Los Angeles City College has spent some time trying to refine its metaverse.
A public community college in east Hollywood, it wasn’t one of the original schools that got grants to build out a “metaversity,” a digital alternative campus influenced by the tech company Meta. But the concept resonated, says Marcy Drummond, the college’s vice president of economic and social mobility innovation.
So leaders at the college decided to build their own version. It was important to get the cost down, Drummond says. Now, the college has created more than 1,000 lessons across 25 subject areas constituting its own virtual programming. They have managed to reduce the cost of production to about $15,000 per course.
This semester, more than 2,500 students at Los Angeles City College are taking a course that offers the option of learning in extended reality, Drummond estimates. Some of the courses, including “Bridge Test,” an English course on how to structure creative writing, have proven immensely popular.
Drummond explained all this in response to an inquiry from EdSurge, wondering whether the metaverse was dead and decomposing. (She thinks it very much isn’t.)
There’s been speculation that the hype around the metaverse has been replaced by excitement about artificial intelligence, especially in the business world. But what about the metaverse’s promise to revolutionize education? Was that just Silicon Valley puffery? And if not, how are colleges engaging with it now?
Lifecycle of a Brand
Meta — which changed its name from Facebook in late 2021 — still argues that it’s a big deal. In one report, the company says that the phenomenon will add $760 billion annually to the U.S. GDP. But its leaders seem generally less vocal about it. (EdSurge receives philanthropic support from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, which is co-owned by the CEO of Meta. Learn more about EdSurge ethics and policies here and supporters here.)
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