Week 3 Ji Yuan Article review

Teaching in Virtual Worlds: Opportunities and Challenges

Research aims

The aim of this paper is to explore how virtual worlds provide a mechanism to incorporate constructive, experiential, and student-centered learning practices into the classroom. What’s more, the challenges of using virtual worlds in education, and implications for future education.

Research methods

Three research methods were used in this paper: literature research method, case study method and descriptive method. To be more specific, the author concluded many research results and re-present the data by using literature research. What’s more, the author takes Second Life as an example to illustrate research questions by using case study method and descriptive method.

Research results

Firstly, virtual worlds can be a very effective learning spaces, the environment is generalized rather than contextual. Settings can be created to fit any subject of study. What’s more, virtual worlds provide an opportunity for faculty to change from a teacher-centered to a student-centered model of instruction. Student-centered models of instruction often incorporate constructive learning theories, which learners “use their experiences to actively construct understanding that makes sense to them, rather than have understanding delivered to them in a already organized form.”(Polka, 2001, p. 55) and students are more actively engaged. In addition, virtual worlds provide an environment where educators can prepare learners for “the increasingly complex and interconnected global society in which they live and work” (Moore, Fowler, & Watson, 2007, p. 46). Students across the world can easily interact using virtual worlds. For example, it is not unusual to visit Second Life and meet someone that speaks a language other than one’s native tongue. Some of these virtual worlds also have their own economy, thus providing students with the challenge of surviving in situations where the exchange of goods and services may not follow the ‘norm’ with which they are accustomed. Simply observing the variety of

clothing, facial features, and dress of avatars in virtual worlds offers students the opportunity to learn about their reactions to the visual qualities of people.

When it comes to the challenges of education with virtual worlds, this paper roughly divided the challenges into two aspects. First of all, from the perspective of students, participate in virtual worlds requires robust hardware and a broad band Internet connection. However, some students or classrooms not have computers which meet the minimum requirements (Kirkman et al, 2002). Therefore, students can not get access to the virtual worlds. What’s more, some students may find that virtual worlds so charming that they get distracted from their course goals, and this may lead to lack of participation, inappropriate behavior.

In terms of teaching in virtual worlds, there are also plenty of challenges. Firstly, it requires skills to create a class in virtual worlds, and many educators don’t have this kind of skill. For some certain courses which have a very specific learning objectives, teachers have to spend more time and energy in designing a virtual environment. Secondly, the cost will be another issue. Take Second Life as an example, the basic account is totally free, but if institutions want to create a presence or buy a permanent area for educational purposes, then it must have paid. Thirdly, students in public areas may be subjected to sex and violence because there are many unresolved legal issues surrounding virtual violence, virtual assault and sexual harassment that take place in Second Life as well as other virtual worlds (Bugeja, 2007). So who should shoulder the responsibility if students get hurt in virtual worlds?

For educators, to some extent, virtual worlds are truly a Pandora’s Box for them. While virtual worlds provide new possibilities for teaching and learning, they also bring new challenges. How to control the learning environment in virtual worlds? Can teachers adapt their teaching when they meet the new challenges of virtual worlds? How much professional development will be necessary for teachers effectively teach in virtual worlds? Hence, questions regarding teaching and learning in virtual worlds still need further exploration.

In conclusion, virtual worlds promote active and constructive learning and student-centered teaching. But on the other hand, costs, accessibility, legal issues still need to be solved.

Reference

Bugeja, M. (2007, September 14). Second thoughts about Second Life. The Chronicle of Higher Education, C1.

Kirkman, G. S., Cornelius, P. K., Sachs, J. D., & Schwab, K. (2002). The global information technology

report 2001–2002: Readiness for the networked world. New York, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Moore, A., Fowler, S., & Watson, C. (2007, September/October). Active learning and technology: Designing change for faculty, students, and institutions. EDUCAUSE Review, 42(5), 42-61.

