Virtual Environments for Teen Safety Education: The Development of Bumbles Cafe

In recent years there have been numerous initiatives to develop multi-user virtual learning environments (MLVE) for high school students. These environments allow students to interact with each other and instructors through multiple modalities via avatars in a three-dimensional computer environment. Although current platforms have high computing and bandwidth demands, continued hardware and software advances should mitigate technological barriers to broader use of MLVEs. Even with current technological constraints, there is growing body of evidence that the ability of students to interact in real time from remote locations in MLVEs increases the social and cognitive presence of learners. This and ability for students to manipulate the virtual environment should enable educators to develop compelling education experiences consistent with constructivist pedagogy. In this paper we discuss the development of Café Bumbles, a virtual restaurant in Second Life designed to offer new delivery alternatives for the Teen Safety curriculum developed at Labor Occupational Health Program at the University of California, Berkeley. As envisioned, Bumbles Café will allow students and resource instructors to interact from physically remote locations in real time allowing both for guided missions such as hazard identifications as well as opportunities for role playing exercises that allow students to develop and practice important communication skills needed for a safe and healthful work environment.