If My Wiki Gets Blogged,

Should I Call a Plumber?

A First Look at Using Blogs and Wikis in the Classroom

How the Terms Originated

• Blog – an abbreviation of the word weblog. The social community of blogs and bloggers is called the blogosphere.

• Wiki – an abbreviation of the Hawaiian phrase wiki-wiki, meaning quick. A backronym has also been created for the term wiki – What I Know Is.

What a blog is:

• A website that can be easily created and easily updated.

• A place for written reflection, conversation, and collaboration.

• Writing that links to other websites and other blogs.

• A form of communication that invites interaction and that embodies the new read/write web or Web 2.0.

What a blog isn’t:

• A journal or diary that just records the author’s daily activities.

• A posting of facts or assignments.

• A list of websites.

What are some practical ways to use blogs across the curriculum?

• English Language Arts - A collaborative novel study, literature circle, or book club. At the high school level, for instance, students studying The Handmaid’s Tale could discuss the novel and blog on topics such a reproductive rights and how women’s roles have changed in society.

• Health - A progressive record of a research assignment. As part of the middle years’ health curriculum, students could each choose a topic to blog, such as peer pressure, tobacco use, gambling, etc., then blog on their insights into the topic, linking to the websites, articles, and other blogs they are discovering.

• Science – A collaborative science experiment with students in another school. At the upper elementary level, students in two different schools might research the effects of music on plant growth. The blog could be used to compare and comment on each class’ results, find websites on the topic, and research the scientific method.

• For the Teacher - A forum for teachers to interact with parents and students about the curricula, school news, and hot topics in education.

What makes blogs appealing as teaching tools?

• They’re immediate – new information can be posted and comments added quickly and easily.

• They’re inexpensive – there are a number of free blog providers; no software to purchase, no server required to host the blog.

• They’re accessible – students can have their work viewed and commented upon by a larger audience than their teacher alone.

• They encourage critical and analytical thinking, and provide practice in writing for an audience.

• They’re accommodating – blogs allow for differences in learning styles and ability levels.

• They can be controlled – you can decide who has access to your blog, and who has the ability to edit it.

• They can become virtual portfolios – students and parents can see the progression of a student’s work.

How to Get Started

• Practice your blogging technique with a free personal blog. Try:– http://www.blogger.com/start– http://spaces.live.com/default.aspx?page=Ed03&ss=F

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• Consult your IT Department – Is anyone else in the school division using blogs in the classroom? Does your division’s Acceptable Use Policy cover the use of blogs?

• Visit as many different blogs as you can to find to see what’s out there in the blogosphere.

Blogs Worth Investigating

• http://central.hcrhs.k12.nj.us/bees - an online novel study

• http://pc40s.blogspot.com – a Math blog for a Calculus class

• http://itc.blogs.com/thewriteweblog/2004/11/who_says_elemen.html - a Grade 5 writing blog

• http://anne.teachesme.com – a teacher’s personal blog, sharing her reflections on using blogs in education

What a wiki is:

• An open-access website on which users can easily add, edit, or delete content.

• A digital, collaborative workspace.

• A place that represents the shared knowledge of many, rather than the knowledge of one individual.

What a wiki isn’t:

• Any more reliable than any other website.

• Any less reliable than any other website.

What are some practical ways to use wikis across the curriculum?

• English Language Arts – Students could create a book review wiki to share their opinions on the books they are reading.

• Social Studies – In the middle years, students could choose cultures as the topic of their classroom wiki. Students could post information on what defines a culture, then record information on different countries, comparing their diverse cultures.

• Arts Education – Students could create a wiki focusing on a famous artist such as Monet, report on his life and work, then post pictures of paintings they have created, imitating Monet’s painting style.

• Science – A plant wiki could show what the class is learning about plants, their parts, and how they are propogated.

• For the Teacher – Some possibilities are a class curriculum wiki, a wiki to post lesson plans to be shared and added to by other teachers, etc.

What makes wikis appealing as teaching tools?

• Students learn about collaboration, publishing, and writing.

• Wikis are a convenient way for students to share what they have learned.

• The wiki process encourages critical and analytical thinking.

• The history option built into wikis discourages website vandalism and allows the site to be restored to a previous version if vandalism does occur.

• A wiki can be open to all students, or individuals/groups can work on their own wikis. Students can be allowed to view the progress of their peers’ work, or information sharing can be blocked until an assignment is ready to be reported or combined into one class wiki.

• The ability to control students’ access to wikis easily enables you to adapt your assignments for different ability levels, while still allowing all students to explore the same topic.

How to Get Started

• Review the basics of wikis by taking the Wiki Walk-Through at: http://www.teachersfirst.com/content/wiki/

• Practice creating your own wikis at:– www.pbwiki.com– http://www.wikisandbox.com– www.seedwiki.com– http://www.wikispaces.com/site/for/teachers100K– http://www.sbhsd.k12.ca.us/sbhslib/teacherhelp/

wikiwayhandouts.pdf - summarizes the basic steps to get started in PBwiki and Seedwiki

• Visit as many wikis as you can to see what’s out there.

Wikis Worth Investigating

• http://schools.wikia.com/wiki/High_School_Online_Collaborative_Writing - a cross-curricular high school wiki

• http://writingwiki.org/default.aspx/WritingWiki/For%20Teachers%20New%20to%20Wikis.html – a site for teachers new to wikis

• http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/South_African_Curriculum - a wiki of the entire high school curriculum of South Africa

• http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Main_Page - examples of online textbooks or wikibooks

Good luckandHave fun!