Wikis are interactive web pages that can be shared by many people. As a result, new ideas and thoughts can be added to the information posted on a Wiki so that the page(s) become an ever evolving resource. In addition to script, Wikis can include videos, pictures, music, and links. Any subject can be explored and written about thereby increasing a person's base of knowledge in many categories. However, the same strengths I just mentioned about Wikis can also be their weaknesses. Wikis can be edited or revised by anyone leading to articles with inaccurate information. Important or vital text could also be deleted. Wikis also need to be constantly monitored to protect against inappropriate language or obscene materials. Therefore, in my hypotheical school, I believe I would limit the editing of the Wiki page to the personnel of the school only. The Wiki would be available to parents or the public as a read only document. Having said that, the Wiki would be a great instrument to share with parents information about the school and its activities. For instance, if the school I previously worked in had a Wiki page, I could have gone to it on the web and found out that the media center is having a book fair this week. Wikis would also be great for teachers to share lesson plans. Groups of teachers from different schools in the same county and grade level could be paired to create lesson plans based on their grade level's standards. For example: Group A ,a group of 4th grade teachers from School A, could be paired with Group B, a group of 4th grade teachers from School B. The lesson plans could be written, revised, edited, updated, and evaluated each year as new ideas and resources are added. Links could be added to videos, music, or informational articles. Editing privledges could be restricted to this group of teachers only to prevent unwanted additions or deletions. In order to prevent duplication of a task, teachers could also make these plans available to the principal for review. Believe me, no teacher wants to write the same lesson plans twice. This would be a very effective tool for collaboration between teachers.
As a media specialist, I would need to be comfortable working with Wikis myself in order to publish a Wiki about the media center. I would also need to be able to provide information to teachers about Wikis as well as trouble shoot problems that may be having. Wikis are an exciting and innovative tool that really has the potential to bring educators together in a collaborative effort.
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6 comments:
Sharon, it seems that we both agree about the weakness of wikis being the fact that they can be "changed." I too agree with the fact that those outside of the staff should be "read only" members. I don't think that it would be so much of a problem in elementary school, but I would be leary of students in middle and highschool getting mischievous and reconstructing the wiki. I also like the idea of sharing lesson plans with teachers within my school and in other schools. I like the idea of many different perspectives toward a lesson. The more ideas that are contributed to a plan, the better the plan usually is.
I also definately want to be more familiar with wikis before I implement the use of them in the media center, but I most certainly want to use them....maybe when I don't have so much on my plate.
Sharon I agree that wikis are great educational tools for students and teachers through collaboration. Wikis can also be used for book reviews and research projects. Every student is allowed to give their input. But is is up to the teachers to monitor what is being published on the wikis. Sometimes students can falsify information; therefore, the media specialist and teachers must take the responsibility to edit this type of thing. Wikis are very useful in a school setting if students, faculty, and staff are trained appropriately to use them.
Sharon, Your idea about using Wikis to collaborate on lesson plans would likely be so much easier and more effective that the old way of trying to exchange the document back and forth (which I have had to do in the past). It is so difficult to ever get anything completed in that fashion. Editing priviledges should definitely be limited to the participating group of teachers, as you mentioned. Teachers could also use the Wiki to collaborate on a wide variety of assignments they were planning together. This would be especially helpful for those teachers who work in very large schools and within very large collaborative teams. This would be one way Wikis could be used to make our jobs a little easier. Thanks for the posting!
I like it, I like it, I like it! Your idea of using wikis as a tool to collaborate for lesson planning is so innovative. With the increasing demand on teachers, having a community to help collaborate on lesson plans would be greatly beneficial. Teachers are very creative in nature and students reap the benefits of this creativity.We have something somewhat similar to that in DeKalb County. There is a "mailroom" where teachers can post questions and ideas for everyone in the county to read. However, wikis would be more interactive and allow users to add links to supplemental information.
I too think wikis have a great deal of flaws. To me it is nothing more than a chat room that gives anyone the ability to change your text. I absolutely agree that students (middle and high especially)would have an easy time to use this to torment other students. Elementary students would probably be harmless but the fact that this information can be changed by anyone frightens me to the point that I would not want to post anything important for fear that it could be changed or messed up without my knowledge.
Sharon, I love the idea of lesson planning between schools. I think that teachers at different schools across town have the same curriculum to teach but different students and ways of delivering their instruction. Using wiki's could easily make lesson planning a much easier task for teachers. New teachers could get a wealth of help with ideas and lessons.
I also like the suggestion of making the wiki read only except for school personnel. I think that to many people being allowed to change the text in a wiki make the material not as reliable.
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