Polka, W. (2001). Facilitating the transition from teacher centered to student centered instruction at the university level via constructivist principles and customized learning plans. Educational Planning, 13(3), 55-61.

Week 1＆2 Ji Yuan Journal Second Life

When I first heard SL I believe that SL is nothing to do with study or learning but just online game. However, after two weeks explore and study(read articles and write article review) I think SL is very interesting and it is a good platform to learning English because people from all over the world are using SL nowadays.

When the first time to explore SL, I had no idea about where I should go and visit, so I decided to follow others. I found Moya art museum, which is one of the most popular destinations.

 However, I walked around but I didn’t meet anyone there, and since visual art is not my thing, I decided to move to somewhere instead.

Another popular destination I found was Peace Valley pet cemetery. I didn’t understand why graves could be popular, so I just moved there and check out.

To be honest, I’d rather regard this like a quiet park instead of cemeteries. It is very beautiful with blooming flowers everywhere. I even found a fountain and rainbow. If there were no tombstones, I believe I will take it as a big garden or a small park.

 I found this and I feel so bad and I am so sorry for those people whose loved pets left them. I once had a kitten, but my family had to move to another city and I cannot keep her any longer, so I gave her to my best friend. So I can totally understand that.

After visiting pet cemetery, I went to a island which is part of the University of Sheffield in UK. I visited a school names Infolit School. This school now used by Sheffield University’s information school, including the Center of Information Literacy Research and the School of Education. 

 Since I am a christian and I have a strong interest in my religion, I moved to ST.PAUL’S CATHEDRAL after I spent some time at Infolit School. 

                                                      A glorious and splendid cathedral

My final destination was Caribbean beach. I met some people there, and we had a nice talk. Unfortunately, my laptop’ microphone just broken, so I can’t use it to chat with people, I have to type. 

For the past two weeks,  I didn’t visit as many places as others in SL, hopefully I can explore more this week. My laptop is getting old and sometimes it will be very hard to surf on the SL with my old laptop. I went to the tech center in AUT but I cannot download SL because I have to get the permission from admin.

Ji Yuan Week 2 Article Review

Virtual world teaching, experiential learning, and assessment: An interdisciplinary communication course in Second Life

Research aims

In recent years, there are many reports about the impact of 3-D virtual worlds on teaching and learning in higher education(2007). However, there are few empirical studies that inform instructional design and learning assessment in virtual worlds (Chittaro & Ranon, 2007). Thus the main aim of this study is to explore the nature and process of learning in Second Life in graduate interdisciplinary communication course. What’s more, what is the actual instructional effectiveness of Second Life as an experiential learning environment (Kolb, 1984). for interdisciplinary communication?

Four research questions were put forward before the study:

1. How does learning occur in SL?

2. What types of learning do students experience often in SL?

3. Does learning in SL transfer to real life?

4. Do students perceive SL as instrumental in learning?

Research methods

This study using six different data collection and analysis methods which are as follows:

(1) Content analysis of student worldview journals (journal data)

Using journal data to understand what kinds of learning were reported by students in SL.

(2) Surveys

Two surveys were conducted during the study, which contains both five-point-scale Likert items and open-ended items.

(3) Focus group discussion (focus group data)

Focus group discussion with all five students were conducted at the end of the semester and it addressed learning in SL from various perspectives.

(4) Final public presentation speeches, Second Life snapshots, and Second Life video (final speeches data)

The final presentations were videotaped in a computer lab and also a screen-casting software to capture the students activities in SL. Snapshot images of student’s working in SL were also collected.

(5) Student team’s SL grant proposal (post-course) (grant proposal data)

After the classes, the student team maintained a close working relationship and wrote an extensive 54 page grant proposal for funding to create a non-profit with an SL focus, and a brief sections from this grant proposal is in the analysis.

(6) SL-related written feedback on course instructor surveys (course feedback data)

Students were invited to hand write additional feedback about the course.

Research results

There are two parts of the research results. The first part is about answers of research questions which raised before the study:

Research question1  How does learning occur in SL?

