2+-+What+is+a+wiki?

A wiki is one type of Web 2.0 tool that can be used in education. Take some time to review the wiki __#|video__ and resources below. After you are done reviewing the resources you will need to follow the directions and post a comment at the bottom of this page.

So, are you wondering how educators are using wiki's? Look at the link below to see some ideas. [|50 Ways to Use Wikis for a More Collaborative and Interactive Classroom] Take some time to look though some of the other wiki resources that I have listed below. The wiki we are using ( www.wikispaces.com ) is not the only wiki site available FREE for educators. Another great wiki site that educators can use is [|www.pbworks.com].
 * 1) [|Defintion of a Wiki from Wikipedia]
 * 2) [|Teachers First Wiki Walk-Through]

‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍So, now that you have become familiar with what a wiki is and have some ideas how it can be used in the classroom, I want you to share your thoughts to the reflection questions below. To share your thoughts, you will be posting a comment at the bottom of this wiki page. Just type in your comment and click the "Add Comment" button. Reflection questions: 1. What ideas do you have for using wiki's in the classroom with students? If you are not a classroom teacher share how you would use a wiki in your position. 2. What safety concerns might there be when using this type of tool? 3. Are there any questions that you still have about this type of tool? ‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍

Additional Resource - If you like wiki's and think this is something you would want to create and use in your classroom, but need some help then check out these great [|PBworks teacher training videos].

Ashley Katinas

The possibilities are endless for Wiki in the classroom. It could be used as an online small group class project where each child is assigned a job in the editing and creation project. Also, children could use a Wiki for peer editing since they can add comments to the side. I think it would be a great way to share the stories they are writing as well as get feedback from their peers on ways to improve their work. Another great way a classroom could use a Wiki is by through elaborating on the thinking of others since our world is becoming more and more of a collaborative community. For example, in math you could add higher-leveled thinking problems that have multiple ways to be solved and allow students to discuss ways they would solve this problem as well as correct the work of their peers. Some other thoughts I had were to create your class story where students add to our story daily to see our journey through third grade or for students to work together to create an advertisement page, since we do a whole unit on economics.

As for my concerns for Wiki I worry about students deleting the work of others unintentionally causing great anger amongst the students. I know this sounds like a small safety concern, but I feel students make mistakes and I could see someone deleting the work of a fellow classmate in turn causing some hostile feelings. I am wondering if there is a setting where the students can only add to the wiki but not delete the postings of others? My last concern is appropriateness because some kids struggle with critic and peer help. A Wiki seems to require a lot of partnership and development of trust in others which many students struggle with. While I worry about this as a safety concern I also feel if students can develop partnerships and trust the community will be more strong.

Cathy Bearden

I think the possibilities for using a Wiki in classroom are really endless. It can by used for classroom management, collaborative projects, presentations, test preparation, class discussion, and connections with parents and the community. I would like to use it as a forum for a book study, virtual field trips, and a class newspaper or media broadcast. I believe there would be safety concerns from administrators and parents. We can establish the settings for who can view and teach our students proper usage (with consistent reminders), but we will have to be diligent about monitoring for inappropriate content, suspicious posts, and be sure the information we are listing isn't overly personal (including personal information such as addresses, contact information). I do not have any further questions about this type of tool at this time, but as I utilize in my future classroom and questions arise, I believe there are many respectible resources to find answers. - Cathy Bearden

There are so many ways of how this can be used in a classroom but if I had my own classroom, I would use it as a pen pal with another classroom in another state. I would have my class design a classroom mascot (and the other class would do the same) and then we would both send them to each other. Every __#|student__ in each class would take turns taking it home over the weekend or evening and take pictures of the mascot doing fun things! Then I would have the students write a description of what they did, such as visiting landmarks in the state. Then each classroom would be able to read and learn about another state! There are going to be safty concerns any time you are doing a project like this on the internet. Some concerns would be that students would post inappropriate things and personal information. I think that talking to them about the rules and expectations before would be the first thing we do before starting a project like this and then continuely checking in to see if they are doing what they are supposed to be doing. I don't have any questions about this project right now, but I am excited to learn about it and more ways I can use this tool in my future classroom!
 * Alyssa Chambers **

