Torch For a Nation

Marcel Mosswood lives and works in Indonesia... and Opensim. She started in Second Life (SL) around the year 2010. Six years later, she discovered the flexibility of Opensim, particularly for its potential in terms of creating education-friendly environments. A lot of hard work, learning, building, organizing and networking, and today she has her own school grid, called, Suluh Bangsa.

Marcel Mosswood: it means 'torch for a nation'.

Arrival sim, Suluh Bangsa

This sim she put together in just five days... she is a quick worker, and the design is very bright, modern and airy. You'll see some familiar, elegant and modern architecture. There's a lot of energy on the sim, which is surrounded by a tramway, and the central torch has delightful images projected on the marble.

Lessons are taught inworld using Discord, because the quality is way better than Vivox, and Marcel has a group of teachers, as it would be impossible to do everything on her own. She learned building in SL and has also been studying Blender, plus so the look of the grid is unique to her vision of a place for learning. 

Since this is a school grid, set up to educate students aged from 7 to 17, it's not open to the public - Marcel kindly let me in with my own student avie - check out the shades!

Thirza Guest

Marcel Mosswood: The idea of using virtual worlds for teaching came to me when I recognized the potential of immersive environments to enhance learning experiences. This realization occurred around 2021. Setting up the grid involved overcoming several technical challenges, such as configuring servers, ensuring network stability, and customizing the virtual environment to meet educational needs. My husband help me with this work.

Thirza Ember: Shout out to "Mr Mosswood" then! Because the back-end heroes never get enough praise. Most of the readers of this blog will agree that VWs are a strange environment that can be very hard to explain to the uninitiated. Trying to get people to trust you with their children, their money, and their reputation can't be easy. How did you handle that?

Dynamic posters in Indonesian on the main region of the grid

Marcel Mosswood: Convincing parents, teachers, and school authorities required a different approach. I focused on showcasing the benefits of virtual learning, such as increased engagement, interactive lessons, and the ability to simulate real-world scenarios. Through presentations, pilot programs, and demonstrating successful case studies, I gradually gained their support and trust in the platform's potential for education.

Thirza Ember: Impressive! 

Marcel Mosswood: The students involved in my project are typically between the ages of 7-17. In a single semester, I teach approximately 40 students. Over the years of using OpenSim for educational purposes, I estimate that 400 students have participated in the project. This cumulative experience has allowed me to refine the virtual teaching methods and expand the reach of the program.

Thirza Ember: Ans where are they located? Are they living in your city?

Marcel Mosswood:  They are from everywhere, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, and Indonesia, but they are Indonesian...we have no physical school building.

Thirza Guest: so you are truly doing Distance Learning

Kafe Ide region

The grid has about thirty regions,this one is called Kafe Ide which means exactly what you think it does. 

Marcel Mosswood

On this sim, dominated by a giant light bulb, features an erupting volcano, a build about global warming (here's Marcel, outside the pavilion) and a display about rainforests... this is an example of Kak Irma Tambunan or Problem-Based Learning where the kids are motivated to improve their critical thinking skills and tackle issues that don't have straightforward answers you can learn by rote.

Once again the sim is beautifully laid out to pique interest and keep curiosity levels high.

Marcel Mosswood:  In my grid, children learn a variety of subjects, including math, science, English, leadership, entrepreneurship, and of course building. The curriculum is designed to leverage the unique capabilities of virtual worlds, such as interactive simulations, collaborative projects, and experiential learning activities.

Thirza Ember: You have poured a huge amount of thought and talent into all of this, and any dedicated teacher can relate to the way you have gone above and beyond on this, for the sake of your students. As an educator, Could you compare and contrast the experience of teaching within a virtual and a real world setting?

Marcel Mosswood: The differences between teaching in virtual worlds and a traditional classroom are significant. Planning lessons for virtual environments requires a focus on creating engaging and interactive content that can be experienced in 3D. Engaging students is often easier in virtual worlds due to the immersive nature of the environment, which keeps their attention and encourages active participation. However, dealing with technology can be challenging, as it requires ensuring all participants have the necessary hardware, software, and technical skills to navigate the virtual world effectively.

Thirza Guest and Suluh Bangsa aka Marcel Mosswood

Here we are, outside the Perpustakaan, or library building. One of the things you hear a lot of educators mention when it comes to teaching via the Viewer is that students struggle to understand all the bells and whistles that it contains. But maybe that's less and less an issue, as students grow up in a virtual multiverse and things like aves amd tps and Inventories hold no secrets for them.

Marcel Mosswood: they have no problem with the viewer, most of them are gamers

An example of one of Marcel's simple and effective tutorials 

Students also have their own houses, here's an example of what they look like - a modern Indonesian architectural style - and the name of each student's avatar is posted in front. The last one reads "When you have finished reading, right click on the book then select 'detach' to release the book"... pretty clear.

The school is a big success, so what is planned for the future?

Marcel Mosswood: I do believe in virtual world for education, so yes, I'll expand the school to available for more students, and we have research here to use it for special needs children.

Finally, there is also a presentation, complete with orbiting planet,  about time zones. That's something that most of us are painfully aware of when it comes to inworld events. The red box shows the three time zones of indonesia - Western, where the capital city, Jakarta is located; Central, and Eastern.

Marcel Mosswood: Being in Indonesia does present some challenges in being part of the global OpenSim community. The time zone difference can make it difficult to participate in real-time meetings, events, and discussions that are often scheduled for European or American time zones. Additionally, cultural differences can influence the way virtual learning is perceived and adopted in different regions.

Thirza Ember: How do you handle that?

Marcel Mosswood:  I make an effort to stay connected through online forums, social media groups, and asynchronous communication channels. I also participate in virtual conferences and workshops that accommodate diverse time zones. By building a network of like-minded educators and developers, I can access new ideas, resources, and assets to continually enhance my virtual learning projects.