The tech tool I chose to explore was wikispaces. Wikispaces are new to me this year and I this is only the second class I have ever used them in. The first class that I used a wiki in was Math 205, with a partner I created three different lessons. The first was a game for students in the 3rd grade, the game was math based and a version of egyptian solitar. The wiki was very helpful for my partner and I to gather our ideas and create these projects together with out ever actually being together. My partner and I could both go in and edit the page and post comments that no one else could see about the project. Having the ability to both edit the space was a huge benefit because we could catch little mistaks or add more details to one anothers ideas. I think that wikis are really great educational resources, thats why I chose to look at Tech & Learning's Eight Ways To Use Schools Wikis.
Eight ways to us school wikis was a great resource and I wish I had a chance to look at these sites before I ever started a wiki myself. I think it would have been benefitial to have a technology class outlining or introducing these ideas earlier on in my education so that I could have been better prepared to use these tools. I especially liked that this website gave really great examples of how to use a wiki for school. Wikis have decrease confusion and clutter in school, now everyone knows where to look for important information. Wikis are great for displaying: Announcements, attendance, visitors, recognition, and notes or surveys.
Other ways that wikis in school are beneficial include:
Make meetings more efficient
Collaboration
Enhance professional Development
Saves time
Lesson portal
If the school that I'm hired at doesn't already use wikis I would definitely suggest that they look into getting one started for the school to collaborate through.
Other wiki pages I looked at included: Teachers first wiki walk through, and Examples of educational wikis, both of these sites had great information for someone looking to start a wiki.
I often find the way wikis are set up or the way they function rather confusing. However, they are a pretty fascinating and convenient way to not only publicize information or events, but allow others to interact and contribute to this information. This makes them very unique.
ReplyDeleteI liked that you picked wikis. I really have not used them, till this class. Think that it is cool that you were able to complete an assignment without even meeting up with them. They are awesome for collaboration. It would be cool for everyone in their intership to share lessons they have had success on in a wiki
ReplyDeleteI am not super familiar with wikis so it was great to read about them in your blog. I would love to uae them more because they sound like great resources. I think it would be a great way for teachers to keep in touch with parents.
ReplyDeleteI used Wikis for a group project in a different class, but I kind of felt like we were thrown out there to figure it out on our own. Wikis are not super difficult to figure out, but like you mentioned, life could have been made easier had we been told to look at a resource like Tech & Learning's Eight Ways To Use Schools Wikis. I hadn't thought about using a wiki in a classroom setting, what a good idea!
ReplyDeleteThis class is the first time I have had any introduction to wikis. I think it would be great if more teachers used them to help students collaborate on work, I never thought of using wikis in a classroom but I think they could be a great resource for a teacher to stay in touch with the parents of the students.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first had to use a Wiki through Blackboard, I about had a FIT! The formatting kept changing and it drove me crazy. I think that I am now either getting the hang of it more or Blackboard has improved its Wiki program/interface (or whatever computer term that would be).
ReplyDeleteI agree that it would have been very nice to have a tech class on Wikis before being assigned to make them. It would have saved me countless hours of frustration! I can't believe you did a Wiki for Math 205. THAT is impressive! Anyone who can take math online/distance deserves a huge round of applause!
I had never really used wikis before this class, but think that they are a nice tool to be able to use. I think that wikis could be really useful in the older elementary grades when you can have students use them to put together class projects.
ReplyDeleteWikis are a tool to be used, but I still don't see how younger students could use them in class. Do you have the link for the eight ways to use wikis in school? I'd be interested in looking at that so I can better understand how to use the wikis with younger kids.
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