major consortium of federal agencies, companies, universities, and foundations that will agree to develop and use a common software platform for education and training. In partnership with the Kauffman Foundation, FAS has worked to bring together an alliance of several federal agencies have who have agreed to participate. FAS frequently hosts interagency meetings, and is working with Kauffman to include industry and non-governmental organizations in this initiative.
A number of commercial systems (such as Second Life and Active Worlds) offer many of the features required for learning and training. The Virtual Worlds Project’s initial stage was the creation of a Website which is intended to be a compendium of virtual world Websites. Eventually, this site will serve as the foundation for a new universe of virtual worlds, all of which will use a common set of open source tools, and one that will make it possible for a diverse collection of developers, instructors and others to collaborate in the design, evaluation, and use of such learning systems while providing the option for learners and educational institutions to choose among competing approaches. The Wiki site can be found here: FAS Virtual Worlds Wiki.
In order to understand the practical challenges faced by developers of advanced instructional technology, FAS has been working actively to build and evaluate operational systems. These systems will lead to useful educational tools but also provide unique insights into the areas where research in needed. FAS is working to build an active international community that will collaborate in building virtual cities in a persistent, online environment.
