Exploring the Meaningful Learning of Students in Second Life

This study reports a case study in which a pedagogical model, namely the Global Virtual Education (GloVEd) model, which is based on the teaching-studying-learning process (TSL process) and the characteristics of meaningful learning, is developed and used to evaluate students’ meaningful learning experiences during the Global Virtual Collaboration Project (GVCP) course in spring 2009. During the course, using collaboration technologies, global student (N = 54) teams solved a creative design task. The data were collected and analyzed using various methods. The results suggest that the GVCP course supported the process characteristics of meaningful learning and its outcomes, although the individual, critical, and interactive characteristics were not fully realized. In addition, Second Life (SL) did not contribute to the realization of the goal-oriented, collaborative, conversational, and immersive characteristics. Several implications can be drawn from the results with respect to creative design.