SL & Businesses – Should more well thought out precautions be in place to help transition to Education?

As a side note to Bernie’s entry about SL businesses, I want to find out what others think about the direction this kind of virtual world might take. I think there is both an amazing side and a disturbing side to the virtual business phenomenon that seems to be growing out of Second Life and similar 3-D environments. The amazing side is that people can make real money by creating virtual clothing or pets, purchased by virtual people in a virtual world with virtual money. The disturbing side is some of the virtual creations I’ve seen. To me some of them lead to a place that maybe we shouldn’t go in a free online worldwide venue? Like for instance, Pixel Dolls, a virtual store in SL, sells clothing like the outfit pictured (not even the most provocative example).

As someone who used to be a classroom teacher and currently still work with middle school students, I can see the potential for a platform like Second Life being completely integrated into our teaching tools. However, as this transitions over to educational use, educators need to be aware of the potentials, both good and bad. Yes, it can breed creativity, create a more intense learning experience, etc. But, on the other hand, are people thinking also about the safety guards that would need to be in place to make sure students have a safe and productive experience? SL’s teen site is a step in the right direction, but I also know that teens have a way of getting around being an “adult” to join something. And, if they manage to get into SL, it is far less likely that their parents will discover them in a virtual world.

Does anyone else have thoughts about this?