The Birth of the Wiki
21 years ago, in March 1995, Ward Cunningham invented the WikiWikiWeb. The concept was based off of the offline HyperCard Stack System that Cunningham had used in the late 1980s. He came up with the term "wikiwiki" which was later shortened to "wiki" after he was at the Honolulu International Airport, and an airport employee directed him to take a "wiki wiki" shuttlebus.
Wiki Wiki means "quick" in Hawaiian. The idea behind WikiWikiWeb pages was that content could be edited quickly by the user's of the site. Initially, Cunningham was going to call his new site Quick Web, but instead settled on WikiWikiWeb.
The purpose of WikiWiki Web was to make the exchanging of ideas easy for everyone.
Ward Cunningham's WikiWikiWeb can be viewed here: http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?WikiWikiWeb
2014 interview with Ward Cunningham:
So, what is a Wiki?
A wiki is a collaborative website. The content on a wiki site can be edited by visitors to the site. This unique feature of the wiki allows users to easily create and edit web pages collaboratively. Wikis not only an ample source of information/knowledge, but they are also a great tool for collaborative writing/authoring. Wikis also allow for visitors to take part in discussions, and share information among participants in group projects. It is no surprise that Wikis are major components of a Web 2.0 classroom.
Wiki in a Web 2.0 classroom
A "web 2.0" classroom utilized web 2.0 tools. Web 2.0 tools are characterized by how easy they are to use & their "rapidity of deployment" which makes information sharing, and collaboration possible. Web 2.0 tools require little technical skill. With Web 2.0 tools users are able to focus on the learning task by "seeing through the technology they are using."
Web 2.0 tools include blogs, wikis, podcasts, and RSS feeds. They are viewed as "social software" because they encourage users to develop web content collaboratively and open for all to read. Wikis involve learners in their own "construction of knowledge." Wikis allow users to engage in dialogue, share information with one and other.
Wikis are distinguished from other websites due to their unique information sharing & collaborative features.
Wikis support computer based collaborative learning. Collaboration occurs through the technology, which expands education & research. Wikis strengthen peer interaction in a class, and group work. Assisting in the sharing & distribution of knowledge among a group of learners, Wikis promote communication among students, cooperative learning, and are said to reduce competition in the classroom.
Collaborative learning is strongest when it takes place in a "community of practice." A community of practice is a group of individuals who take part in collective learning in a shared domain. In this scenario learning takes place as a collaborative group process. Wikis are the knowledge platform for a community of practice where the members of the community sharing their knowledge with a group, post interesting informative pieces, work together, and discuss issues.
The Constructivist Perspective
Constructivism focuses on how learning happens. It centers around the idea that knowledge is constructed as oppose to given. Constructive learning engages students in meaningful learning. Constructive learning is active, manipulative, constructive, reflective, intentional, authentic, challenging, real world, cooperative, collaborative and controversial.
An explanation of the above terms:
-Active & Manipulative learning gets students with interacting & exploring the learning material. This type of learning provides opportunities for students to see the results of their manipulation
-Constructive & reflective learning enables students to integrate new ideas with old knowledge to enable learning through reflection.
-Intentional learning provides students opportunities to focus on their learning goals, and monitor their progress
-Authentic, challenging, and real world learning provides helps students understand & take the new knowledge they've learned and apply it to new situations.
-Cooperative, collaborative and controversial learning provides students the opportunity to connect with one and other to clarify ideas, seek help, discuss problems/solutions.
There are many benefits to a constructivist online learning environment, so much so this is the reason Wikis have been introduced into the classroom.
Wikis are also known to play a key part in students' reflection process. Reflection is one of critical factors in constructivism, Wikis also serve to enrich the students' learning experience.
Wikis also allow for students to collaboratively build resources In reflective learning, learners are encouraged to reflect on their experiences. Wikis not only permit reflection for the individual, but they also encourage such reflection be done collaboartively. Since wikis are easy to use, they become a valuable classroom resource that promotes collaborative, constructive learning that everyone can partake in.
Wikis also promote both peer & teacher discussion, something social constructivists feel is important (social constructivists believe students learn through "social & communal activities'") Wikis promote a strong sense of community, and focus on the community as opposed to the individual learner.
Wikis can also be helpful in narrative analysis.
The collaborative essence of a Wiki also allows for teachers & students to work together on a topic whether that be writing an article. A wiki could even be an object of learning.
In 2007, when Parker & Chao published this article, the use of wikis in the classroom was just starting to be on the rise. Colleges were only just looking into the value of wikis to promote learning.
The wiki can be used in all types of education including composition, literature, philosophy, online education, design engineering, symbolic logic and math.