Focus group participants reported that learning in the course was facilitated by various of supportive characteristics of SL. One of the major function that students commonly mentioned was that the 3-D virtual environment in SL fostered real life applications of the theories and strategies studied in the course curriculum, a key indicator of successful

experiential learning.

Research question 2: What types of learning do students experience often in SL?

According to the research, the type of learning that occurred most often in SL was an increased awareness of one’s own and others’ perspectives, and this type of learning happened in the context of interactions with other avatars in SL.

Research question 3: Does learning in SL transfer to real life?

Some participants claimed that their SL learning experiences not only transferred into their real lives, but also in a broader and fresher perspectives.

Research question 4: Do students perceive SL as instrumental in learning?

According to the surveys, students’s  expectations about the effectiveness of SL for their learning were positive before they participated in any SL activity, and the post-activity survey also indicates that students’ expectations were met and they had positive learning experiences.

Another part of the research results:

This is the most important result of this study: the study demonstrates the effectiveness of the SL environment for a project-based experiential

learning approach, particularly as students were able to learn by doing and by applying learned concepts to the real world. Besides, some SL’s special characteristics contribute to its suitability for project-based experiential learning.

Reference

Chittaro, L., & Ranon, R. (2007). Web3D technologies in learning, education, and training: Motivations, issues, and opportunities. Computers and Education, 49(1), 3–18.

Gartner, Inc. (2007). Gartner says 80 percent of active Internet users will have a ‘‘Second Life” in the virtual world by the end of 2011. Business Wire. Retrieved December 15, 2007

From <http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20070424006287&newsLang=en>.

 Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.

Leslie, J., Tomoko, T., Michael, M., Avani, T. (2009). Virtual world teaching, experiential learning, and assessment: An interdisciplinary communication course in Second Life. Retrieved from Science Direct website: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360131509000141

Week 1: Screen shot Journal

With an interest in narrative storytelling within Virtual worlds, I went into Second Life looking for something that related to that topic. I discovered that at one stage there used to be groups of people on second life that used the game to virtual act out tabletop roleplaying games like Dungeons and Dragons and The Call of Cthulhu. Unfortunately I had a hard time finding any that were still up and running.

After speaking with Darryl, I decided to direct my focus towards another Virtual World MMO game that has been highly praised for its storytelling capabilities - Funcom's The Secret World. The Secret World allows players to log into a massive online universe, join a secret society (The Illuminati, The Templars, The Dragon) and travel the world alone or with their online friends as monster hunters, killing off and learning about every nightmare you can think of.

This week, as a beginner to the game, I started off by visiting the first area of The Secret World that opens up to you. Kingsmouth - a small fishing town in the United States which seems to be an amalgimation of horror writer's H.P. Lovecraft's The Shadow Over Innsmouth, Stephen King's The Mist and good old fashion Zombie apocalypses.

Welcome to Kingsmouth:

I turned up in this small town and discovered something horrifying was happening. A mist had rolled in from the water, people had been turned into flesh eating Zombies...

Being an expert warrior from The Dragon faction, I dispatched of them easily...

I also visited the local Church and learnt about how The Illuminati had hidden secret clues all over the town.

I gave the Sheriff's office a helping hand against the Zombie invasion...

I visited the local Diner. Unfortunately it was closed for the Apocalypse.

Also found this creepy fucking tree!

Next, I helped this lovely old lady kill the undead and burn bodies on her bonfire....

...Before jumping into another dimension, to The World Tree - a kind of warp room for players between different areas of the game -

...And had a chat with some of these wacky folks about how and where to find a group of online friends to roleplay with, seeing as I'm fascinated by emergent game narrative at the moment and how players commandeer established game rules to create their own stories.

I got a few tips from different folks, so will be following those up in the next week and see what happens.

