Since I have never worked in a school before, the first thought that popped in my head when I saw I had to write a blog about wikis is "I'm pretty sure we aren't supposed to tell students to use Wikopedia as a reliable source". Then I started actually reading about using wikis and NOT Wikopedia. I felt a sigh of relief. I am such a newbie to this whole world, so forgive me for my ignorance!
I like the idea that wikis allow students to collaborate together and create or design their own content. It is apparent that this really isn't a tool that teachers need to use if they are worried about who is editing the site. It seems to me that wikis really focus on letting the students share information and learn together. I think that is a nice idea. The "Wikis" article from the Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching give quite a few examples that I really enjoyed. For example, an English professor used a wiki so his student could us it for text analysis, but what I found very interesting was the use of a discussion page. I like the idea of giving students their own space to discuss course material outside of the classroom. In some of my classes in college, I felt like I couldn't discuss anything online with my fellow students because some professors did not like that type of collaboration. I think a discussion space in a wiki would've benefited me a lot. It is definitely something I will keep in mind when I finally get my LMS job!
The only real downside to wikis that I see at this moment is that they are so bland. I love blogs because they are customizable and you can give them personality. I would rather have my students create their own blog (like we are doing now) or run a free websites. That way they can not only collaborate but also add a little personality and creativity to their site. Maybe it just a personal thing and it really isn't a deal breaker for me. Maybe if wikis allowed for more customization they wouldn't feel so much like storage cabinets.
I also think blogs and websites are much easier to navigate. Perhaps it is because I am not used to navigating a wiki, but I just like the layouts of blogs. I'm not aware if blogger allows for a discussion section, but if that was a feature then I would completely use blogs instead of wikis. But, I do not think that is possible. I write my own personal blog and I've never seen that feature before. So, if a teacher came to me wanting to create a collaborative space for her students where they can share ideas and discuss the course material then I would definitely suggest using a wiki. If the teacher was more interested in creatively displaying content then I would probably suggest a free blog.
As a newbie to the education world, do any of you have any experiences using wikis in the classroom or in the media center? If so, leave a comment below. I would love to hear them!
“Seven Things you should know about Wikis” (http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7004.pdf )
Brittany,
ReplyDeleteI am totally with you on the visual aspect of wikis. I am very much a visual person. The first thing I look at when accessing blogs or sites is how they look. Before I read or do anything I automatically judge it and yes, I know we shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but I can’t help it. I still read the material, but that's always my first thought. I like to customize and I think students like to leave their own unique marks on their work as well. I do think Wikis can be customized (anyone have experience here?), but it is not as easy like blogs or a Weebly. I’ve never blogged before so this is new to me and I am still not sure everything that can be done here, but I know using a Weebly, the creator can create new pages to allow for more discussion and collaboration is easy if you have access, but you cannot track who has changed or edited what.
I do like how Wikis allow users to see who has edited and made changes. This definitely keeps students accountable for what they contributed to the work or project. At least with using a Wiki one would not spend as much time on how it looks and more of what is incorporated… maybe? I feel like I would still try and find a way to make it cute, but I agree that’s the only flaw I have found so far with Wikis.
Collaboration seems to be a big plus for wikis. I like the idea presented by Courtney that you could have internal collaboration. I can see this being used by a media specialist to collaborate with each grade level. A wiki could be set up with each grade level and then teachers could add a topic and others could add to what is needed to be taught and ideas for the lesson. The media specialist could then use this information to create pathfinders and lessons according to this information.
ReplyDeleteI can also see students using this as a collaborative space to discuss books between classrooms. This way students that are in other classrooms that are reading the same book could form a book club and log on to collaborate with each other on their assigned book.
I do agree that wikis do not allow much personality but that can be a good thing. Sometimes I find my students wasting time adding sounds or pictures on powerpoints and they end up having very little information about the topic they were researching.
I too cringed when I first heard the word wiki. I associated it with Wikipedia which I knew it was not a creditable site. Now I see that this is not the case. As I progress through these degree courses, I found that wikis are very helpful. It is a great way to communicate with other students as well as work on group projects as a team. Wikis can serve as a mean of communication between students, parents, and librarian.
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