Welcome
back to my Blog. Today I want to discuss wikis.
According
to West and West (2009) a wiki is a collaborative web space where anyone can
add content and anyone can edit content that has already been published (p.
3). A wiki facilitates collaboration. It
allows groups to collaborate, share and build online content, and is especially
useful for distance learners who are separated by time and space (West and West
2009). According to King and Cox (2011)
“wiki are the perfect tool for collaboration, as they are easily editable” (p.
121). I can attest to this fact, having done a wiki project before. Added to that is the fact that I am in a
different country from all my classmates.
There
are a number of advantages to using a wiki as a collaboration tool. They are practical (allowing for
collaboration); political (allowing freedom of participation; and, timely
(providing up-to-date content) (King and Cox 2011 p. 126). As an asynchronous form of communication, it
compares favorably against other similar types of communication, including
blogs and threaded discussion, especially when collaboration is the objective.
There
are different types of wikis and they carry various disadvantages. Some offer minimal management capabilities,
others provide limited security, and some come at a cost. From a personal
perspective, having worked on a wiki project, my greatest fear was ‘spoiling’
the wiki page or removing something that shouldn’t be removed. This worry may cause other me and other persons
to not be as active in using this excellent adult learning technology.
Below
is a great YouTube link that gives an easy explanation of using wikis.
References:
King,
K. & T. Cox (2011). The professor’s guide to taming technology. Charlotte,
NC: Information Age Publishing.
West,
J. & M. West (2009). Using Wikis for online collaboration: The power of the
read-write web. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass
Murphy,
ReplyDeleteGood video example. This will be the first experience I have had with using wikis, so when you said that you were afraid of spoiling the page by removing or altering the content, that really caught my attention. I can see how you would have that feeling. As a composition instructor, I often have to walk a fine line with my students when giving feedback prior to an assignment due date as I want to be helpful, but I don't want to be the factor that causes them to change the dynamics of the essay. It seems like this is similar of the challenges that can be associated with wikis, especially if you know the person who posted the original content you're considering replacing and you know they spent a good deal of time coming up with that information in the first place.
Murphy,
ReplyDeleteI agree that wikis are a practical forum for group projects and collaboration. As you may know, it wasn’t until recent years that wiki pages have been utilized in on-line adult education classrooms to aid students in deeper learning (King & Cox, 2011). I started using on-line education almost 15 years ago and recall group papers that would get passed around in email. In one instance, we were waiting for one of the group members to complete his portion of the project, and he replied saying that he turned the project in to the instructor. When I asked for a final copy, I would get no response. Finally, I asked the instructor for a final copy of our paper, and to my surprise the other student had turned in something entirely different than what we had all been collaborating on. Wikis are an efficient and practical way of working on group projects. Thanks for sharing!
King, K. & Cox, T. (2011). The professor’s guide to taming technology. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Hi Murphy,
ReplyDeleteI have had several opportunities during my journey through my Master’s program in Adult Education to use wiki’s and I have yet to be disappointed with the outcome. While I am not a huge fan of blogging, I think Wiki’s are great! The ability to collaborate with people anywhere in the world without having to worry about time differences is amazing. One of my current group member’s is five hours difference than the rest of us and we are still able to work on this project without having a zoom or discussion board needed to communicate. One thing I like a lot about a wiki is that you can come continue to make changes and provide up to date information depending on the site. I have noticed though, that I cannot go back to old wiki’s from classes and make updates. I am able to access them and I see mistakes, or APA errors, but I am no longer able to adjust the content. The good news about the past wiki’s is that they are not available to the public when conducted through my class curriculum.