What+is+a+Wiki?

= media type="youtube" key="-dnL00TdmLY" height="189" width="234" align="right"Title: What is a "Wiki"? =

1. Introduction
A wiki is a unique web site that encourages people to become editors of text. Anyone who has availability to the internet can create or edit web page content by utilizing a web browser. Wiki’s are great for collaboration on an issue because you can type in your ideas and then the next person can add their thoughts and change something if necessary. Furthermore, you can include hyperlinks as well so that you can add multiple pages or links to outside websites. It is a wonderful tool because it can always change with updated information and material to keep up with the times.

2. Impact on Education
A wiki is starting to transform how some educational issues are taught and worked on. For example, many projects are now worked on on-line so that students can collaborate with each other via the computer for an assignment. Each person can have a say in what is happening and they can all be working when it is convenient for them. They can edit and make changes to the site all at one time if they wish. Furthermore it holds all students accountable for doing some work in a project because you can check to see who added in what information or edited certain ideas. Teachers are able to check up on the progress of the project and offer suggestions and thoughts on what is going well or how to revise so that students stay on track. The use of technology is gaining students’ interest and makes them want to participate in group projects. Also wikis are preparing them for the possible future careers in which technology will be very prevalent.

3. Issues and Implications
Although wikis sound wonderful to utilize in the classroom there are always issues and implications with each form of technology. One issue is normally the schools technology use policy because it is not quite up with the times and may not reflect the idea of utilizing a wiki for classroom purposes. In addition, you have to watch out that students are not editing sites that they shouldn’t be and putting on materials that are inappropriate that could get themselves and the school in trouble. On another note, you have to think about the project and how much will need to be done outside of class because not all students have internet capability at home so that would not be fair to those students. Furthermore, you have to truly be careful how much information you let the students post on-line. Even though they may be excited about what they accomplished and want everyone to know you still need to watch out for their identity and keep them protected as much as possible, so even putting full names on the computer should be monitored from wiki sites at all times.

4. The Future
The future of wikis in the classroom and education is looking to be a dominant factor. Wikis allow students to be active, engaged, and feel a sense of accomplishment. They allow teachers to implement cross-curricular ideas simply. It brings about a new initiative for students on the idea of studying. Furthermore, students begin to enjoy collaborating with others and learn to work as a team extremely well, which is an outstanding life lesson. Finally they are using technology, and technology is the future.

5. Report three web resources or journal resources that you used for this assignment
Title: Teachers First: Wiki Walk-Through [] Title: Wikis in Education and other tools for Collaborative Writing [] Title: Change Issues in Curriculum and Instruction/Wikis in the Classroom []