Chapter+4+MES

=Chapter 4 - Munford Elementary School=

Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools For Classrooms Chapter 4: Wikis: Easy Collaboration For All

media type="custom" key="3117592"

A. An encyclopedia attempting to store the "sum of human knowledge". B. Site that now stores over 2 million separate entries with information about everything. C. A place where every day new entries are added about people, places, things, historical events, and even today's news almost as it happens. D. A website where anyone can edit anything anytime they want. E. Wikis (derived from the Hawaiian //wiki-//wiki, which means quick) are a quick way to add, edit, collaborate, and share information with anyone in the world.
 * __Introduction__**
 * I. What Is Wikipedia?**
 * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

How to Write a Wikipedia Article

A. If anyone can add, edit, or erase an entry at anytime, how can we know what we are reading is accurate information? B. Luckily, there are more people working to make the information right than there are people trying to sabotage it. C. When a Buffalo Professor tested the concept that the majority of Wikipedia's users would ensure the information was correct he created thirteen errors on various posts on Wikipedia and all of his errors were corrected within a couple of hours.
 * II. Major Concern and Reassurances About Using Wikipedia**

A. Nine hours after the event occurred, the first 76-word post was created at Wikipedia. B. Twenty-four hours after the first post, the entry had been edited more than 400 times containing about 3,000 words with some of the first photographs of the devastation, a chart documenting the dead and injured, and other graphics describing the events of the tsunami. C. Forty-eight hours after the first post, the entry had been edited more than 1,200 times and contained more than a dozen graphics including a video of the actual wave. D. Six months after the event, more than 7,000 changes had been made.
 * III. 2004 Tsunami Wikipedia Entry**

A. Around 400,000 edits are made everyday in over 200 languages. B. Editors and contributors work together to negotiate and create truth. C. Editors and contributors understand that what they contribute can be freely edited or modified or reused by anyone for any purpose.
 * IV. Collaboration Among Users**

A. Students use it in their research. B. Many major news sources now consider it a trusted and cited source. C. People all over the world are using it every day to add favorite recipes, best vacation bargains, favorite song lyrics, and much more. D. Corporations like Disney, McDonald's, Sony and BMW have started using wikis to manage documents and information. E. MIT, Standford, and other colleges and universities are using wikis with their faculties and students. F. Businesses that want their employees to share information and collaborate in an easy way are having project teams use wikis as a way to keep track of their work. G. Teachers who want to work collaboratively build resource sites for their classes.
 * V. Who Is Using Wikipedia?**

A. Every page in a wiki has an "Edit Page" link. B. Clicking on the "Edit Page" link will take you to the code behind the page or to a WYSIWYG editor where you can begin making your edits. C. Each page also comes with a page history where you can see when changes were made, by whom, and what was changed. D. You can easily use the history list to revert back to a previous page if the current information has been posted incorrectly. E. The "Discussion" tab allows editors or contributors to negotiate and collaborate over what should appear in the entry being created.
 * VI. How Do Wikis Work?**
 * Visit the following site to see the conversation going on behind the entry on global warming: http://tinyurl.com/33885n

A. Teachers should spend time checking Wikipedia's accuracy on their own. B. Wikipedia should be used as one of many sources, rather than the sole source of information.
 * __The Challenge of Wikipedia in Schools__**
 * I. Accuracy**

A. Entries are collaboratively written research papers with a neutral point of view. B. Should students use Wikipedia to find information and evaluate it or use it to learn to repeat work that has already been done?
 * II. Information**

A. Should our students be allowed to contribute to Wikipedia? B. Allowing contributions provides opportunities for students to see what happens to their work and think critically about modifications made, if any. C. Perhaps Wikipedia should be used as an opportunity for students to contribute what they learn to a global audience.
 * III. Changing Teachers' Thoughts on the Content Our Students Create**

__**Wikis in Schools**__ A. Anonymous users could possibly vandalize wikis by erasing content and/or displaying profanity on the sites. B. The justification of publicizing student work on the K-12 level in such an open venue is a potential issue.
 * I. Concerns Surrounding Using Wikis in the Classroom**

A. Some suggest the implementation of the "soft-security" model that is used on sites such as Wikipedia in schools. B. An environment where the teacher facilitates the project and students are given the "editorial control" instills a sense of pride, responsibility, and ownership; thereby, inappropriate editing and additions should be discouraged.
 * II. Possible Solutions to these Concerns**

A. Several web-based wiki sites offer password and login systems similar to that of a blog. B. Using this option provides increased security while maintaining the collaborative environment for its authorized users.
 * III. A Classroom Teacher's Answer to Increased Security with Wikis**
 * Example of this type of Wiki site:
 * Wikispaces
 * This particular site offers reliable and secure options for K-12 and Higher Education organizations.

