RAPID: Collaborative Research: Learning about Infectious Diseases through Online Participation in a Virtual Epidemic

网络学习和未来学习技术计划资助的努力将有助于展望下一代学习技术，并促进我们对人们在技术丰富的环境中如何学习的了解。流行病(无论是麻疹、埃博拉或流感)影响年轻人，但许多与流行病如何起作用(以及如何预防)有关的概念很难向年轻学习者传达。该项目探索技术如何以及是否可以帮助10-14岁的年轻人了解疾病流行是如何传播的，以及如何通过参与和体验大规模在线社区的虚拟流行病爆发来预防疾病流行。该项目还将向流行病学家提供数据，帮助了解教育儿童如何改变流行病的进程。该项目利用虚拟世界的突出特征--持久性、实时、个人表现和大量玩家--让青少年体验和调查疫情爆发。一种虚拟流行病将在广泛使用的在线虚拟学习空间Whyville上发布，模拟疾病的重要方面，包括人的移动和在社交网络中的接触、潜伏期、暴露和暴露缓解，以及症状前测试的效用。使用观察方法和实地实验的创新组合，这项试点研究将为我们如何设计如此大规模的在线活动以促进个人和社区探究提供见解。这项研究将探索公共卫生预防和保护措施如何与行为变化、对感染、免疫和相关社会问题的概念理解相联系。措施将包括青少年在虚拟世界中的在线行为(包括聊天和日志文件分析，使用虚拟的“防护装备”或“洗手”功能，以及在线接触与疫情有关的材料，包括与流行病学家的现场聊天)。

The Cyberlearning and Future Learning Technologies Program funds efforts that will help envision the next generation of learning technologies and advance what we know about how people learn in technology-rich environments. Epidemics (whether measles, ebola, or the flu) affect youth, but many of the concepts related to how epidemics work (and how to prevent them) are hard to convey to young learners. This project explores how and whether technology can help youth ages 10-14 years learn about how disease epidemics spread and how to prevent them by participating in and experiencing a virtual epidemic outbreak in a massive online community. The project will also provide data to epidemiologists to help understand how educating kids might change the course of epidemics.This project uses prominent features of virtual worlds--persistence, real time, personal representation, and massive numbers of players--to allow tweens to experience and investigate an epidemic outbreak. A virtual epidemic will be 'unleashed' on a widely used online virtual learning space, Whyville, simulating important aspects of disease including movement of people and contact in social networks, incubation periods, exposure and exposure mitigation, and the utility of presymptomatic testing. Using an innovative combination of observational methods and field experiments, this pilot research will provide insights into how we can design such large-scale online activities to promote individual and community inquiry. The research will explore how public health prevention and protection measures are connected to behavioral changes, conceptual understanding of infection, immunity, and associated social issues. Measures will include youth behaviors online in the virtual world (including chat and logfile analysis, use of the virtual 'protective gear' or 'hand washing' features, and engagement with outbreak-related materials online, including live chats with an epidemiologist.)