World of Wikis

Reaction to “Wild about Wikis”Brittany Frazzetto

Use in the Classroom The article offered a variety of specific uses for Wikis in the classroom

I was most intrigued by the idea of a WebEssay. I think it would be great to have students make the traditional essay more interesting by adding images, hyperlinks, and videos.

I liked the fact that all of the ideas provided were collaborative projects. It is so important for students to learn to work together.

Pbwiki- my favorite! These site is a really great resource for educators looking to have a collaborative classroom

Educators can easily set up their own classroom wiki free of advertisements, and password protected all for no cost.

I also really liked the fact that the website provides videos on great ways to use wikis in the classroom, how to get started, and tips on safety

PBwiki did a really great job of addressing all my concerns regarding wikis in the classroom and even brought up points that I had not considered (eliminating the excuse of “losing your homework”)

wikispaces This website is also free for educators, and free of advertisements.

The main focus of the wiki is for collaboration in the classroom.

The website claims to be easy to use, however I found the “brief tour” confusing and unhelpful.

EditMe I was not impressed with this wiki site. First of all, there is a cost involved regardless of education purposes.

In addition, they claim to be very easy to use, however when I tried using the demo version of the wiki I was not able to navigate it easily, and finally gave up.

WetPaint This site is very attractive, but a little busy.

It is powered by Google and contains constant updates on its homepage for other wikis. This could be troublesome for young students, considering not all of the information is appropriate.

There are privacy settings that can be set when creating your own wiki, however I think this site would be great for a personal wiki, however I don’t think it’s the best option for a classroom wiki.

MediaWiki The language on this website was a little confusing for someone new to technological language.

Software has to be downloaded in order to create a wiki, although it is the same software as the site Wikipedia uses.

I found the site easy to navigate, and questions were easily answered, however I was not under the impression that this wiki would be simple to use in the classroom.

Wikis to Watch I really enjoyed this section at the end of the article, and spent a lot of time exploring these wikis

My favorite was Westwood Schools Wiki. This educator has done a great job of creating an environment that enhances student learning and creativity. I really liked the hall of fame section where a students work was commemorated. It is wonderful that students are being acknowledged for their hard work, somewhere where anyone can see.

Another fun website is SwarmSketch where you add just one line to help make up a picture. It is a really neat idea to be just one line in a collaborative painting.