A. Teachers must identify their role in the process when using wikis in the classroom. B. Students should be negotiating the "scope and quality" of the content they are creating. C. The process must be viewed as a "democratic process of knowledge creation." In other words, in order for wikis to be an effective collaborative tool, the classroom teacher must be willing to step back and allow the students to take the lead. D. Skills learned by students in the process: E. "In essence, the students begin to teach each other." F. [|Pedagogical Potential]
 * IV. Pedagogical Challenges**
 * Publication of content
 * Development of collaborative skills
 * Negotiation skills related to correctness, meaning, and relevance of the content

A. Creating an online text for your curriculum (specific to your classroom) B. Collaborating with other classrooms who are studying the same content C. Showcase best practices D. Creating a class Wikipedia E. Annotations and Reflections F. Posting PowerPoint presentations, video and audio files, and spreadsheets
 * V. Ways to Incorporate the Wiki in Your Classroom**
 * Example: A science classroom could create their own Wikipedia with entries relevant to the content on their grade level

A. The entire national high school curriculum for the country of South Africa is published as a collaborative text on a wiki. B. Through this tool, educators have the ability to share information on how to deliver lessons and achieve goals with their students. C. [|South African Curriculum]
 * VI. South African Curriculum**

A. Almost 10,000 textbook modules have been created on WikiBooks in just two years. B. [|WikiBooks] C. This wiki was designed to be a free library of educational textbooks that can be edited by anyone at anytime. D. Another option similar to WikiBooks is WikiJunior. WikiJunior is producing a series of full-color booklets for children ages 8-11. E. On WikiJunior, students from classrooms around the world can go online and make contributions to the booklets. F. One suggestion was the "Bugs" booklet. G. [|WikiJunior]
 * VII. WikiBooks**
 * Through the use of this booklet, students can be introduced to the following concepts associated with open-source software:
 * Community Collaboration
 * Respect for people's ideas
 * Intellectual property and public domain


 * __Examples of Wikis in K-12 Education__**
 * Vicki Davis at Westwood High in Camilla, GA**
 * Connects students to other students from around the world through her "Flat Classroom" project.
 * Students collaborate with students from school from Bangladesh and report findings through their wikispace. Students were able to edit and add to each others work. The pages were easy to build and grow. It is also the perfect environment to share with large audiences.
 * http://flatclassroomproject.wikispaces.com


 * Jason Welker at the Shanghai American School**
 * Mr. Welker uses a WetPaint wiki for his AP Economics course. His students use the wiki to create a year-long study guide for the AP exam.
 * Students also post podcast and relevant YouTube videos to aid in their preparation for the test.
 * http://welkerswikinomics.wetpaint.com


 * Shelly Paul, George Teacher**
 * Students read //Turn Homeward, Hannalee// by Patricia Beatty
 * Students completed a bookstudy by creating a wikispace to post their work. They posted:
 * Interviews with storytellers.
 * Presentations about local mills that are similar to those in the story.
 * Reference pages that explain parts of the text.
 * The first six months the wiki had been visited **13,000** times from readers across the globe.
 * http://tinyurl.com/36sy57


 * PlanetMath**
 * A virtual community which aims to help make mathematical knowledge more accessible.
 * Math educators collaboratively create a mathematics encyclopedia and anyone can participate.
 * Currently there are almost 7,000 entries.
 * http://tinyurl.com/9orxf

The possiblilites are **ENDLESS**!
 * Imagine the Possibilities** Your students, with just a little help from you could.create...
 * Book-Report Wikis
 * "What-I-Did-This-Summer" Wikis
 * Brainstorming Wikis
 * Poetry Wikis
 * Notes-From-Class Wikis
 * Second, Third, Fourth Grade..etc Wikis
 * History of the School Wikis
 * Community Wikis
 * Formula Wikis
 * Continent Wikis
 * Country / State Wikis

A. wikispaces.com - website to try and giving away 100,000 free wikis to educators - to get your own follow the link (http://tinyurl.com/293h9a) B. wetpaint.com - another website to try after playing around with wikispaces.com
 * __Wik__****__i Tools for Schools__**
 * I. Trying wikis in your classroom**

A. Fill out form on the page - enter a username, password, and working email address; give the wiki a name; select the type of wiki you want; click the box for educational purposes; click "Edit this Page" B. Editing Toolbar 1. This is used for basic formatting of text. 2. This can also easily add audio and video to your page. C. Subpages and Layers 1. This is the most important aspect of building a wiki. 2. This allows you to create separate pages for students to collaborate. (Examples: essays, group projects) D. Discussion Tab 1. The teacher and students can add reflections of work. 2. The teacher and students can negotiate what should and should NOT be on the page. E. History Tab - the teacher can view all changes and who made the changes F. Student Accounts 1. This is an important step to make sure you can track who is doing what on the wiki. 2. The teacher needs student login names and passwords. 3. The teacher sends students a membership invitation requesting they log into the site to edit.
 * II. Creating your Wiki**

__**Other Wiki Tools and Resources**__
 * I. PBwiki - another wiki to try (pbwiki.com)**


 * II. Wiki Engines** - gives you a list of more wikis (http://tinyurl.com/34584q)

A. This allows you to create a page, add post-its, color code your notes for sorting, and save "snippets" of text from webpages you visit. B. Anyone who knows your page can add, edit, or delete notes.
 * III****. Webnote** - an online Post-It Note repository ([|http://tinyurl.com4w8eo])

A. This is a free alternative program like Word or Excel. B. You can invite anyone to edit and create and you have a history of changes.
 * IV. Google Docs (docs.google.com)**

A. Wikis facilitate: collaboration, community, and creation of knowledge and information B. Wiki Prayer Please grant me the serenity to accept the pages I cannot edit, The courage to edit the pages I can, And the wisdom to know the difference. ([|http://tinyurl.com2t8fdf])
 * V. Conclusion**