WikisSummer09_INC

"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:

[|MediaWiki]

[|PBWiki]

[|Scribe Post Hall of Fame]

[|Seed Wiki]

[|Wiki Search Engine]

Please feel free to tell about your experiences with wikis and add any links (To add a link, click on the World with the link icon and put your link text in the box that comes up.) you feel appropriate. 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 Green. **Please post your comment below mine and put your first name at the end**. Thanks, Barb

This is my first experience with a Wiki. I have heard about them numerous times, but never in an especially positive light. Mostly I've been warned about the unreliability of many Wiki sources. It is certainly an exciting way to reach out to students who are immersed in technology. This really reaches out to meet them where they are comfortable. On the other hand, I would be hesitant to use a Wiki in an instructional manner because I know not all of my students have computer and/or internet access. Right now it just seems like a fun way to enrich or supplement what you might be doing in the classroom, I would be nervous to rely on it as an instructional tool. ~ Christina Mann

I started to create a Wiki last year when a colleague of mine introduced me to the idea. I think it can be a great tool as long as you communicate to others how you want them to use it and update it on a consistent basis. A Wiki is something that students can create as well, and it is helpful for them to have a good exemplar or model for them to follow. Rob Zell

**In addition to many others in the class, I have just a little bit of knowledge with Wikis. The first time I heard of Wikis was with my curriculum and instruction class through Wilkes. Before that class I had no idea what a Wiki was. We were given a brief overview, but not enough information that I would feel comfortable creating one. As with many other schools, my schools internet blocks out many sites like this kind. If I were to use a Wiki in my classroom, I must say that the collaborative aspect of it is appealing.** **One site that I was on stated that a Wiki can encourage participation of all students, it can help promote communication between students, teachers, and parents, and it is a new and interesting way to learn. One site that I found interesting was one that said you could start a Wiki in 30 seconds.** [|//http://www.wikispaces.com/site/for/teachers100K//] 
 * Anything that takes that little of time and will be exciting and beneficial for my students is worth a try. Heather R. Zell **

I never heard of wikis before. I asked several teachers in my school and only one heard of wikis. She used it in a college course and has not used it since. It seems like it could be beneficial to use but the information must be updated on a regular basis. It would be helpful when teachers from different schools are working on the same project. This is a way to communicate and share ideas with one another. - Brian

Hi everyone! We began using WikiSpaces this year in our school district. I must admit I am a bit proprietary to the information I post so I have been using a blog for most of the year in my computer class. Although, I do see the benefits of using a wiki for collaboration purposes. Our network administrator was not too pleased with all the work she had to do to unblock wikis since they are categorized as "social networking sites" in Websense. I worked with our librarian in helping her set up her wiki for the elementary library. The link is below. http://suskyelemlibrary.wikispaces.com/ I will be spending the summer developing my wiki to be used in conjunction with a professional development project I am working on with my administrators. I hope it comes to fruition and that the faculty will be allowed to fully access wikispaces on the network next year. ~Dori

I have to say that I am not real familiar with WikiSpaces! I completed the tech academy that our school offered last summer and we touched upon it a little, bu not much. It seems that it is a little like having your own webpage where students or parents can go to access worksheets or links? I think it would be interesting to set up a WikiSpace, but I'm wondering how I would use it in my first grade classroom? I think it sounds like a great idea for upper elementary and high school grades where the students can go on themselves. It would be a great tool to use if a student is absent and needs to catch up on the work (the teacher would have to be pretty organized and update the wiki often). I hope to learn more about them and am always looking for ways to integrate technology into my classroom! -Anita

I am new to WikiSpaces. I breifly learned about them in one of my classes, but we never actually used them. I would have to be organized and on top of what I am posting, but it does seem user friendly. I spent some time navigating through and taking a look at some things and I think I can do it. I think this would be great for me to set up for next year as a way to keep in contact with parents and post information/assignments. I would like to learn more about them and intergrate them into my classroom. Happy Wiki-ing! Thanks! -Jamie

I have created a WikiSpace before in one of my classes for Wilkes. It was so long ago that I don't even remember the address of my wiki. I created it to use as a quiz on the parts of the violin for my string students. Unfortunately, I don't have access to be able to use a wiki at my school and I don't think that it will be changing any time soon. I can't even use wikipedia. I do think that a wiki would be nice to use between teachers. I am the only music teacher at my school and I am constantly e-mailing back and forth with the other music teachers in my district about assignments and new worksheets that we make up. It would be great if we could use a wikispace for us to add on our own input for the assignments that we create between the music teachers. -Jessica

The first time I heard of the Wiki was in my first Wilkes class, Issues in Education. Some teachers in the class used wikis for their high school classes and they demonstrated to the class how and why to use wikis. We created one in class that we all joined. Since learning about wikis I thought of how I could use them in the elementary classroom. My first thought was as a communication tool with parents, since students in our district don't have their own email addresses at the elementary level. Does anybody have any suggestions on how to use the wiki with elementary aged children, especially primary students (K-2)? - Mike

