A community is like a ship: Everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm--Henrik Ibsen

Geoff Hunt. (painter). Retrieved July 23, 2009 from http://seawayblog.blogspot.com/2008/03/tall-ships-art.html

Each of us belongs to a community. Whether it be our neighbourhood, academic community, church, or online community, we all have a desire to belong and contribute to the communities that we are in. Wikis build upon that innate desire in each of us, as they create online communities using a bottom-up approach to knowledge acquisition. In this community, each user becomes an expert in their field with other members of the community validating or changing the information as they see fit. Members take turns at the "helm" both as creator of new information or as editor of that information.

What is a wiki?

Quite simply, wikis are "collaborative websites where anybody can edit and publish" (Konieczy, 2007). Wikis are designed with the online community in mind. The power of a wiki is in its ability to coordinate a particular group's information, as explained in Wikis in Plain English.
Commoncraft. (Producer). (2007). Wikis in plain English. Retrieved July 23, 2009 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dnL00TdmLY&feature=related

So, its just as simple as edit, save, and link?? Well, almost. Bergin (2002), extols the virtues of having a wiki for each of his courses and says "It gives me a way to communicate easily and asynchronously with [students] on course topics. They also use it to communicate with me and each other. I also use it to quickly dispel misconceptions and correct errors I might make in class." Bruns and Humphrey (2005) note that "the wiki form is one that encourages and enables learning in ways that many other Web-based tools fail to do."

Why use wikis rather than other more traditional forms of teaching?

In order to justify using a new Web 2.0 application in my classroom, I must see a benefit to using it over the methods that I currently employ. As Benson et. al. (2002) state, there is a difference between using technology to supplement traditional methods and using it "to create opportunities for new methods that may not be possible without them." Wikis do have the ability to create new opportunities for students in classrooms. Some benefits to using wikis in classrooms are:

1. Wikis are easier to use than traditional web pages. Wikis do not require you to download special software to use them. They can do virtually anything a traditional web page can and require the user to only have basic computer skills.

2. Students can receive feedback from a world-wide audience. It would be impossible to afford your students this opportunity without having them post information on a wiki.

3. Students are actively engaged in learning. While this can occur in traditional classroom environments, using wikis provides students with a new way to actively engage in an ongoing project. In theory, the editing of a wiki is never done. As students learn new information, they can add to their wiki as needed.

4. Wikis are great for cooperative learning activities. Groups of students can work together on projects both as contributors and editors. Using wikis may encourage continuous work on a project rather than a last minute rush job as teachers and peers can see the progress as it unfolds.

5. Wikis are great for distance learners. Distance learning is one of the latest trends in education. By using wikis, teachers can assign students partner work, even if the two students live hundreds of miles apart. Also, students can share their work easily with peers who are not sitting in the same classroom as them.

6. Forte and Bruckman's (2006) recent study discovered that students appreciate having an audience that can comment on their work. They also discovered that when students are publishing for an audience, the quality of their writing increases.

7. Wikis provide students with a non-threatening, open forum to discuss issues. Students can easily debate with one another and receive opinions from others not in their class.

8. More heads are better than one. The greatest strength of wikis is their ability to draw on the knowledge and experiences of the collective group. Each person who reads/edits the wiki can add their bit of knowledge that others in the group may not have known as they take the "helm of the ship."

How can I use wikis in my classroom?

The possibilities for using wikis in your classroom are truly endless. Many universities have created school-wide wikis, such as the one created at the University of Calgary for its students. Konieczny (2007) provides many ideas for teacher's use in his article. Some ides that resonated with me include creating websites, posting an updated course syllabus, group authoring of an article, tracking a group project on a per-contributor basis, peer reviewing, having discussion boards, organizing virtual group study rooms, using wikis for data collection,and creating collaborative lecture notes.

To add to this list, writingwiki.org offered some further suggests including setting up class debates, sharing resources with each other, and writing a wikibook. I love the idea of having the class all contribute to the creation of a class story. Even in early elementary classes, students would be able to engage in this shared writing activity. For a more extensive list of ideas, check out the Teachers First website. It provides users with a search of ideas based upon the subject and grade level you are teaching.

Where do I go to create a wiki?

One of the first questions I wondered was, where do I do to create these "wikis"? I did a search for some free, education-related sites where teachers could create their own wikis. Most of these simply require you to create a user name and password and then you can begin creating and editing. Pictures, links, and videos can be added, just be aware of copyright implications and be sure to reference everything you use. Here are some of the sites I found:

1. WikiEducator: This site offers teachers the opportunity to host free wiki sites. What I appreciated about this site, is that it provided new users the opportunity to receive skills training with facilitator support to get you started.

2. Wikijunior: This site's goal is to publish non-fiction books for young children. You have the opportunity, or your class has the opportunity, to produce and edit books on more than a dozen topics. There are currently hundreds of modules available on the books that have already been published.

3. Curriki: This wiki is designed for teachers rather than students. Here members can contribute, edit, and rate lesson plans on any subject or grade level.

4. Wet Paint's Wikis in Education: This site offers teachers ad-free wiki hosting services.

Taking the Wiki Plunge

I wanted to see first hand what it was like to become a "member" of a wiki community. I decided to sign up for Wikibooks primarily because I was interested in their Wikijunior section. In a minute I had my user name and password. As I began to surf around the site, I quickly began to feel a part of something bigger than myself. This truly was a community at work. Members could vote for deletion/undeletion of content, nominate books that they want to see featured and vote on policy. In the "reading room" you can ask questions about content, technical information or get help with just about anything.