Article Review - Teaching and learning in Second Life: Using the CoI model to support online instruction with graduate students in instructional technology - Week 1

Introduction

The necessity of measuring learning in virtual worlds continue to grow since virtual worlds became increasingly and widely utilized in education to deliver instructions. Because of the tightening budgets and tuition competition, many higher education institutions tend to start distant courses within academic programs (Fischman & Young,2008). Learning Management Systems (LMS) such as BlackBoard and WebCT have dominated much of the higher education sector. Both of them provide synchronous and asynchronous tools which allow students to communicate, to collaborate, and ultimately to create communities of inquiry (University of Massachusetts, 2009). Learning Management Systems (LMS) such as BlackBoard and WebCT have dominated much of the higher education sector, and are also making their way to K-12 schools who wish to offer classes online (Project Tomorrow, 2008). 

Multi-user virtual environments are 3-D environments that support exploration, simulation, role-play, interaction and experimentation via avatars, or 3-D self-representations (Clarke, Dede, Ketelhut, & Nelson, 2006). Second Life (SL) (Linden Research, 2006) is one kind of MUVE that has the user population of over eight million since its first beginning in the year of 2003. This virtual environment is created by its residents who have the ability to build objects within their world for purposes which including entertainment, retail, academia, advertising, and marketing. “Linden Dollar” currency enables residents to purchase in-world items such as virtual islands, clothing, and furniture. In addition, SL also provides a space for learning, socialization, exploration, discovery and creativity. With over 200 higher educational institutionswith a presence in SL, there has been experimentation with delivering courses online via this medium.

Building upon Mckerlich and Anderson’s (2008) exploratory study, the researchers of the study used the Community of Inquiry’s (CoI) Mutil-User Virtual Environment Education Evaluation Tool(MUVEEET), as well as CoI Survey to measure observational and perceptual data in the multi-user virtual environment (MUVE), Second Life (SL), among instructional technology graduate students. 

Cognitive Presence is the first construct of the CoI model and can be identified through an examination of online discourse (i.e., connection of ideas, sharing of related experiences, curiosity, and application of new ideas).

Social Presence is the second construct and is also identifiable through an examination of online discourse among learners (i.e., emotions, expressions, collaborations, and group cohesion).

 Teaching Presence, the third construct, is essential to the CoI model and may have additional or differing—indicators (Garrison et al., 2004, p. 74) in a MUVE.  According to Collins and Berge (2008), all the instructors in MUVE are well-informed to follow the guidelines such as create an environment that facilitates the expansion of knowledge to students via building and exploring within MUVEs; Activities within virtual worlds should be adapted to the ability of the student and the objective of the curriculum within the class. Besides, instructors in MUVEs also shouldering social responsibilities, managerial responsibilities and technical responsibilities as well.

Purposes of the study

The purposes of this study is to examine and observe the extent to  graduate level instructional technology students experienced social, cognitive and teaching presence in class activities held in SL, and to examine the extent to which students perceived themselves to experience social, cognitive, and teaching presence within SL. 

Two research questions:

1: To what extent do graduate level students enrolled in an instructional technology course experience social, cognitive, and teaching presence in activities taking place in the Multi-User Virtual Environment, Second Life?

2: To what extent do graduate level students enrolled in an instructional technology course perceive themselves to experience social, cognitive, and teaching presence with the Multi-User Virtual Environment, Second Life?

Research method

1. Sample, participants, and setting

Ten (8 females and 2 males)participants ranged in age from ages 23 to 34 enrolled in online instructional technology class in 2009. The specific setting for the learning activities in this study took place within various educational islands within SL.

2. Instruments

Both observational and perceptual data were gathered from two instruments derived from the CoI model — the Multi-User Virtual Environment Education Evaluation Tool (MUVEEET) (McKerlich & Anderson, 2008) and the CoI Survey (Arbaugh et al., 2008).

3. Data collection

For the duration of both SL class meetings, two trained outside coders observed and recorded information using the MUVEEET instrument, noting specific indicators of social, cognitive and teaching presence.