** Kim Foster **
Just one source I read describing Wikis listed 50 possiblities for using them in a classroom. At this time the one I am most interested in introducing to my classroom is to use the Wiki to create class presentations. We are currently researching the United States and its territories. We have 55 fifth graders in our school. Each of them is assigned one state or territory. By using a Wiki to share the presentations on each state, we could share our ideas with many more people and review them for better understanding. Safety is always a concern when using technology with students. This is where most of my concerns and questions lie. It will be neccessary to be able to assure parents and adminstrators that the student's are using safe methods and that the rules and procedures are clearly stated.

Sommer Burkemper

There are many possibilities of how a wiki could be used in the classroom. I found a couple of ideas that I found feasible for use with my first graders. The first idea is to have a “Published Work Wiki.” The students could each type (with help from adults) a piece of writing they have taken all the way through the publishing process. This way, the editing and revising could be done ahead of time, through conferencing with the teacher. Then it could be typed by parents, teachers, or even students (especially if they have full time computer access). This could also be developed into a portfolio, where students place their best work onto the wiki. Another idea that I really like is to have students do book reviews or book recommendations. This could even be carried into the home. My students take a “home reading” book home each night. They could pick their favorite each week and write one book recommendation, telling why this is a book they recommend to the class. This would be a great way to track the amount of books they read too! This could also be sort of a reading log! As far as safety, I think that if you have tight regulations in place and monitor regularly there shouldn’t be too much of a concern. But I think the etiquette of wiki-ing should be discussed and practiced, until it becomes part of the culture of the class. I think this could even be used to boost a sense of community. I don’t have any questions but I would love to see some examples of wikis used with the younger grade levels. I learn best with visuals!

The more I read and learn about a wiki, the more endless ideas I find to use one in the classroom. I think this is my favorite resource from this course. In my current position, I am somewhat limited to what we can use. However, since wiki is a tool we can work on together, we have options. Using the wiki to brainstorm and share notes about a topic that students know and want to know would be useful. The topic could be planets or parts of a story. We could do this as a class, and have students take turns typing information they know. I also like the idea of making a classroom recipe book. Although this doesn't cover a core standard, it practices working as a group, using technology, and we can research what's included in a recipe. We could ask the parents to join our wiki and allow them to participate as well. It would be important to review the guidelines and expectations of the wiki, and monitor what children post. I like that you are able to customize the privacy settings, so this will keep safety concerns at a minimal. At the moment, I do not have any questions, but if I come across one then I can always edit this reflection. :)
 * Cara Gabrian **

Kayla Gregory After furthering my understanding and knowledge of wiki’s, I feel there are many ways I could use them in the classroom. One way that I would like to incorporate them this year though is through exploratory projects. I am constantly struggling with how to enrich my proficient and advanced students and I believe through the use of wiki’s, I can meet their needs and further their knowledge. Also, because I teach three different blocks, a wiki would allow all of my students to collaborate not just the students that are in the same blocks. The safety concerns with using wiki’s are the same concerns as when any teacher allows students to use the internet. One concern is students will go to sites or sources that are not appropriate. Another concern is that students have the freedom of speech when using a wiki and educators need to review their expectations with students. Students need to learn how to appropriately communicate online and this must be taught. I am familiar with wiki’s due to being exposed to them during my undergraduate studies. Therefore I do not have a specific question at this point in time.