I went to the Wikijunior section and browsed around several pages. I noted that at the top of each page their were several tabs. One of particular interest was the history tab. By clicking on this, you can see the dates of previous edits, what editing was done, and by whom. You can choose to delete those edits if you feel it is necessary. I noted with interest at the top of each page their is advice for editors regarding formatting and the target audience, in this case children.

I honestly did not truly fathom the magnitude of work that has went on by mostly volunteers to create a wiki of this size. They were asking for people to help with everything from providing expertise on disputed articles to helping create pages that would link to others that were already made. If nothing else, this little journey into the inside of Wikibooks made me appreciate the hours of time others have given to make my life better.

The Pitfalls of Wikis

Here she goes again with the pitfalls.....I know, but it is important to understand both sides to any issue before you begin actively using it your classroom. Just like with the other Web 2.0 applications I have studied, I have noticed some pitfalls associated with using wikis.

1. Anyone can edit your wiki.

Q: How many wiki users does it take to change a light bulb?
A: One, but anyone can change it back.--langreiter.com

And thus lies one of the strengths, yet pitfalls of wikis. A malicious user can go in and destroy your content. Is this a huge deal? No, as you can easily reverse their edit. It is important that teachers teach students how to revert their work back to a previous form if needed.

2. Students may be reluctant to edit each others' work. Some students may view critiquing their peers' writing as impolite or, in return, may not appreciate having their own work edited by someone else.

3. Students will likely be writing in a public forum. This can create anxiety for young writers who are still honing their craft. Teachers can create wikis that only can be viewed by certain group members. This, however, comes at the cost of losing outsiders' contributions to the students' work.

4. Using wikis does require some technological skills that some students will have to learn. These skills are quite basic in nature (Remember: Its as easy as edit, save, link)

[Man changing bulb]. Retrieved July 23, 2009 from http://pro.corbis.com/Enlargement/Enlargement.aspx?id=CB040077&ext=1

The Mother of all Wikis: Wikipedia

No examination of wikis would be complete without a brief discussion of Wikipedia, or as I like to call it, the mother of all wikis. Wikipedia has revolutionized the way we, as lay people, conduct research in our everyday lives. No longer do we have volumes of encyclopedias lining our shelves, but rather we seek Wikipedia, our online, user created, encyclopedia's advice. Parry (2008) recognizes this paradigm shift by stating that "encyclopedias are no longer static collections of facts and figures; they are living entities, and the new software changes the rules of expertise." With Wikipedia, we all can be experts in something.

Judy Green. (photographer). (2008). Wikipedia Photo. Retrieved July 23, 2009 from http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/hsc-students-to-get-wikipedia-course-20090618-clb5.html

This empowerment of the common man now turned expert has raised concerns as to Wikipedia's validity as a source. Some school's such as the one Librarian Linda O'Connor works for, have embarked on anti-Wikipedia campaigns. Linda has went as far as posting "Just Say No to Wikipedia" posters in her library. Comedian Stephen Colbert has coined the term "wikability" meaning that anything can become truth if enough people agree. Recently, a 22 year old Dublin student put Wikipedia to the test when he posted a fake quote that he attributed to recently deceased composer Maurice Jarre. Even though Wikipedia removed the quote within 24 hours of posting, many journalists from around the world began quoting it in newspapers and television reports. While the hoax was intended to discredit both the media and Wikipedia, it does show two things. First, don't believe everything you read. Whether it be on Wikipedia or any other site, use your critical literacy skills. Second, Wikipedia is fantastic at self-correcting itself. I was quite impressed that Wikipedia had the quote corrected so quickly. The student stated that the first time he posted to quote, it was removed within minutes. After a few more tries, it eventually stayed posted for the 24 hour period.

Some researchers have looked extensively at Wikipedia's reliability. Giles (2005) argues in his article posted in Nature that Wikipedia is almost as reliable as Encyclopedia Britannica. Rosenzweig (2006) claims Wikipedia is as comprehensive as Microsoft's Encarta. Further Parry (2008) views banning Wikipedia in schools as irresponsible.

So how do teachers negotiate this discrepancy in beliefs? Baduke (2008) offers some suggestions for teachers. First, teach students the difference between academic sources and non-academic sources. While Wikipedia is great for finding out basic information, it is no substitute for academic sources. The following clip offers students some advice on when to use Wikipedia as a source and when to look elsewhere.
Vibiana Bowman. (Writer). (2008). Wikipedia tutorial: A guide for students. Retrieved July 23, 2008 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=GB&hl=en-GB&v=XPC-bNX9O_E&feature=related

Second, teachers need to teach students skills in how to critically analyze articles they read on Wikipedia. Take sample articles and critique them as a class to allow students practice on how to become critical consumers of the information they read. Finally, have students become creators and editors of Wikipedia articles themselves just as Dr. Pratt of the University of East Anglia did. This gives them a first-hand look at the process used in creating Wikipedia articles and, perhaps, a better sense as to its validity as academic research vs. good general information.

As you now begin to take the helm of your own wiki ship, I leave you with this wiki prayer:

Please, grant me the serenity to accept the pages I cannot edit,
The courage to edit the pages I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference.

Bon Voyage!