4. Data analysis

Participants' responses to the CoI Survey were analyzed through the use of descriptive statistics. The MUVEEET observations were analyzed slightly differently from that of McKerlich and Anderson's (2008) original MUVEEET analysis. For this study, the observers compared their Second Life observations and any duplicate observations were only counted as occurring once. A category occurrence range was developed by the observers to rate each category as having a low, medium, or high occurrence within each corresponding presence. For cognitive presence, the occurrence ranges were: (1–12) Low; (13–24) Medium; and (25–35) High. For teaching presence, the occurrence ranges were: (1–10) Low; (11–20) Medium; (21–30) High. For social presence, the occurrence ranges were: (1–10) Low; (11–20) Medium; (21–30) High. 

Results

The results of this study indicates that CoI model served as a promising framework to measure all three constructs within MUVEs. For all three CoI presences, nearly half of the participants supplied a response of Strongly Agree on the survey items. Students who selected Agree made up 45.6% of responses. no participants selected either the Disagree or Strongly Disagree categories. What’s more, the results also indicates that both participants and coders experienced a developed community of inquiry during two SL classes.

In a word, the results are encouraging to the future research studies. This information bodes well for educators who are interested in using Second Life for online learning. One particular aspect of the MUVEEET the researchers discovered was its versatility. There are indeed many ways to utilize this instrument to analyze observations or behaviors within SL, therefore expanding the possibilities for varied research opportunities. Following McKerlich and Anderson's lead on using the CoI model to study educational activity in MUVEs, this study supports the efficacy of assessing social, teaching and cognitive presences within a MUVE from the points of view of both participant perceptions and objective observations.

Reference

Arbaugh, J. B., Cleveland-Innes, M., Diaz, S. R., Garrison, D. R., Ice, P., Richardson, J. C., et al.  (2008). Developing a Community of Inquiry instrument: Testing a measure of the  Community of Inquiry framework using a multi-institutional sample. Internet and Higher  Education, 11, 133−136.

Clarke, J., Dede, C., Ketelhut, D. J., & Nelson, B. (2006). A design-based research strategy to  promote scalability for educational innovations. Educational Technology, 46(3), 27−36.

Collins, M. P., & Berge, Z. L. (2008, November). Instructors' changing roles in multi user virtual  environments. eLearn World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government Las Vegas, NV: Healthcare & Higher Education (AACE).

Fischman, J., & Young, J. R. (2008). Search for savings through technology dominates Educause  Conference. Chronicle of Higher Education, 55(12), 14.

Garrison, D. R., Cleveland-Innes, M., & Fung, T. (2004). Student role adjustment in online  communities of inquiry: Model and instrument validation. Journal of Asynchronous Learning  Network, 8(2), 61−74.

Linden Research. (2006). What is Second Life? Retrieved July 9, 2009, from http://  secondlife.com/whatis/.

McKerlich, R., & Anderson, T. (2008). Community of inquiry and learning in immersive  environments. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 11, 35−52.

Project Tomorrow. (2008). 21st century students deserve a 21st century education. Retrieved June 7, 2009, from Project Tomorrow Website: http://www.tomorrow.   org/docs/National%20Findings%20Speak%20Up%202007.pdf.

University ofMassachusetts, Boston, Faculty Council Subcommittee on E-Learning. (2009,  August).Quality online education:Awork in progress. Retrieved July 9, 2009, from The  Transference of 23 University of Massachusetts Boston Website: www.umb.edu/  academics/faculty_council/documents/E-LearningSubcommitteeFinalReport.

Article Review - "VR Writers Room White Paper' - Week 1

With the advent of  Virtual Reality through systems such as the HTC Vive, Occulus Rift and PlaystationVR, many industry creatives are beginning to question how exactly the role of narrative fits into this new immersive technology.

In traditional storytelling mediums, the rules have had a huge amount of time to be discovered and come to rest as industry standards. However, Virtual Reality is unfortunately not allowed to have this same luxury. Due to the current expensiveness of the technology, VR finds itself in a position where all its rules need to be learnt fast if it hopes to ever become the next big thing in entertainment.