Sara Barnes There are many ways to use a wiki in the classroom. I have used a wiki with my Spanish class. I created a page for them, with links for each partnered group to get their own pages to build. Their assignment was to create Spanish resources articles, including links to Spanish websites, and embedding Youtube videos. This assignment got their creativity going, while allowing them to explore Spanish resources on the web. It also caused them to have to evaluate resources to see if they were relevant for their articles. I have also posted a reading assignment on the wiki, and had them reply with answers to discussion questions. This is a great idea when you are using material off of the internet, because you can just post it online instead of printing it off and copying it for each student. They can also reply to one another's responses if you want them to. The safety concerns can be addressed for the most part by locking pages that you don't want the kids to change.However, if one student wanted to be malicious and delete another student's work, for example, I'm not sure how you would be able to prevent that. I have never had that issue though. I really like using wikis, but sometimes I still get tripped up when I'm trying to link and create pages. I don't think it's really a question, more of just needing more consistent practice with the wiki application.

__**Brian Cissell:**__ This is one of the tools that I had never heard of before this class. I believe that I could use the same type of format that we are doing right now. I am thinking that I could use this to have students research the 27 Amendments (or branches of government) and have students create a page that explains the history, significance, and current events associated with their amendment. They could link YouTube videos, news articles, pictures, music, and post their opinions on how the interpretations of their amendment have been applied in American society. They could collaborate with other students in different periods and even debate their perspectives on the courts' precedents. It would be easy for me to link articles, videos, or information that I could require student's respond to that would enhance their research. This kind of project has great potential for creating depth of knowledge and peer-teaching opportunities. I really don't have too many concerns about safety. The only issue that may arise is if a student deleted another student's work, or edited it without their consent. Although this is not much different than if a student destroyed another student's notebook. Most of my students would enjoy an assessment like this and I look forward to giving it a try. The only question I have is how to grade an assessment piece of this nature. I don't think it would be too difficult to create a rubric, but being unfamiliar with what to expect in regards to student performance would be the challenge.

Emily Dunn Wiki could be a useful tool to use in the classroom. Many of the students would be able to communicate through this tool, as well as view and/or post assignments to different pages. However, I do still feel somewhat unfamiliar with Wiki, even after viewing the different links and reading about it. I think where I am unsure about Wiki is what we can and can’t post on. Do the students have access to type and change anything they want? If so I would be concerned about things being changed that I had posted for the class to read. As the head of the classroom and creator of Wiki, I would just make sure I was avidly monitoring the page and making sure students were not changing the purpose of the Wiki. I think the most important way to establish safety and appropriate use of the Wiki would be to discuss what the expectations are for the Wiki and the importance of safety on the internet. This program, along with some of the other tools that we have established in Applications of Technology can be very beneficial as an educator and for the students. This is a good communication device for the teacher/students/parents outside of the classroom. If there are any questions or concerns about homework or anything else in the class the parties involved are able to keep constant track of what is happening in the classroom.


 * Junior Hines **

====I would use wiki as a way to help my students to collaborate with each other. I would use wiki as a way of having everyone in the classroom creating a class dictionary. This would be a place where students can go and look for words we discussed in class. Students can work on research projects as a group and post their information there. Students can use this tool as a way of asking each other questions or it could be directly to me, where everyone would see the question and my answer. I can use it to post upcoming deadlines, assignments and the school calendar. To me wiki could be away of me as teacher reaching out to all my students at their convenient time. Students can go on wiki to find out what they missed in class, presentations I have done that day and past ones. Students who lost their handouts can go to wiki to print off a new one. Also, parents can go on and see what their child/children are doing in my class.====

====My concerns would be the cyber bullying from other students. Sometimes in class, I might have a presentation and because my students know the information will be online, they might not pay attention. I would have to be sure that my students are responsible. I think my major concern and question would be how can I mange this tool.====

Wikis are a useful tool for getting students more involved in curriculum. They’re often appealing and fun for students to use, while at the same time ideal for encouraging participation, collaboration, and interaction. If I were to use a wiki in my class (which I won’t because I don’t have any computers!) but I would make a class and use it as an interactive journal. I could use my classroom blog to engage students in discussions during and after the usual school day. I could post topics for discussion, additional classroom notes or information, classroom assignments and much more. A classroom blog will allow students to interact with their peers and teachers on a continual basis beyond the usual 45-90 minute class period.
 * Michelle Taylor**

Students today use social networking blog sites such as “facebook" to talk to their peers about life in and outside of school. It is also a great way to involve parents. I would capitalize on this by bringing blogging into the classroom. The point is to have students using a medium that appeals to them to increase their understanding of a given topic or discuss a topic that may not have been adequately covered in class.

