Before beginning this program, my knowledge was extremely limited in the use of
wikis. However, as assignments are now required in using them, I now have a
pretty clear knowledge of them. Wikis are web pages that can be viewed by
everyone and even contributed to by all or only select users. There is no
challenging set up or expensive software needed to be able to utilize it. You
only need a web browser and you can easily manipulate the site to edit. Because
this is an online program, I have seen firsthand how beneficial the wikis have
been. For group assignments, group members can add, delete, upload, and change
content on the site and never have to speak. Steps to do each are easy to
follow and anyone will be able to do it.
As a new Media Specialist, I would be most
interested in a wiki designed for Media Specialist’s best practices, such as
the Media Specialists in Cobb County. Because members could constantly update,
comment, add, and change information, the site would remain current and
eventually, I could do the same and post information to help others.
In collaboration with teachers, pathfinders
come to mind. Media Specialists are normally responsible for initiating them
however why not have teachers add to them? There can never be too many useful resources
for a particular topic. With the wealth of information that could be entered on
a wiki, students and teachers could use the information for future references
and from year to year.
With
students, interactive activities could be done using wikis. Students could even
author their own wikis, making it as creative as they wanted to and Media
Specialists could create pages for book clubs and grade level novel
discussions/resources. Of course, to get the most value out of wikis, students
and teachers should be well informed of how to accurately contribute to them
and wiki creators have to maintain strict and continuous monitoring.
Yolanda,
ReplyDeleteYou brought up a wonderful idea of creating a wiki together with a teacher. What a wonderful collaborative effort! As you said, most of the time the media specialist is responsible for building the pathfinder or tool for students to use. Teachers could initiate the wiki and ask the media specialist to contribute. I think that is an idea I may bring up at our next collaborative meeting.
We are constantly looking for ways to incorporate technology to enhance student achievement. In fact, that is one part of our school's strategic plan for the year. We are using the NETS standards for students in our Professional Learning classes for teachers and we can add wikis to are arsenal of tools. Thanks for the idea!
Yolanda,
ReplyDeleteI’m glad you discussed pathfinders. I, too, created one for a previous class. I think Pathfinders are not only great to share ideas, but also to show teachers, students, administration, and parents what an asset a media specialist can be for student achievement. With the economic environment the way it is, we must remember to promote our media center and ourselves. I love your idea about using interactive Wikis with students for book clubs and novel discussions/resources. I also agree we must be religious about monitoring and training.
Great job!
Belinda
I am glad to see you are learning a lot from the use of wikis in this class. We definitely use them quite a bit to complete assignments. Your ideas for implementing wikis at your school are thought provoking for me. As the media specialist, I would like to try to use a wiki with the Reading Bowl students. My district happens to use a wiki through Wikispaces for the Media Specialists in the district to collaborate on. Best of luck implementing your ideas!
ReplyDeleteYolanda,
ReplyDeleteI like the direction you are going with your ideas for wikis. They would be ideal for older students that have a thorough understanding of how to manipulate the wiki pages. As you stated, wikis were somewhat unfamiliar to me as well. I'm thinking that students may find them challenging initially. Would you consider making a podcast or vodcast of a tutorial on how to use wikis. Posting it to the Media center's webpage would enable veteran teachers to have access to it as well. I like your suggestion of posting best practices to a wiki space. I could see contribution from a wide variety of media center stakeholders.
Yolanda,
ReplyDeleteI think your idea about creating a wiki for media specialists. I would really appreciate having a wiki that I could access for ideas, tips, and procedures. The wiki could be created so that it specifically relates to the county for which I am employed. Thursday, I volunteered a high school. I spent my entire day learning about how different the high school media center is utilized in contrast with elementary and middle school media centers. I suggested to the media specialist that she create a wiki for students to access when they are searching for colleges based on the programs they offer. I also suggested that she create a wiki for scholarships. I have definite ideas I will incorporate when I am hired as a media specialist....using a wiki is on the list!