Second Life, a Multi-User Virtual Environment Computer Game, as an Additional Tool in Teaching of the Hawaiian Language

Abstract

Ka ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi, the Hawaiian language, is “critically endangered”. Many linguists agree that a minimum of 100,000 fluent speakers are needed for a language to be self-perpetuating and avoid extinction. In 1990, the US Census identified fewer than 9,000 Hawaiian speakers, a majority of whom had learned Hawaiian as a second language. Because of the grassroots “Hawaiian Renaissance” movement of the 1970s, concerted efforts were initiated to teach the Hawaiian language and reverse its decline. These efforts have included both in-class language instruction and long-distance learning programs utilizing home computers and the internet. By 2010, the US Census identified roughly 20,000 Hawaiian language speakers. Although evincing progress, this is a small number when compared to the more than 400,000 native Hawaiians living in Hawaiʻi and the continental U.S. Advances in computer technology and applications have produced sophisticated gaming programs, such as Second Life. This computer-generated MUVE (Multi-User Virtual Environment) game has successfully been used in teaching such topics as cultural sensitivity and English as a second language. Of particular interest is SL’s ability to engage participants in cross-generational teaching and learning and its “deinhibiting” effect. This creative project utilized MUVE technologies in constructing a prototype interactive student forum, capable of connecting native Hawaiians throughout Hawaiʻi and the continental US, to both learn and practice Hawaiian in a uniquely Hawaiian “cyber” environment. Proper Hawaiian teaching/learning protocols were utilized and the Hawaiian language lesson materials were developed to ensure accuracy in traditional usage of the language.