2017 has been described as the "make-or-break-year" by many online for VR technology. Not only does the cost of the hardware need to become more affordable, but also the strength of the storytelling must increase for the technology to become "worth it" to consumers.

In the narrative context, there are major paradigms that need to shift. While there are many benefits to VR that are not found in other mediums (mostly revolving around audience agency) there are also several troubling aspects such as character movement (move too fast and players will grow nauseous), and action sequences (knocking a character over in the game, or slamming them against the wall, causes nausea and immersion problems if the audience/player is not being knocked over or slammed into something themselves).

So what is it that we can learn about narrative storytelling in VR? How do we conquer these issues? How do we create (and what does it look like?) an entirely new language of storytelling?

This week, we will look at an academic white paper compiled by industry professionals across various branches of immersive storytelling, and hopefully glean some insight. The white paper is entitled the VR Writers Room and has been authored by such experts as Tanya Laird (Star Wars, Marvel, Disney Princesses), Jeff Gomez (Pirates of the Caribbean, Avatar, Halo and The Coca Cola Happiness Factory), Rhianna Pratchett (Tomb Raider, Overlord, and Mirrors Edge), Charlie McDermott (Generation of Z, No Holds Bard, and Toys) and Andi Ewington (Dark Souls II, The Last Of Us, and Beyond)

These and several other contributors were invited to come together by the VR Writer's Room and provide ten hours of consultation and discussion. Six hours behind closed doors and four hours published as audio podcasts, with the final product being the white paper now being discussed.

The paper explains its purpose as:

"...to move focus from the hardware and software development process that has re-ignited the discussion around immersive entertainment and instead pose questions around content creation,
specifically narrative." (Laird et al., 2016, p. 1)

Although this paper is written by experts within the industry, upfront they state that this paper is designed to offer more questions than it answers. As such, this is a really informative paper in discovering the future obstacles in the way of narrative designers when it comes to creating fully realized VR stories.

By far one of the most fascinating issues of writing for VR space is also one of its biggest opportunities for writers. That is, being aware of the space your story takes place in:

"When we write traditional screenplays, we get to be prescriptive about what the audience sees. We write shot by shot, we consider framing, we alone are furnishing the narrative drive . As writers, we must surrender that perspective when creating for immersive entertainment. Our focus becomes
the audience’s subjective experience of the narrative. The audience chooses what to look at and what they will explore; in other words, as with sandbox video games, they become the director of their own experience." (Laird et al., 2016, p. 8-9)

Traditionally, visual storytelling has been told as a collection of 2D squares. We sit in front of our TV or a Movie Screen and watch square after square after square of moving images. These frames contain only information that is directly relevant to the story and progression of plot. However, in VR, we are not viewing our stories through squares, rather it is as if we are sitting at the center of a large sphere. We can look all around us, 360 degrees. We can look up. We can look down.

"Writing for a 360 stage rather than a single central stage will require the x and the y axis to both be considered in creating a script structure..." (Laird et al., 2016, p. 13)

As a major upside, this allows for a fully immersive experience. The audience no longer has to suspend as much disbelief, for they can immersively become the character in the story, or alternatively experience a real sense of presence - of being there.

The problem comes into it however when we consider that the audience or player may not want to progress at the speed the writer is asking them to, or they may not want to progress at all. As the white paper states - the audience gets to choose what they look at. Meaning while one of our characters may be giving an important monologue in the scripted version of the game, the player may very well just wander off to the other side of the room and start rifling through loose papers on top of a desk.

"Because of this, we can no longer rely on plot alone to tell the story. Though VR, like traditional motion pictures, is a visual storytelling medium, our reliance on peripheral techniques to guide narrative becomes more interdependent." (Laird et al., 2016, p. 9)

The current work around for this, although there's really no guarantee that it will work every time, is through the use of subtle visual cues such as lighting and sound to direct the audience's attention to the area where plot progression is attempting to occur.

