Wikis

Wikis, Websites and Blogs(oh my!)

Chapter ReviewMiriam D. SanchezEDU697: Capstone: A Project Approach Dr. Keith PresseyFebruary 2, 2015

This is a redesign of the week 1 assignment for EDU651: Collaboration & Learning in a Virtual Environment1

Introduction

Goodbye Traditional Education

In todays society, as technology continues to advance, web tools are quickly becoming the future of education. The traditional classroom looks a lot different then you may remember, as educators are starting to incorporate technology more and more each day. With the help of wikis, websites and blogs, much can be gained from educational technology as long as great care is taken to ensure student safety and proper integration into the classroom. These new technologies are proving that teaching and learning can take place virtually, and will no doubt change the future of education forever. 2

Chapter 1: The Read/Write WebBlogsCreated by anyoneEdited by creatorWikisCreated by anyoneEdited by anyone

Over the last few years multimedia publishing has completely changed the Internet. In order to expand the classroom walls, educators must immerse themselves in technology and find ways to bring new tools to students. These days students are more technologically advanced than their educators. Teachers need to make themselves aware of the technological tools available to them and bring them into the classroom. As educators we can engage our students in a more non-linear, collaborative and participatory learning environment by allowing them to experience different technological tools. There are various tools on the internet, such as blogs and wikis, that allow students to connect with one another and learn from each other. By encouraging students to use the web collaboratively as an educational tool, we can change the way both teaching and learning takes place. While blogs and wikis may seem similar at first glance, they are actually quite different. Blogs are web sites that can be created by anyone with an internet connection. Information can be shared and updated on a blog by its creator and visitors can even share their own feedback, ideas and comments on the information posted on the blog. Wikis are different in the sense that anyone can edit, update, add or delete information published on a wiki. 3

Web SafetyWeb contentBullies Personal information

Even though the web can be beneficial to students, it can also be dangerous. This is why it is important for educators to ensure their students safety online. One factor to consider is inappropriate content on the web. Much of the content online is inappropriate for children. Students must be carefully monitored when using the web to ensure they do not access information that they should not be exposed to. Permission from parents is a must when dealing with minor students. Online bullying can also be a concern in a virtual environment. Because blogs are open to anyone with an internet connection, cyber bullying can become a problem if not taken care of. Another factor is the protection of personal information. Obviously, students should never reveal information about where they live, where they work, and anything else that might identify them to potential predators (Richardson, 2010). Once information is placed on the web, it is no longer private and can be viewed and accessed by anyone in the world. Educators must make sure their students are aware of the dangers online and educate them on how to avoid as well as deal with such risks and dangers.

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Chapter 2 and 3: WeblogsSocial interactionSharing of information and discoveriesCollaboration (pro and con)Enhance learning (reading, writing mathematics, etc.

When looking at weblogs vs websites, the educational advantages are varied. Weblogs allow students to socially interact, share information as well as discoveries and learn collaboratively with others online. They enable interaction with others which is not available on a typical website. Of course websites also provide valuable information that can be used to enhance student learning, however, they do not allow the amount of interaction that weblogs do. Although weblogs have the power to completely change the operation of the average classroom, as with everything online, there are pros as well as cons of the potential uses for weblogs. Using weblogs as an online filing cabinet makes it easy for students to turn in assignments for peer and teacher review and response that can be saved forever. It creates a virtual library of each students work and can be used as a digital portfolio to showcase a students work and academic growth. Using weblogs as a collaborative space is also a great advantage to student learning. Students can learn from each other and share ideas, knowledge and information all across the globe making the possibility for collaborative learning endless. Unfortunately, while collaborative learning is a pro, it can also be a con. With blogs, for instance, the ability for people to leave comments can be a very powerful and positive learning tool. If, however, there is unchecked access to commenting on a student site, it may open up the door to inappropriate or irrelevant feedback (Richardson, 2010). Weblogs do not only have the ability to enhance collaborative learning, they also have the ability to enhance writing activities for students of all levels. Elementary students can be encouraged to practice putting their interests as well as basic analysis into writing, teaching them how to look for things to write about. Middle school students can use blogs to reflect on information while older students can use them to, reflect and build on previous ideas, incorporate feedback from readers, synthesize readings from a number of different sources, and advance new ideas or interpretations of the topic (Richardson, 2010). All of these activities can be used to teach students how to read and write effectively. Weblogs can not only enhance and encourage reading and writing, but can be used across subjects. Mathematics blogs, science blogs and even physical education blogs can be created for use in the classroom to enhance learning for all students.

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Imagine a world in which every single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge. That's what we are doing.

Jimmy Wales

The quote "Imagine a world in which every single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge. That's what we are doing." by Jimmy Wales has come true in the sense that due to the Internet, all the information one can ever want or need is available for all to access. People from all over the globe can not only share information, but communicate with one another through video and chat. A few clicks of a mouse can give anyone in the world access to tons of knowledge. The information is there for the taking, all one has to do is seek it out. 6

Chapter 4: WikisSome challenges include credibility and reliability

http://www.michaelgaigg.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/comic-12.jpg

The term wiki comes from the Hawaiian word wiki-wiki which means quick. While Wikipedia can offer tons of information on just about any subject, the problem with sites like Wikipedia.org is due to the fact that anyone can publish and edit information. Not all information found on the site can be considered accurate or completely credible making it an invalid source for concrete information and resources. In order to help our students become critical consumers of information on such sites, it is important to teach students how to research information online. By showing students how to do this, they will be able to find relevant sources to prove or disprove the information they find online.

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Why Wikis?Student/Teacher collaborationLessons in editing informationDistant collaboration

Even with the challenges of credibility, collaborative learning activities can still be enhanced through the use of a wiki. Some types of activities include creating a wiki that both educators and students can collaboratively contribute to. Such an activity can allow students and their teachers to work together to create a resource of information. A wiki also offers the ability to interact with an evolving document over time. It allows teachers and learners to see the evolution of a written task, and to continually comment on it, rather than offering comments only on the final draft. Considering students busy schedules, a wiki can also be very useful for tracking and streamlining group projects (Duffy & Bruns, 2006). Another collaborative learning activity is to introduce students to wikis and how they work allowing them to edit an entry. Each student can share the link to the page they edited and monitor how others might change and edit their work. Such collaboration can change the way they look at information and allow them to learn how to respect the ideas of others. One educator, Vicki Davis at Westwood High in Georgia, used a wiki to connect her students to the rest of the world. She created a project where her students connected with students in Bangladesh for collaborative research on Thomas Friedmans flatteners. The wiki site hosts a collection of narratives and essays, video and audio all collaboratively put together by teams of students from disparate geographies. This project is a great example of how the world can be connected through the use of technology in the classroom.

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Conclusion

Make way for educational technology

In conclusion, the power of technology can be used in many different ways. As the Internet continues to work its way into the world of education, educators are finding new, interesting and safe ways to successfully integrate technology into the classroom. By finding ways to use these tools for educational purposes, educators are taking teaching and learning to a whole new level making it possible for effective collaborative learning across the globe. 9

ReferenceDuffy, P. D., & Bruns, A. (2006). The use of blogs, wikis and RSS in education: A conversation of possibilities.Richardson, W. (2010). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks: Corwin Press.

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