WikisFall10

A ** wiki ** is [|software] that allows users to create, edit, and [|link] web pages easily. Wikis are often used to create [|collaborative] [|websites] and to power community websites." I think wikis are cool!

Check these sites out: [|Article from T.H.E. Journal about wikis] [|PBWiki] [|Scribe Post Hall of Fame] [|Wiki Search Engine]

Please feel free to tell about your experiences with wikis or how you used them or would like to use them in your classroom. Add any links you feel are appropriate. (To add a link, click the "Link" icon and put your link text in the box that comes up.) As you add your comments (just click on Edit This Page at the top), I can click on recent changes and see who made them. You can also do this. My comments are in blue. ** Please post your comment below mine and put your first name at the end **. Thanks, Barb I have just started using WikiSpaces This year. My team of teachers each created a wiki to post homework assignments and class bulletins for the students to read. I was the only one who did not have one so I had one created (with the help of a student). I am going to start to post homework assignments on it starting next week. It is also a good place for students to post questions that they may have about class and for the teacher to respond to them. I am very excited to get started with this. We also have a very ambitious student who created his own team 7-6 homework page. Phil Pinto

I have never used a Wiki site prior to this class. I've heard of it in my new teacher induction program because some of our middle schools were starting to implement it. They were also discussing using it to inform the community about events and updates in the district. I think this would be a great idea to use in the classroom-especially for homework help. In my Honors Geometry class, I assign a lot of proofs to do. Using this site, my students could colloborate on the best and most efficient way to solve them. This idea reminds me of our Discussions boards where we can each answer the questions on our own time. What I like better with this is we can see everyone's post all together. --LeighAnn Burke

I have previously used Wikispaces when my district was working on developing our standards-based report card. I was a member of the standards-based report card committee and using the wiki was helpful for committee members to post questions, concerns, and documents to each other. It was great because we were not all from the same building and it gave us the opportunity to virtually "meet" to work and edit the work we were collaborating to create. I do not know if I would be able to find a use for the wiki at the 3rd grade level, well, I'm sure I could, I just don't know if I would have the patience for it! I can see this being a great tool for secondary and higher education classes. Students could post documents and hold discussions together on different topics. --Jen Pettinelli

I have used a WIKI before in a grad class. I find it sometimes hard to read and keep track of once all of the data or information is added. One thing I did like was when it was time to write a group paper. Each of researched on our own and added the information we found into the WIKI. When it was time for us to get together and write the paper and make our presentation we had all of our information already together. It was great because it saved us time from having to keep meeting while we were researching and it also provided a way for us to keep organized. I think this would be a great way to use it in the classroom for the older grade levels. Jill Verbos

I have never used WIKIs before in my life. It seems pretty interesting and easy to navigate. All of the buttons up top including the links, widgets, and tables are all easy to understand and use. I think WIKI makes it easier for people to communicate through discussions or posts. WIKIS allow people to access the information on their own time and don't have to meet in a particular place or at a given time. It makes things easier and everyone is able to access the information again and again when it is most convenient for them. Most times when people meet in person they need to take notes but on WIKI it is already done for you. Members of the WIKI can go back and revisit any post or discussion if needed. We all know that everyone is very busy these days so this can only help to save time and be more effective for everyone involved. WIKI is just one more method for people to meet, discuss, or relay information to others quickly and easily. A wiki is kind of similar to our posts in our discussions. Everyone is discussing or posting about the same topic but we are able to access it on our "own time" rather than a scheduled meeting. I will explore WIKI's more in-depth and continue to see if I can find other methods of how WIKI's are used through various classes and schools.---Lee Van Fleet

I have never used WIKI or heard about it.It seems to be a lot like the blackboard that we use. I think it is a great and useful site. I think it would be easy to use to hold discussions on topics for a school districts. If people aren't able to meet together they could still use this site to be informed on whats going on. I would use this site within my district to hold discussions on issues. It would be neat to have parents be able to access it and be able to see what the schedule or events are. Megan Flowers

I used a Wiki for the first time last semester during another grad class. I had to write a collaborative paper with another student. We used the Wiki to share links to our resources and communicate with each other. I am not really sure how I would use a Wiki in my classroom yet. I thought about this question last semester as well. The idea of second graders using the Wiki scares me just a bit. I like to have a little bit more control over their use of the Internet. If I had an option to preview what they wrote before it was posted for others to see, then I would feel more comfortable with it. However, I do see the value of using a Wiki for school committees for collaboration (like in the scenario Jen mentioned). I am on our school spirit committe as well as our school leadership team and I think that we could get a lot of collaboration done between meetings or even in place of meetings through the use of a Wiki. I just found out that our head of technology at our district has a wiki run to help us with our district technology problems and concerns. I think that it will be very beneficial for everyone in the district. ~Sabrina

I have never used or heard of Wiki before now. It seems fairly easy to navigate. After reading the above information I can see how this can be a great to use in the classroom or within a district between staff. I’m not sure I would use it in my class because I teach high school math and we do not have many discussions. It could be beneficial to set up a page and allow students to post questions about homework or projects and other students could answers the questions. When I went to the PBWiki it mentioned about discussions around the world. I think it would be neat to talk to other students from different parts of the world to see what they are learning in their Geometry or Algebra 1 courses.~Joanne

I was recently introduced to wikis in another grad class. I find them fairly easy to navigate. I'm not really sure how to use it in a kindergarten classroom. However, I do like Joanne's idea about using it to talk to other students from different parts of the world. Our district tried to use a wiki for a math committee. However, I had never used a wiki before and was given no instructions on how to use it. So it was very intimidating to me at first. But now that I've had some experience with them, I can see they are fairly simple to use and a great tool to use when collaborating with colleagues. -Cristin Pizzi

