What would I want to share in a Virtual World Conference?

Yesterday I was invited to think about what I would like to share (and with whom) in a Virtual World Conference.  In thinking about one of the three-day conferences I designed for Accenture (Andersen Consulting) I was thinking about what elements of that could work well in a Virtual World.  I was also thinking about how a Virtual World would have added to my experience of online learning from the University of Phoenix.

I also began thinking about who would be the audience for such a conference or "mini-event."  I immediately thought of my LinkedIn connections--both my personal network and some of the discussion groups I belong to on LinkedIn.  I joined the American Library Association this year and they, too, are interested in the concept of Virtual Worlds for distance learning.

Some of what I want to do for such an event will be to include some of the elements which highlight the advantages of the Virtual Worlds platform--some small-group work, access to individualized video clips, networking between participants, shared PowerPoint and question and chat features including Voice Over IP.

As always, I will follow a design for learning and need to start with a better understanding of my audience and my goals.  Then I will follow a process of learning design that will be adjusted for the vehicle of Virtual Worlds.

This is going to be a somewhat reflective piece in that I want participants to think about their experience as participants in a virtual worlds conference so that reflection needs to be built into the activities and presentations they will be experiencing as part of the design.  One of my areas for goal outcomes will be that participants will recognize the value Virtual World Conferences can have for their own learning and for their organizations. 

Now to think about more details.

Learning Conferences--Learning from the Real World for the Virtual World

One of the more recent developments on the Internet is a "Virtual World--3-D" Conference capability.  One of my friends has his own "Virtual World" for use for large group and small group conferences.

In May, 1998, while working as a learning architect with Accenture (then called Andersen Consulting), I was the designer for a multinational hands-on learning event (see ELACOMM98 and the video for that event) for 200 communications executives held in Cannes, France.

What I learned today is that much of what I designed for the "real world" conference in France can be adapted in a hybrid format for the virtual world conference.  Some of the presentations at the three-day conference were "whole group presentations," one of which was via video conferencing with a partner in Los Angeles, CA.  The Virtual World can accomodate hybrid conferencing where some people experience live conferences with streaming video and simultaneous presentation of what people in the virtual conference are experiencing.  This effectively integrates the participants and speakers and facilitators from the entire conference (both live and virtual).

The report from some successful hybrid virtual world conferences is that the holistic experience encouraged more participation and interest from both real world and virtual world participants, many of whom actually experienced both forms of the conference.

This means that I can apply the skills I developed in designing, developing, and delivering conferences for hundreds of participants and apply them to the virtual world.