Homework: Virtual Reality
What is virtual reality? The simplest explanation is that it is an alternative reality that humans create through technology. One of the most basic ways to create a virtual reality is through writing, a technology that allows us to communicate and store information and ideas outside of our heads. Fiction writing can create artificial realities out of an author's imagination; while nonfiction can allow us to explore times and places that we may never get to experience in reality. Not everyone will get to go to every place in the world, but through books, photographs, and other recordings, we can explore them virtually. We cannot (yet) travel through time, but we can read about the past and the future.
With the advent of the Internet and advanced graphics technology, humans have recently created virtual realities within cyberspace (itself a virtual reality) that allows us to interact with other people in a constructed space through computers, without ever having to leave our own homes. So what are some of these technologies and "virtual realities" that we are creating?
To prepare for the Homework:
1) In organizing your writing, consider:
a. What the artifact you selected says about you. Did you share a video of the music or the lyrics? Did you show a photograph or a painting?
b. If online environments bring in many different perspectives, what did your artifact bring to the discussion?
c. As you review the artifacts that your classmates selected, do you see any theme?
d. Consider your artifact in the context of the overall collection of artifacts in your class. What is the "class story" as revealed in the artifacts? What type of virtual reality could be constructed if you viewed the artifacts as a deliberate collection?
Instructions:
Submit a 1 to 2 pages essay (about 300 to 500 words) that responds to the following questions:
1) What types of perspectives did your fellow classmates display in the artifacts they selected?
2) How do the artifacts displayed together reveal ways of knowing, thinking, and expressing?
3) What surprised you about the other artifacts that your classmates selected?
4) Would your artifact be complimentary with another student artifact? If yes, describe why, if no, describe why not.
5) Does your artifact reveal your perspective of who you are as a student and a learner?
Format your homework according to the give formatting requirements:
1. The answer must be double spaced, typed, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
2. The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the homework, the course title, the student's name, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
3. Also include a reference page. The references and Citations should follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.