The idea of using wikis in the media center is intriguing. A
media specialist could create a wiki with pages for each grade level
represented and have teachers post upcoming lessons and the media specialist could
respond with resources available online or in the media center. With all
teachers having access to the wiki, another teacher could comment on things
that worked or didn’t work in his/her classroom. One drawback I did see on the Apalachee
High School Media Center's Wiki is that some of the information was out of
date. If a media specialist posts links for teachers to use in their lesson
plans, the media specialist should be responsible for checking the link
periodically to make sure it is still available. I can only imagine the
problems outdated links could cause while having 23 1st graders staring you
down while you are trying to find the link to a book talk online … talk about
pressure! I also noticed that out of date links were an issue on the Best
Practices Wiki (for and by librarians). If the wiki can be kept up to date and relevant,
I think they have a place in education. I also think a running list of “What
Are You Reading” could be a fun addition to a staff run Media Center wiki. Most
teachers are readers and what a great way to share your new favorites with your
teacher friends? Could maybe even be the start of a Book Club!
Wikis in the classroom – I think the teacher really has to
know her class and know that they could handle the responsibility. Picture this…..
a collaborative book report on “To Kill A Mockingbird” for your class of 8th
graders. The teacher starts off the report with a few sentences and it is the
responsibility of the class to complete it. Because each student has to
register and all changes and additions to the wiki are recorded, the teacher
would know who contributed and who didn’t. As a student, I would have flipped
over the opportunity to do something “fun” like this. A living, breathing wiki
for an assignment like this could make learning more fun and encourage students
to think outside the box and build on their classmates thoughts and ideas. A
wiki could also be used for students working on a class project together – real
time updates while working from home or at the library – no need to spend hours
on a Saturday at the library, when you can collaborate from home! I do think
that a teacher would have to oversee wikis in these cases. I like the Charter that
the ladies at Apalachee High School used for its wiki. I believe all students
need ground rules and need to understand them.
“Don't take it personally when your work is edited. You may not agree with every change. It is fair to ask why a change was made and to expect concrete reasons.”
“Should you be the one editing, it is polite to go to the discussion tab to leave a note explaining why a change was made. It is poor form to delete a post; try to adjust the work instead of erasing it entirely.”
In order for a wiki to become a place for collaboration,
instead of a filing cabinet for information, it needs to be active. All parties
involved need to understand why they are using the wiki and the importance of
posting information there. While a wiki filing cabinet is not necessarily a bad
thing, the information won’t be up to date and probably won’t be useful to many
people.
I will admit, when I first started thinking about wikis for this assignment, I had a negative reaction... wikis? Really? Why would I want to post something online that someone else could change as soon as I posted it? Well... what if they have a better way of saying what I tried to say originally? Overall, I think the idea of wikis in education is a great one. Collaboration at its finest!
I will admit, when I first started thinking about wikis for this assignment, I had a negative reaction... wikis? Really? Why would I want to post something online that someone else could change as soon as I posted it? Well... what if they have a better way of saying what I tried to say originally? Overall, I think the idea of wikis in education is a great one. Collaboration at its finest!
The overall notion of Wikis within the classroom and media center is a very intriguing concept. There are pros and cons for the use of Wikis. Wikis can be used to transform an ordinary assignment into an extraordinary project that the kids will love to collaborate and share in and outside of a classroom setting. Another advantage of Wikis is that each team member can have access to the wiki anytime and place. Therefore, individuals can work at their leisure to complete task. Although there are many positives of using Wikis; Wikis are not without fault. Some of the pitfalls of utilizing Wikis can be that the initial setup may be time consuming and tedious, it is easy to modify content from the original text and the moderator can be devastated by grading the various entries if there are a lot of post.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Emilia. From my readings, I do think that the pros outweigh the cons. The possibilities are endless when it comes to lesson planning and student assignments!
ReplyDeleteI love your idea of using a Wiki for collaboration between the media specialist and classroom teachers. In the our elementary school, our media center is used as a specials. Our media specialist spends most of her time assisting in student checkout since she is the only one in the media center. She will do a small whole group lesson and activity for students after they have completed their book selection. She could use the wiki to help guide her mini-lessons and activities to align with classroom lessons. I am sure it is impossible for her to collaboratively plan with all grade levels, but this would be a quick and easy resource for all and would benefit the students.
ReplyDeleteMy mentor's media center has to deal with specials now too. I think the biggest hurdle is getting the classroom teachers to the point where they WANT to collaborate. My mentor is NEVER asked to find resources for teachers, even though she has offered her services.
DeleteI love your title, Holly, because it does seem to be a polarizing topic, these pesky wikis. (I like your brief history, by the way, as well as the link to your newly minted wiki). You brought some excellent new ideas to the table, though. Providing a wiki as a communication and collaboration tool for the SLMS to work with the teachers is a great idea! As a teacher, I could update a section from my workstation with my lesson plan, unit of study, etc. and then go retrieve ideas and resources from the SLMS without having to leave my computer. This would also keep it active with continual updates and improved resources as the years go by. I also like the idea for a "What You Are Reading" section. We do this every year to post to our school website, but it is a static document, and by the time we update it in pre-planning the next year, I've forgotten half the books I read over the year. The wiki would allow real-time updates as well as a place for me to find new titles to try. My favorite idea is the collaborative book report. One of the challenges I face as an English teacher is helping students improve their writing. I can show them models, but without the metacognitive element of having someone explain his or her composition and revision, it can be difficult for students to make the connections. If I had ground rules in place on the wiki (like the ones you noted), students would have to explain the changes they make, justifying the revisions. This could help a student whose section was changed understand the weakness of his writing and see an improved version of it. I do take Emilia's point that grading can get out of hand, though. So, love 'em or leave 'em? Well, I've only used them in my classroom once, and I abandoned for different methods of collaboration, but I might revisit them based on your ideas!
ReplyDeleteSince I am not in a classroom or my own media center, I may have "pie in the sky" ideas about wikis. I love the book report idea, but do you think it could really work? What were the other methods you used for collaboration?
DeleteI like your idea of using Wikis to complete a group or class project. The example you gave for the book report on "To Kill a Mockingbird" would be a great way to get EVERYONE to work together. The idea of the teacher starting it is awesome. I am thinking more on a high school level and unfortunately, there is not a lot of collaboration as such that goes on between the media specialist and the teachers, unless the students are working on a research paper. But if they were to create a wiki to collaborate and share information, this would be a great avenue to get the collaboration started. I agree, the media specialist would have to keep the information updated which would require everyone following up and doing their part. I think using wikis is a great idea for collaboration.
ReplyDelete