922-Session 9-Dissecting a Wiki and Your Wiki Chapter

This week we will be dissecting a wiki. If you would like to start by reading past participants' comments from my 921 course on this topic, then you will find last semester's here and more below:

Fall '08

Summer '08
Older comments

I thought a lot about how to address this session and decided to stray from the usual presentation format (again) and teach this session entirely from the blog. I believe that it is always easier to 'show' instead of 'tell,' so the bulk of this session will be spent watching videos that will help clarify the nuances and details that make a wiki such a powerful tool--as well as address the topics laid out in the syllabus: new literacies, wiki benefits, and wiki drawbacks.

Now, just be aware that there is some redundancy in these clips, so feel free to fast-forward through parts that you have already seen. You may also find that you would rather apply this week's time and energy towards your Final Project.

Some of you have been sending me links to your wiki chapters from either a Google Docs page or a wiki page. Please post a link to your wiki chapter here. If you run into any trouble with images transferring over or a similar issue, don't stress over it. Contact me with the details and we'll find an alternate placement and then just put a link to it from w/i the wiki.

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Let's start this week with some tutorials on how to use our Wikispaces page. First let's look at how to edit a page:

make a link w/i your new page:

Later on this semester you may want to know how to place a video on your wiki page:

Let's start with a clip from one of the many companies that offer free wikis for you to use. This one is from PBwiki.com. They claim that making a wiki on their site is as easy as making a peanut butter sandwich. Please keep notes while watching these.

I hope you liked that one. This next video focuses upon how collaboration really works. It is a good transition from our last session on Collective Intelligence.





So naturally, these 'beg the question' about ease of use. Is it really as easy as making a peanut butter sandwich? Well let's take a look at an explanation.

And this one shows you how wikis can help educators educate:

And lastly, we'll address the underlying issue all educators have about using Web 2.0 tools in education----SECURITY for our students.

Now I want you to take a break. When you come back we'll take a look at this 4-part online video course, created by the University of Wisconson-Milwaukee. It addresses some of the benefits and drawbacks of wikis. The great thing about it is that it is self-pacing and asynchronous just like this course. Again, I would like to remind you to take notes as you progress through these tutorials, so that you may post quality comments and insights when you have completed everything this week. If you feel part 1 is redundant then please skip forward to 2, 3, & 4.

University of Wisconson-Milwaukee

I hope you enjoyed the variety in this session's presentation and I would like to end this week's posting with a reminder that your Deliverable #2 (your wikichapter) should be posted to the wiki page. If you chose a different wikiservice then please just place a link our your name.

Also, please keep in mind that D3 is now eliminated. I also think that next week I'll post two sessions, so you can get a head-start on adding material for your Final Project DUE BY MIDNIGHT ON JULY 24TH. The end of the semester will be here before you know it, so please use the next week to get a headstart.

As always, feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

DF