“This is a virtual Sandy Hook,” said Martha Schoene, South Orange resident and Seton Hall University professor of Physics, demonstrating Second LIfe, a virtual world where students solve real-life environmental situations. “Here the students are faced with an environmental problem -- in this case, a mysterious fish kill of 200,000 fish -- and they have to determine both the cause of the problem, the effect, and the solution.” 

Schoene was honored on Thursday for her project, Teaching Environmental Studies in Second Life.  In collaboration with Marian Glenn, Biology Department and Heidi Trotta, Teaching Learning Technology Center, Schoene developed a virtual world that functions as both classroom and laboratory for students of environmental sciences. The project was recognized at the annual Faculty Research Day Recognition Luncheon.

Schoene and Glenn’s students perform both virtual and real-world laboratory tests in order to compare results. “They do a litter count,” said Schoene. “They consider toxins in the area, the presence of sheep and geese and the impact of their waste.” Not only do students consider all the issues “in the news” said Schoene, but many are relevant throughout the region. “Anyone who lives near Flood’s Hill knows about geese and their waste,” noted Schoene with a laugh.

Second Life invites students to think critically and to collaborate on their research. It is studded with clues that help students formulate hypotheses about environmental issues and their solutions.

Glenn invited this Patch writer to visit the virtual world by asking Heidi Trotta’s avatar a question. “What is the number-one skill students take from the virtual world?” I asked. 

Trotta replied on a large screen that showed her busy at work in a laboratory. “It’s not the virtual world,” she wrote. “It’s like a classroom where students have to think more critically about data and information to support their thoughts.”

The annual Faculty Research Day Recognition Luncheon, held in the Chancellor’s Suite at Seton Hall University, recognized a variety of projects across several disciplines. The award luncheon is sponsored by the Office of the Provost and the Office of Grants and Research Services.