The first time I added information to a Wiki was last spring in an introduction to teaching English as a Second Language graduate course. The instructor used it primarily as a dictionary and discussion forum. She had students post their experiences teaching English Language Learners and discuss them with each other. I found it to be very collaborative and constructive. If I taught high level general education students, I would have my own class Wiki and require students to comment on lesson topics every week. **-Jonathan Juka**

I had to create a Wiki Page for a Wilkes class I took over the summer. I found it to be quite interesting the different types of things that a Wiki page could be used for. I thought it might be great to use for some type of group project, that is if all the students in the group have access to the internet at home. Each member of the group would be able to sign on and post and share their ideas, along with any files or links. I do not use a Wiki page for school use, but I do have my own teacher page that I use for multiple things. I think if I taught older grades, such as the high school level, I could use a Wiki page to post different things and have students react to them. - Sean Krim

I used a Wiki for a class through Wilkes before. They seem to be easy to navigate and edit for individuals and groups. As most of the previous posters commented, I am not sure how I would use it in a classroom. I can see that it would be great for our faculty PLCs that we have. Individuals can go in a post information on their own time and easily share with others. It seems like a great tool to use. I just hope I can learn more about it. ~ Megan Shade

I have never used a WIKI before and never really understood what it was until now. I think it is a great way for many people to collaborate and share information. I could not only see my district using a WIKI but my school community as well. We often have meetings but I think if everybody were familiar with using a WIKI it would save a lot of time. As for using a WIKI with my third grade students, I’m not sure how that would work. If I could view all information before it was posted, I would be more likely to use it in my classroom.-Kaitlyn Kugler

I have never used a WIKI before and had no clue what it was or what it was about. It seems like a great idea to collaborate and get ideas to one another when you cannot easily meet in person. The kindergarten teachers from the different elementary schools in my district are always saying that it would be nice if we used more of the same ideas with our classes but it is hard to keep in touch with each other. I think as long as everyone was willing an was patient to learn about it, it could be a useful tool.- Julie Casey

I had first used Wikispaces while taking an Act48 course at the LIU#18. It was a course based on using the newer Powerpoint software. At first I found Wikispaces to be confusing, but I became more familiar with it and it came easier for me to use. I was also confused as to posting the presentation using the Widgets. The teacher would have us do different powerpoint projects based on different topics and they were shared with everyone that were taking the course. We were able to access them and see each other's creativity on the powerpoints. I'm not sure it can be used in a physical education class. However it can be a good way to exchage different ideas from other phys. ed. teachers from around the world. - Pat Forlenza

I've never used a WIKI before, but my husband uses his quite actively. In my classroom, I think the best application would be for any project-based learning projects, though I don't really have enough time with my students to explore this further, as I see them only once a week for thirty minutes. As far as using it with my colleagues, I think it would be a wonderful way to share ideas and opinions on issues, since we don't get to meet often but have a lot to share. We often share resources and ideas and this would be a much clearer, easier way to collaborate than email currently is. I'm planning on bringing up this idea at our next inservice meeting together. - Caroline Campbell

I have never used a WIKI before but I like it. I work in a facility that serves adults with disabilities and I am part of the clinical team that has to approve if a client gets a PRN (for severe behavior issues) We keep trying to come up with a way to keep track of the PRN's because only a certain amount can be used in a 24 hours period, but there is a team of 10 of us who can approve one and we constantly have to send out emails or call one another to see who has already aproved a PRN for that day. Anyway, this doesn't mean much to all of you, but I am currently on the lookout for something similiar to this. I am not sure if this format would be the best, but I am glad that I learned about it and will keep investigating to see if it could work for my current situation. I really enjoy learning something new each week in this class! Jen Kensinger

== It seems like most people in this masters course have little or no experience with Wiki. I think we can all agree it is pretty easy to use and navigate. It also seems like many people said they can use it for projects and other group activities. I am interested to learn how other people use Wiki in schools with other teachers and students.--Lee Van Fleet ==

I have used Wiki once before. It was for a class through Wilkes. I think it can be a really neat interactive tool to use in your classroom. We do not use it in my district, but I would like to try it. However, we do not have the accessibility to utilize it yet. I think it would be great for colleagues to use as well to share ideas and thoughts with one another. --Renee' Hruniuk

I have never been on a WIKI before or experienced one so this is all new to me. I know my gifted students would go to town with this. They are learning about the life cycle of a trout and we are actually getting the eggs soon to watch the process. This would be an awesome tool for them to up date and tell about what is going on with the trout. This is really neat! My other students are too young. I might be able to update my Title I math students parents with a Wiki. They could check out what we are learning in class. The ideas seem endless depending on your outcome. Renee Barbetti:)

I have actually taken a class through Wilkes that surrounded around Wikis. We created our own wiki page and surrounded all of our assignments in the wiki. I actually learned quitea bit on how to manipluate through a wiki page, but I also learned how you can use wikis as a reliable source of information, because as I am doing right now, anyone at anytime can change the information. Ryan Jones

I have never been on WIKI before so this is brand new experience for me. I think this would be great to use with my colleagues as Renee expressed to share ideas and/or thoughts. Time does not seem very easy to find lately for teachers so this would be a quick way to share different ideas. It could also be a great way for students to communicate about a project so that everyone would be on the same page. Tabatha Vega