"To be clear, audio - foley , underscoring, effects, etc. - plays an integral role in storytelling in
traditional motion pictures. The difference for immersive entertainment is that we have the ability to determine where the sound emanates from, and the audience has the ability to turn and see the sound's source. Another technique for guiding attention in an immersive world is lighting. We have
the ability to determine the source of light and use that source as a way of guiding attention. An example of this is a door opening in a dark room; the sound of the door opening and the light spilling into the room directs the audience's attention toward the door." (Laird et al., 2016, p. 10)

The paper goes on to talk about several other components of narrative requirement unique to VR. The first being the need for a Transition Phase. This is the initial moment in which the player enters the Virtual World. Data has found that the audience or player actually needs an initial transition phase into the experience to allow them "mental breathing room"so that they can suspend disbelief and really start to feel their presence within the virtual world.

Secondly the paper points out the importance of creating strong characters that players can connect to and empathize with. The paper explains: "it is important to remember that empathy in VR is created through the medium’s capability of intensifying through direct presence our personal connection to individual characters." (Laird et al., 2016, p. 9)

There is also a need for what the paper terms Safe Harbors - either places within the experience or a game mechanic (such as a pause function) that allows players breathing room again where they are safe to rest and relax. The idea being too much intensity becomes too real and uncomfortable for players.

Another important point made by the writers is that "Context drives narrative integrity" page 10. What they mean by this is relation to the wider narrative world in which the plot takes place. The writers explore how it is important when crafting each scene within the gameplay that the wider narrative found within the story bible be considered and that immediate design and story choices be used to provide context for the wider on-goings of the story world.

"Just because we can see in 360 doesn't equal narrative depth, it is therefore important to maintain consistency to the rules of the world as set out in the story bible. To maintain suspension of disbelief continuation within the environment is essential. This requires a thorough knowledge of the timing of narrative across the entirety of the universe so that events continue to happen in a concurrent and consistent manner." (Laird et al., 2016, p. 11)

A typically large component of narrative design within any new project is that of the story bible. A story bible  is the "Cornerstone of... ...immersive environments" and is generally a large encyclopedic document that houses all of the world - history, geography, ecology, economy and technology as well as philosophy, metaphysics, messages, themes and brand essence of the story. The idea being that this document "provides a single point of entry for any new creatives joining the narrative design pipeline." page 12 as well as a base world for equally important narratives to jump off from should the project choose to become transmedia or serial in nature.

Attention to detail within a story world is incredibly important as it allows players to have a "sense that something interesting and substantial... ...lies beyond it (creating) a sense of depth and completion for the world the audience is being invited into." (Laird et al., 2016, p. 12)

The writers also point out that:  "As the medium becomes more sophisticated it will be possible to generate algorithms that allow for the viewer’s actions, however subtle, to ripple across the story world, influencing the dramatic narrative in small and significant ways." (Laird et al., 2016, p. 11)

Lastly, the paper discusses the potential for multiple character perspectives within VR, and how this "allows for mosaic storytelling techniques and provides re-playability." (Laird et al., 2016, p. 14)

This ability for mosaic storytelling is fascinating as it allows for potential co-operative game play between friends (allowing each to role-play as a different character within the game much like traditional Dungeons and Dragons game play) as well as progressively increased understanding of the plot and story:

"With each character explored or each replay, the audience learns something about the characters or central events that fill in the missing blanks." (Laird et al., 2016, p. 14-15)

Overall, though it doesn't necessarily answer the issues around narrative storytelling within VR, this white paper does set a good understanding for what is possible within this medium, as well as providing a framework of questions for future research in this topic. It is important in developing a new story language for VR that we consider such issues around agency, plot directive and overall storyworlds in future research.

References:
Laird, T., Pratchett, R., Gomez, J., McDermott, C., Wallace, K., Ewington, A., … Williams, K. (2016). VR Writers room white paper. Retrieved from Digital Jam website: http://www.digitaljamlimited.com/vr-writers-room