Wide World of Wikis and Blogs: a novice guide
Jessica Pater Georgia Tech Research Institute August 25, 2007
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Overview
• Define concepts and trends
• Blogs • Wikis
• Designing your own!
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The Web 2.0 Classroom
Learning, Classrooms, Peers, Collaborations, Conversations, Colleagues, Content
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Benefits Within the Classroom
• Read/Reflect/Write
• Engages students in conversation and learning • Empowers students • Creates a learning community
• Extends the audience for writing beyond the teacher
• Allows for instant and continuous feedback • Promotes creativity • Supports differentiation • Encourages further study • Builds technology skills
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What is a Blog?
• A combination of web and log
• A website where entries are written and displayed;
provide commentary on a multitude of subjects
• Often incorporates images, video, links, and other
media into the text
• Readers have the ability to comment on postings
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Uses Within the Classroom
1.
2. 3.
Instruction or tutor blog: resources, information, space to chat
Learner blog: reflections, sharing links and pics, fosters ownership of learning Partner blog: work on team projects or activities
4.
5. 6. 7.
Class blog: international exchanges, projects PBL
Revision: review and explode sentences from previous posts, add details Nutshell: summarize themes or comments across blogs Blog on blog: reflections on feelings, confusions, and experiences with blogs
Bonk 2007
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Blogger Software: The Choices are endless!
• Blogger: http://www.blogger.com/ • 21 Classes: http://www.21classes.com • Dairyland: http://www.dairyland.com • Live Journal: http://www.sixapart.com/livejournal/ • Moveable Type:
http://www.sixapart.com/moveabletype
• Pitas: http://www.pitas.com • Elgg: http://www.eduspaces.com
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Educational Blogs
• Uses: replace the standard class web page,
integration of internet into courses, organization of class discussions, provide summaries of lessons, integrate student work into more accessible forum
• The Journal of Harriet Tubman
• World War II • 7th Grade Math
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What is a Wiki?
• Literal translation…quick, quick
• A website or similar online resource which allows
users to add and edit content collectively by anyone who visits the wiki.
• Wiki also refers to the collaborative software used
to create such a website.
• Content on a wiki is only limited by the imagination
of the creator and/or people editing content.
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Wiki Resources/Options
• Wikipedia • Wiktionary • Wikibooks
Are these resources reliable?
• Wikiversity
• Wikispecies • Wikinews • Wikiquote
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Why do they work…especially Wikipedia?
• The empowerment of ownership within the sphere
of knowledge
• Increase of democratic ideals worldwide
• The community takes care of itself
• The level of transparency • Neutrality over time
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Uses Within the Classroom
• Debate of course topics and readings
• Share resources like websites, conferences,
publications, etc.
• Provide space for free expression
• Facilitate group projects • Write a wikibook • Quickly and concisely disseminate course materials
Bonk 2007
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Wiki Farms
• Refers to a server or a collection of servers that
provides wiki hosting, or a group of wikis hosted on such servers (Bonk)
http://pbwiki.com/ http://www.seedwiki.com/ http://www.jot.com http://www.stikipad.com
For more wiki farms, go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiki_farm
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Educational Wikis
• Uses: easy and quick websites, project
development with peer review, group authoring, tracking a group project, data collection
• Flat Classroom Project • Jerusalem Literature Project
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Creating your own Wiki
Please refer to your handout to create your personal wiki. Don’t hesitate to ask for assistance
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Questions?
We are here to help!
Jessica Pater Jessica.Pater@gtri.gatech.edu
Foundations for the Future www.f3program.org
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