There are many educational aspects of the Wiki:
-Students can use a wiki for research projects/ the wiki can serve as a documentation of their work
-Students can create summaries of their thoughts from assigned readings, thus creating a collaborative annotated bibliography
-publishing course resources handouts/syllabi. By having such material on the wiki students can comment/edit directly on the Wiki
-Teachers can use wikis as a place where students can share reflections/thoughts on a class.
-Wikis can be used to map concepts. They're also helpful for brainstorming & editing a Wiki topic.
-Wikis are a great presentation tool. They are also a good place to directly comment/revise
-group authoring
Wikis can also be used for classroom activities such as distributing information, "collaborative artifact creation," discussion and review. Wikis are also good for 'project based learning', collaborative story writing, and interdisciplinary/intercultural learning. They are also a tool for elearning, icebreakers
There are 4 diff forms of an educational wiki
-single user wiki This type of wiki allows for an individual to collect & edit his or her own thoughts
-lab book wiki. This type of wiki allows students to keep notes online.
-collaborative writing wiki. This type of wiki is used by a team for joint writing. this is typically most common & seen in the videos below,
-knowledge base wiki. This type of wiki provides a knowledge deposit for a group
WikiSpaces is a popular Wiki site for educators
a classroom wiki with wikispaces
how a wiki works in a classroom
Wikis can also be used for Writing Assignments
Wikis work well for writing assignments as students can use a wiki for reflection, reviewing publication, observing written results. A wiki can also stimulate writing, if a student is having difficulty. Wikis promote close reading, revision/editing. They also focus on writing as a process and ease students into writing for a wider audience
Innovative ways to use wikis in composition
-class project that is utlizing referece or encyclopedia format
-a project that does not require individual authoring
-a class/group project that requires students to locate websites related to a topic & then annotate them
-a handbook/textbook A student could create their own grammar book that would be compiled by the class.
Rick, Guzdial, Carroll, Holloway-Attaway and Walker examined 2 English Comp classes that were taught by the same instructor. One class used CoWeb, a wiki based tool,while the other class used a threaded online discussion format. CoWeb outperformed the discussion thread format.
Wiki publishing tools help students become authors, who collaborative publishing creates authentic writing activities for students.
Wikis can lead to collaborative creative writing in a class.
With online classes on the rise, wikis can be great tool in an online class. They can be used to expand discussion groups, and exchange ideas with other classmates. They can be used for projects, etc. They can also be used to "facilitate online learning groups"
Wikis can also be used as an icebreaker for online groupwork. Wikis enhance social interaction.
They can be used to collaborate class notes to create projects such as a wiki textbook.
However, there are some downfalls in using a wiki in an online class. For example:
-all content is modifiable by any user
-all content is public
-wiki is forever evolving
Wikis are also extremely popular in ESL classrooms.
Other Uses
Wikis can also be used outside the classroom. Career Centers use wiki pages a place to organize content for job postings. They can also serve as a place where college /university students can voice their opinions about things on campus, like a giant message board.
Chao shows how wikis were used for student project development in a software engineering course.
Wikis were used for the software development activities, which included:
-project planning:
-Requirements management:
-project tracking:
-test case management:
Wikis are generally successful across disciplines, however in math, computer science, and engineering it was found to have little use/value.
Notari states that collaboration is only successful if students have guidance.
The Wiki v. The Blog
Wikis
*are designed for collaborative learning by everyone
*organize information by topic
*information is editable, so it stays constantly current, evolves, and expands
*Wikis are easier to browse
Blogs
*authored by one person.
*blogs organize information in reverse chronological order, creating more of a historical record. *Blogs rarely change once they are posted.
*The reverse chronological order makes blogs difficult to find all the postings on a particular topic/browse through postings on that topic.
Discussion Questions:
1. Has anyone ever used a wiki in their class (whether you were a student who used a wiki, or a teacher who used a wiki) What wiki service did you use? Did you find it helpful?
2. Has anyone used Wiki on their own?
3. Parker & Chao paint the Wiki as "all good," but are there downfalls to using a Wiki?
4.What are some benefits of using a Wiki in a class?
5 Which would you prefer using? A wiki or a blog?
6. I was really surprised the WikiWiki shuttle bus still exists at Honolulu International Airport. Do you think when people go to the airport there, they know that bus inspired the term, or do you think they think about the term? (I know I would!)
To answer the "blog post" question, I would use the wiki or portfolios in my class to have students do collaborative writing assignments. I really liked the suggestion Parker & Chao suggested of making a group storybook, so I would probably do something like that with my class.
Wikis could be much fun for a collaborative creative writing assignment. Maybe you could set it up similar to a RP game, with everyone being responsible for what a character does to move a plot forward. I also found wikis to be very useful in creating class dictionaries or encyclopedias during times when students were grappling with new concepts or vocabularly.
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