Mike, some excellent ideas for using wikis on any level can be found at https://elemtechclass.wikispaces.com/Wiki+Ideas I hope this helps. ~Barb

Thanks for linking that page. There were some great ideas on there that I never would have thought of in a million years. I could see myself having people post to the wiki about our Flat Stanley adventures. This way everybody that sends or receives a Flat Stanley can read about all the adventures. ---Mike

I knew about wikis before last summer, mostly hearing my son who is computer science major in college talk about them. I thought it was cool, but I guess I was not adventerous enough to try it on my own. Last summer I took a class through Wilkes in which we took a simple review of wikis, and spent some time editing texts on wikipedia. We also created a wiki with the intention of using them in our classrooms, but I hate to say I have not used it since then. I see the great potential in using wikis and think they can be of great value to the expression of ideas among students in classrooms. Many times students can willingly and openly express their opinions in a format such as this, where they may not be as comfortable speaking these ideas in front of a class. I also like the collaborative potential of such a site. In the past I have used a collaborative project on Lewis and Clark in which my students research and and prepare a power point on different parts of the expedition. I think a wik would be a great site, where students can combine their research, and have it reviewed and combined with the research of their classmates. The collaborative nature of wikis, and the ability of students to be able to access this feature outside the normal classroom environment is a big plus. Overall, I agree, I think wikis are cool.- Dan

I have heard of wikis before, mostly in reference to Wikipedia. I think they can be great tools for education, depending on how they are used. For instance, the science teacher on my team this year developed a wiki through a class he took this fall. He used it to post homework, quizzes and upcoming tests for his class. He also used it for a question forum when his students were confused with homework at home. This seems like a great way to use them, so I might try to develop my own next year. Other than that, I have had no experience with using wikis. ~Marissa

I first heard of wikis in one of my Wilkes classes. I found it to be very useful. However, I feel like I didn't get enough experience with it to feel confident using it within my classroom! I checked out some of the wiki links above and I really like the PBwiki. This is great if you want students to do work outside of class. They could log onto their computer at home and do assignments on the wiki. I think it would be really cool to see students do interactive homework, I think it would be really fun for them! I know there are limitations to that as well, some students may not have the means to have a computer or internet connection at home. The wiki could be a great tool to use in the classroom, thanks for the great ideas!

-Melissa

I have heard of Wikis before but have never posted to one. After reading your comments and perusing some of the links provided, I do see the value in implementing this in a classroom. I envision wikis becoming extremely popular due to the increasing number of students going to cyberschool. A wiki is a great place for students to meet in cyberspace and work collaboratively and share resources. I also feel as though this can be used by students of all different age levels and ability levels. This is something that would take a little bit of getting used to but it is not at all difficult. Kevin

Before this class, I had heard of wikis, but never knew what they were. I can really see using a wiki in my classroom. First I would have to spend some time getting used to one myself. It seems a little complicated at first, but I am sure it is something I could get used to. I would like to set up a Wiki to share announcements and homework with parents and students. Also, as the Yearbook Advisor, it might be very beneficial to set one up so that my staff can collaborate and communicate about the different events that need to be photgrphed. I'm glad that this class has given me the opportunity to further research Wikis. - Kristina Ganly

I have created a wiki for another grad class. It was intended to be a page for teachers to collaborate, however I must admit that it didn't catch on too quickly. I had very little response from even my closest teacher friends and I am not sure if it's because there was a lack of interest or, quite frankly, a fear of technology. Some of my teacher friends can barely make a spreadsheet, let alone sign up for and edit a wiki. I think wiki's are a great tool, simply for the one magic word- "collaboration." As Mike posted earlier, I too teach a primary grade (kindergarten) and have yet to think of a way to use them with my students. Of course the class site for news and info for parents is the most common idea, but I don't know any way to truly involve these young kiddos. -Jenna Evans

Hi!! I haven't really heard of wikis before, and have never had to use for a class that I was taking until now. I actually had it explained to me for the first time on Tuesday, when I was in CFF training. Our facilitator showed us her wiki that she created for the training that she does. She did warn us that anyone can edit the wiki that has access to it, and with high school students there is a lot of possiblity for misuse. For that reason these are blocked at our school. I had to ask for special permission to see this while at work. I like the idea of online collaboration, but I think I might use other websites and blogs instead. I think if you're using this in a elementary school setting, this could be a nice way for the students to share things that they did on a field trip or some other special event with the parents or vice versa. Perhaps as a home assignment with their parents they could write to their teachers and say what they liked about a field trip or something they did in school that day. -Courtney Giuliani