I know that the use of blogging and wikis is becoming more commonplace in classrooms, but that doesn't help quell my apprehension about the new-to-me technologies. There are so many benefits to exposing students to these web tools, but even after all the research and reading I have done on it this week, I am left with more questions than answers.
Technology Access
I live in a very rural area, and believe it or not, there are still people who do not have internet access in their homes, either because of their location, or because of a poverty situation. If we incorporate something like blogging/wikis into our curriculum we need to set aside class time for students to contribute, otherwise, those without access to computers or internet at home would not benefit from the activity. We cannot just allow certain students to do the work in class because then we risk singling them out, and drawing attention to their home life, and we know how cruel children can be.
Chaos in an Organized World
I will be the first to admit it. I have a problem. I am hyper-organized. Yes, this might be an asset to a librarian, but it also means that wikis stress me out. To me, they seem like complete chaos. When I first started researching them it was through the lens of basic linear thought. I was thinking, how can the information stay organized if anyone can change it at will? How will I know where my words end and the students' begin? How will I keep track of who makes which changes? Will it take a ton of my already limited time to sort all of this out? I needed to take a step back and look at it from a different perspective. I am used to blogs and message boards which are organized so that each comment follows the one before in a very organized manner; all new posts and comments are dated and ordered and my Type A brain loves this. Wikis are different and I realize now that I cannot change them to suit my way of thinking, I need to change my way of thinking to understand wikis. There are ways to keep the wiki more organized, like assigning each student a color to write in, or having them "sign" their name after each change, but it will never be like a blog. However, that doesn't mean that my students will not benefit from it. Wikis encourages collaboration, and a sense of community ownership and responsibility that blogs, while great in their own ways, simply cannot do. Providing students opportunity with both will help them to develop multiple skill areas and parts of the brain....just like I am doing by learning about them.
Vandalism on Class Blogs and Wikis
We all know that one student who just can't be trusted not to make mean, or "funny" comments during a class discussion. Usually its the same student who is opening up windows on the computer what they shouldn't be, or attempting to access blocked pages with inappropriate URLs. I don't have just one of these students. I've had dozens of them and they are a huge concern for me with a project like this. They are unpredictable. I simply do not know how they would respond to a project like a blog or wiki. It is possible they would feel a sense of control and choice because it belongs to them, or to the collective class. But it is equally probable that they will make inappropriate comments, or rude/hurtful comments about another students ideas and contributions. My main goal is to keep my the learning environment in my classroom as positive and invitational as possible, and without monitoring blogs/wikis 24/7. I am left uncertain how I can keep that positive environment, especially when the wiki is open to the whole internet. Yes, I understand that I can always remove the offending comment or revert to a previous version of the wiki, but in order to keep the wiki environment the way I'd like, I would have to do that before students see any offensive material, and I don't know how to do that easily.
Examples of How Teachers are Using Wikis
Mrs. Cassidy's students wanted to know what 1000 looks like, so they collected 1000 names by posting a wiki.
Mrs. Anderson uses her wiki to keep student portfolios, communicate with parents, and post media content for students.
Mr. Driscoll used his wiki to host a student led debate about climate change for 10th, 11th & 12th graders.
These are just a few of the many wikis I looked at that helped me to decide that wikis are definitely worth learning and incorporating into our classroom, even though I still have a lot to learn about them.
Do you use a wiki in your classroom or library? I would love to see how you use them! Feel free to link in the comments.
No comments:
Post a Comment