Educational Wikis

 

The article “Educational Wikis: Features and Selective Criteria” by Linda Schwartz gave me an understanding about the role of wikis in education and identify the differences between blogging and wikis. The quote “A wiki can be a blog, but a blog does not have to be a wiki” led me to see all the features that wikis can have. What was a significant distinctive feature was that while in blogs it is easy to identify contributions or establish the authority of the content. From a teaching perspective, wikis can be used for interactive activities which can foster collaboration and build communities of practice.

To be able to understand how wikis can be implemented for effective classroom practice, I think, Ts should read the research on discussing the factors contributing to Ss’ involvement in a wiki project. Nature of the tasks, student presence of  working style, quality of S contributions, and instructor attitudes are all factors that can affect  the effective use of wikis in collaboration. This particular research shows that certain factors such as share of workload, appreciation of different opinions, constant communication facilitated S engagement; while factors like asynchronous communication, time pressure, personal incapability, roles not taken seriously hindered this collaboration. Hence, I would agree that first of all it’s necessary to create a mandatory collaborative environment, and through time Ls will be motivated not just to fulfill a task, but to build a sense of community, to sustain good collaboration without delays.

I will use wikis in the classroom for collaborative tasks, because they can enhance such higher order skills as group problem solving, brainstorming, critical evaluation, synthesis, idea refinement, and group consensus.