Wikis, What???

So, the first thing that I realized since last week's post, is that I need to spend more time working on my blog for my academic class. My last post was probably below the expectations of the professor.

1st response to Blogs

But, my first blog was very much typical of my character; my first reaction to something new (in this case blog technology) is to have a huge intense emotional response, usually screaming "Awwwww!!!" (see picture). Then my second response is less intense, but by the third interaction with change, I am much more accepting. Hopefully, my blogs will get progressive better as the weeks go on.

This week's topic is Wikis. Last year, my response was "Wiki, what?" I had never heard of a Wiki before I started grad school, but now I am somewhat more comfortable with them. I do think that the formatting is somewhat cumbersome.

I never thought that I would be an advocate for Wikis or any other technology, remember the screaming response. However, Wikis and other Web 2.0 technologies are great advances in andragogy. These technologies act as catalyst to change from the old style of education being teacher/content focus to a learner/process focus of education. 

Wikis have many benefits and challenges.

• The best thing about Wikis is the collaborative learning. All participants can edit,create,comment,and work on the Wiki simultaneously (West, J. & West, M., 2009) (King & Cox, 2011). This allows people from different global locations to work together. Wow! How is that for making the world a small place. But, let me tell you from personal experience, working out logistics of the project and the group dynamics of who is going to do what, is such a pain. It is the one aspect of the Wiki that I find difficult. I love working with people but it is hard to do a project without the face to face contact. At least, that is my opinion. 
•  Wikis are very versatile, that is that a Wiki can be used for many educational activities. Hazari, North, & Moreland (2009) citing Hsu(2007) say that some of the different types of assignments can be brainstorming, group discussions, and collaborative writing. King & Cox (2011) also add Higdom’s (2005) ideas of journaling, personal portfolios, research coordination, cross disciplinary coordination, and organizing academic conferences. There really is an unlimited number of creative educational activities that Wikis can be used for. However, it is a big challenge to grade those creative projects. As an instructor, it is important to investigate and consider the purpose of using a Wiki and how it can incorporate the curriculum before actually doing it (West, J. & West, M., 2009).
• Wikis are very easy to use. Technically, Wikis have evolved into a user-friendly version, much like using Microsoft Word. Wikis are located on the Worldwide Web so they are easily accessible to anyone with computer (King & Cox, 2011). However, many students are concerned about having such a public audience and there are opportunities for hackers to get in there and cause havoc. This difficulty can be overcome by making the Wiki private so that only people with passwords can edit or create in the Wiki (West, J. & West, M., 2009).
• Wikis are technically easy to use, that is there is no need for knowing a computer language to use it. Wikis actually are very much like using Microsoft Word and other word processing software. King & Cox (2011) cite Kirkpatrick’s (2006) opinion that wikis need very little technological knowledge. However, there are some difficulties. I was frustrated trying to paste a table into the last Wiki that I worked on. I finally left it out.

So, you can see there are many advantages to using a Wiki in educational setting.

OH NO!

I guess I am attracted to technology because I am attempting to create a Wiki or Blog for my students. I have many students who are non-native speakers so writing an essay (essential part of GED test) is difficult for them. I am thinking of creating a Wiki or Blog so that students can post practice essays and then volunteers or instructors can edit them. I also hope that by allowing students to view each others work they can help each other. I firmly believe that the best way to learn is to teach or assist someone else. It could also allow them to collaborate to generate ideas on how to pass the GED writing test together. Right now, this is in the idea and approval phase. I will let you know if it actually happens.  

Works Cited:

Hazari, S., North, A., & Moreland, D. (2009). Investigating Pedagogical Value of Wiki Technology. Journal of Informational Systems Education, 20(2), 187-198.

King, K. P., & Cox, T. D. (Eds.). (2011). The Professor's Guide to Taming Technology: Levering Digital Media, Web 2.0, and More for Learning. Charlotte, NC: IAP ( Information Age Publishing, Inc.).

West, J. & West, M. (2009). Using Wikis for Online Collaboration: The Power of the Read-Write Web. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.