Assistive technologies and advantageous themes for collaboration, learning & teaching within 3D Virtual Learning Environments

E-learning assisted through 3D Virtual Worlds such as Second Life, extending the more traditional 2D Virtual Learning Environments, presents advantageous motifs for collaboration, learning and teaching online. These main motifs include enriching communication and teaching means through 3D environments and game-like interaction, and enhancing the learning experience through avatar and virtual persona engagement. This paper aims to provide evidence from practice for the afore mentioned motifs and furthermore demonstrate that 3D Virtual Learning Environments offer beneficial themes to deliver education in three axes: as complement to physical education, supplement over 2D online virtual learning environments, and supplement over traditional real-life teaching methods. This evidence is provided through the Middlesex University DaCT village experience by i) identifying factors of successful and effective elearning in 3D virtual worlds ii) setting the learning space for mode of learning iii) designing the space and iv) defining best teaching paradigms