My only safety concern is that it is really easy to change the information posted, making is unreliable. Also it is an unmonitored open environment, which concerns me. If I were using blogs and wikis with students, I would require them to sign an agreement stating that they will use these tools in an educational manner. I would let my students know that using these tools is a privilege and not a right and that privilege can be taken away if used inappropriately.

I agree with the many statements that wikis could be used in a wide variety of ways to enhance student learning. The 50 ways to use a wiki article was a great list for getting the mind going about all of the possibilities. I like many of the ideas including classroom blogs, scrapbooks, newspapers/newsletters, class hubs for shared websites, and (FAQ) frequently asked questions. This year, I have been working with some students who really struggle when it comes to their written expression/daily journals. I think a class wiki could be a useful tool for giving these students a place with tools to help them through the writing process. This could include several venues such as informal blogs and tools that help them through pieces that are more formal. Students could have a brainstorming section, where ideas are explored; a prewriting section, where grapic organizers are used for organizing ideas, a rough draft section, and a final draft section, where pieces are published. These could be linked to personal portfolios for the students. To ease students through the process, a few pieces could be worked on collaboratively as a whole class.
 * Sonia Jansen**

My concerns regarding safety would be about making sure students navigate to the site easily through a link that keeps them away from any surfing that leads to inappropriate sites. Typically that is not a problem if done in the classroom under supervision. The ease of making changes could open up possibilities for imprudent posts, so students would need to agree to working within classroom guidlines. One other concern would be regarding special education students and confidentiality. I would like to know more about the line between posting things written by these students. Would it be fine if it was done through their regular classrooms? I am sure nothing could officially be posted with names through special ed classes, but would it be ok with psudeonames? Could the wiki be confined to the district website/ intranet if this was a concern? These are my current questions about utilizing wikis within special education.


 * Dominique Montgomery**

I like what wiki has to offer. I can think of a couple of ways we could use a wiki in the classroom and with parents. In preschool we implement lesson built around themes. A wiki could be used as an introduction to our new theme for the students and their parents if they have access to the web. We could also use it during professional development to display and inform other teachers and administrator of what preschool is working on. I haven't tested using the wiki individually on my students, but I have considered using it during small group instruction. As far as safety, I do not have any concerns because the students will either work with myself or my assistant when using the wiki. We will monitor how the students use the wiki and what they are doing closely. I am learning more and more about wikis everyday. I don't have any questions just yet.


 * Stephanie Jaegers**

In my current position as an assistant in a preschool classroom, I could not use a wiki with our students. I will hopefully end up teaching an elementary class though and then I can definitely think of a lot of opportunities to use a wiki. I could have a page for vocabulary and when students come across a vocabulary word in a book they are reading they can add the sentence to the wiki. I have also seen a teacher have a page for each student and the other students can write something positive about that student. I think that is a cute idea for something fun. I think wikis are also an excellent opportunity to get parents involved. Students can work with parents to contribute to a wiki. I think there are obviously safety concerns for wikis. I know I have seen them located within the classroom’s district website so you have to have a district login to be able to post on the wiki. This at least somewhat eliminates the risk of what could be posted. I think if you are a teacher who uses wikis, you just have to closely monitor what is being posted. So far I don’t have any questions; I think wikis are a great classroom tool.

