Pixels and Policy

The Guardian: With Virtual Worlds, Kids are Learning Even During Playtime

Pixels and Policy has been a consistent advocate of bringing virtual worlds and digital classrooms to the forefront of our education system.

Along with many other great websites, we've helped catalogue the forward-thinking colleges turning virtual literacy into degree programs and looked at the potential impact of virtual classrooms in poor Latin American communities.

Now Britain's Guardian newspaper has turned its international readership on to the growing trend of virtual worlds in education. Pixels and Policy takes a look at how virtual education is hitting the mainstream.

What It Means to Have a College Degree in "Virtual Worlds"

  Metaverse Professor Dick Riedl, , Appalachian State

We've talked about how over 250 American colleges are now offering degrees in game programming, content creation, and virtual worlds.

Courses in game art and virtual development fill up as quick as Faculty add them to the roster.

But more than a few of our readers commented and e-mailed with the same question: What exactly does having a degree in virtual worlds MEAN?

Virtual Paramedic Training Saves Real Lives

For the nearly 3 million people who call Chicago home, speeding ambulances and quick-thinking paramedics are nothing new.

But the next paramedic that receives an emergency call may be one of a special group: those that received crisis response training through Second Life.

Pixels and Policy takes a look at how one Chicago hospital is turning to cost-effective virtual environments to keep first responders at the peak of their skills.

U.C. Irvine Set to Offer 4-Year Degree in Virtual Worlds

Two months ago we reported on how U.C. Irvine received over $100,000 for an academic study of World of Warcraft.

Turns out the venerable California campus is planning a much more ambitious role for virtual world studies in high academia.

Pixels and Policy investigates U.C. Irvine's new four-year degree program in virtual worlds, and how Irvine's new Center for Computer Games and Virtual Worlds puts them at the forefront of synthetic sociology.

Australian Film College Announces Advanced Degree in Virtual Worlds

Students at Australia's Film Radio and Television school are about to join a growing international collective of schools that want to see students competitive in the Metaverse.

The alma mater of some of Australia's best-known filmmakers is offering a Graduate Certificate in Video Games and Virtual Worlds starting next year.

Pixels and Policy takes a look.