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Use of Second Life in Social Work Education: Virtual World Experiences and Their Effect on Students

During the past 10 years, there has been a growing use of distance education, including the practice of holding classes in virtual world educational formats such as Second Life. Both the psychiatric and medical fields have caught on quickly to the functionality of virtual world teaching, yet social service educators have not ventured likewise. This study evaluated student perspectives of the educational value of learning experiences in Second Life while enrolled in an undergraduate Introduction to Social Welfare and Social Work class. The analyses of both surveys and journal content suggest that the students found the virtual world learning to be useful in teaching social work values, skills, and knowledge, as well as being a thought-provoking and emotional experience.