I am certain that there is a way to incorporate a wiki into the work we're already doing in our classroom. The hard part, though, is sifting through the numerous ways of using it! We already use my classroom blog, student kid blogs and Edmodo to create and share content. In many ways, a wiki does the same things as those tools. At this point I think it would be best used as a place to collect and archive notes and/or any other info we have from individual classes. I loved the idea that Sommer shared of using it as a place for published work; giving my students another option for sharing their writing (or other work) with the world would be great! Additionally, I can see the value of using a class wiki as a place to post the classroom handbook and other general info for parents and students that doesn't change. I like the idea of creating a class dictionary of all the words we work on throughout the year (these are primarily taken from the read alouds we do together), a class scrapbook to log the amazing fun and learning we do together over the year or to have the current year's class create a survival guide or handbook for the next year's class to use at the beginning of the year. WOW! The possibilities are endless.
 * Jen Bearden**

As far as safety, I don't really have any specific concerns. Like with any other tool (online or otherwise), there is important teaching that has to be done upfront related to expectations, etiquette, etc. Setting up guidelines and norms together allows for collaboration and ownership; students rise to the high expectations you set for and with them. As with anything else, I'd have to monitor online usage and deal with any misuse.

My questions as of now are related to the how/when/why of a wiki, and knowing when to use what tool that I have. I have several teachers in mind that I can consult for help with this, as well as just trying things out and seeing what fits best where. For me, trying something out is the best way to learn and to have my questions answered.

Many of the students I see in Study Skills throughout the day take the same core classes. Although they may have the same class, they are not in the room during the same hour of the day. Additionally, in Study Skills we have to help students with all of the subjects, not just one particular content area. Therefore, I can see using a Wiki in my class for all of the students to communicate their questions and/or knowledge throughout the day. For example, a students in first hour Study Skills may type a set of questions regarding Protein Synthesis. Then, a student in fifth hour Studdy Skills may answer the questions. In addition, I could invite my coworkers to jin the Wiki. Therefore, if the Biology teacher saw the questions, s/he may answer them during his/her plan period.
 * Lisa Boehmer**

In addition to the students being able to network with each other by establishing a classroom Wiki, the classroom teacher and I can set up a specific page for each of our students' core subjects. Currently we use milk crates and file folders to collect and store all of the teachers' notes and assignments. By the end of first semester, the folders were bulging and it was difficult to add more items. If we created a Wiki page for each subject and teacher, however, then we can add and store the assignments digitally. We could also add notes or page numbers for our students--most of whom receive those specific modifications.

I like how a Wiki can be edited by more than one person. The classroom teacher and I are a team. It would be so convenient for both of us to have administration rights so that no matter what the other is doing--see my blog: threeringclassroom (hoops, hoops, fire, and hoops)--the other can add the information to the Wiki.

The safety concerns I have are the same as anytime teenagers use technology in the classroom: are they being appropriate in their language and interactions with peers? Are they citing their sources? Are they maintaing the posts of the peers' they don't like, rather than deleting or editing them? Are they respectful when a peer types a comment or questions? Many of these concerns can, theoretically, be taken care of before the implimentation of a class Wiki by developing a community within the classroom. This is something the classroom teacher and I strive to achieve and maintain. Our students' disabilities are so varied, and we want each one of them to feel like they belong. So far, we haven't had any problems with our classroom community this year! We try to bring a levity to our class, which, I think, the students' appreciate. They have so many inherent pressures that we don't want to cause them any more stress. Our students know they can come to our room for help. They have to work, but we won't judge their progress--as long as they are making some!

After perusing the site and reading the links, I don't have anymore questions about Wiki at this time. I am excited to continue to explore Wiki and learn the mechanics through hands-on learning.

Wikis seem to be a great tool to use for any classroom on just about any grade level. Since I hope to teach a social studies class at some point, this is the content area I focused on while brainstorming ideas to use wikis for. I came up with a few, and I'm sure I'll think of more as time goes on. A wiki could be used for students to create presentations (although I think I still might prefer Power Point, since no Internet access is necessary). If studying World War II, students could look online for propaganda posters and post for the entire class to see (I did something very similar in my last class, though I posted through Blackboard instead). Wikis are also a good forum for students to simply type and discuss certain issues or assignments.
 * Aaron Lightle**

I did have a few concerns about wikis, however. First of all, it is WAY too easy to delete other people's work. I'm not going to try it, but if I highlighted everything on the screen, and hit the backspace button, I'm pretty sure I could erase everything on here. Is there a way to recover lost data? I don't know.

Also, unless the work is done right there in class, how is the teacher to know who did the work? I know having someone else do the homework is a student's oldest trick in the book, but it applies here as well. Right now, how do you actually know Aaron Lightle is typing this? It could be my wife, one of my kids, or just some geek at Best Buy I paid $50 to. Of course, it really is me, but how do you know?

Finally, there isn't any way, that I can see, to monitor or censor students' work until after the fact. Come on. We've all been in middle school and high school. Instead of posting this dumb old boring discussion of the recent election, wouldn't it be much more fun to post a picture of Professor Bass at the Christmas Party? Of course, there are disciplinary actions to be taken after the fact, but nothing stopping a student from doing something like this beforehand for literally the entire world to see.

This is an interesting tool, but there are a few hiccups that give me pause. I'm not sure if I'd use this in a classroom or not. I think I still prefer Edmodo.


 * Jennifer WIntergalen**

From what we have read Wiki's seem to be a great Web 2.0 tool to use in the classroom. With having an elementary classroom I think that the options are slightly more limited for us. If I were to use this in my classroom, I would possibly use it for reading groups. The students seem to be more motivated to do their reading when they can go online to post answers. I think my favorite idea that I saw was to use a wiki for a group project. Elementary students all love to be in control of the computer, which often leads to unnecessary disagreements. With a wiki each student can contribute to the project from their own computer. I also liked the idea of having a class wiki to post book reviews. My higher level reading students are always having trouble deciding what to read, with book reviews they can go online and see what their friends liked. It might also be interesting to use a wiki as a class website. This way the students could take responsibility for sharing what we have been working on with their parents.

I have a few concerns about wikis. Like many of my classmates, I have a huge concern about students deleting each other's work. We used to have this problem at school all the time (before they re-did our servers) the students would move each other's work and accidentally delete files. No matter how much you walk them step by step through things they don't always follow directions. With the little ones I think it would take a lot of practice and reminders of how to be careful with others work.

To a degree you also have to worry about cyber bullying. The students would have an open forum to type whatever they want. I think it would be important to establish consequences in advance before students were even allowed onto the site. For elementary students and maybe even older students, I would make up a contract that goes home for the student and their parents to sign in regards to appropriate usage and consequences.

The only question I have at this moment would be, is there a way to recover work that is accidentally deleted?

Julie Sullivan

I think that wikis are a great tool to utilize in the classroom. As a business teacher it is important to constantly be integrating technology in the classroom. While students will get exposure to technology in some other classes, business classes are an important resource for students. I want to be seen as a resource to my students. I also think that it is important to continue my own education. This is important because I want to keep learning, but also because I want to be able to understand my student’s point of view as a learner. I will use wikis in my classroom as a way to share information with my students, particularly in regards to projects that they have to do. As high school students it is a great way to have information available to students 24/7. I also think that it could be a great tool for allowing students to discuss topics that they do not feel comfortable with in person. While anonymity can be good it can be bad as well. I would worry about students bullying another student. I would have to figure out a way to protect against that as much as possible. I want to foster the right type of environment in the learning opportunity and I do not want my students to take advantage. I do not currently have any other questions, but I am sure as we move forward and I begin actually doing the work for this project questions will arise. Like it is probably a good guess that Jennifer accidentally deleted something that is a great question!

Jesse Lomax

I think a wiki could be great for my class as a way for students to share their ideas. I have several students who do not like to “write” yet they have no problem expressing their ideas if they are allowed to type them. This could be a great way for my special needs students to get the amazing ideas out of their heads and down on “paper” as well as sharing them with the rest of the class and school. My biggest safety concern is that of inappropriate content my students may stumble across. Of course, my district has numerous precautions in place, but there are always things that break through these filters. If students follow my guidelines for digital citizenship, most of my safety concerns will be alleviated.