It took me some time to get into the wiki program, so I have
not had much chance to play with it. As
I have never used the program, my comments are based solely off of the reading.
Before I begin, I would like to start with my ‘constructive modification’ of ‘The Professor’s Guide to Taming Technology’. On page 126 the author states, “…set parameters on the wiki form the start.” It’s just nice to know that I am not the only one that constantly types ‘form’ instead of from.
Before I begin, I would like to start with my ‘constructive modification’ of ‘The Professor’s Guide to Taming Technology’. On page 126 the author states, “…set parameters on the wiki form the start.” It’s just nice to know that I am not the only one that constantly types ‘form’ instead of from.
In several places in the text, the various authors have
pointed out the importance of allowing adults to have a hand in their own
education. (Pg. 5; “[adults] need to be
seen by others and treated by others as being capable of self direction”: Pg. 91; “…adults have a deeply embedded need
to be self-directing...”: Pg. 122; “…when adults are presented with
self-directed learning opportunities, the greater their chances are of learning
the information.”)
Wiki spaces offer a unique ability for students to, “…actively
participate in their own knowledge construction and also participate in
co-writing with others.” (Pg. 122). I also see a nice tie in with statements on
page 11, “…learning environment will be more effective if it incorporates
real-life examples of situations that adult learners may encounter…” I see these wiki spaces as a great
opportunity to learn not only the content, but to learn a way to collaborate with
a team when not all members can be in the same place.
Now you’re saying “but Roy, in your last post you stated
that the technology of blogging may get in the way of learning the core
concepts” and you are right, I did say that.
So why is wiki different? In my
opinion, wiki is a technology that does not have an adequate alternative. The discussion board is, in my opinion,
easier to use and just as effective.
According to the authors (my only resource as I have yet to use a wiki),
“[wikis] require few technical skills and allow the students to focus on
collaboration and information exchange without getting distracted with
technical difficulties.”
Another difference is that all members of the group are
using the same graphical interface, meaning that I am not required to adjust to
multiple layouts, formatting, and color schemes. Oh, and one other difference; the wiki is secure
from the ‘hidden audience’ spoken about on page 123.
In the beginning, I was less than excited to learn the wiki
technology, but as I have read about it, I think it will be a good experience.
Roy,
First, what the heck, a four door early model Mustang?
ReplyDeleteSecond, I am in basically the same boat as you. I have had some difficulty getting into the wiki site and have not used a pure wiki site before. I do have some experience with similar online collaboration tools and they have been terrific.
One significant challenge when working on any collaborative effort is the challenge when some team members do not pull their weight (not been an issue in this course). Since the end result is a team effort, it is not practical for team members to let someone sink or swim because it causes them to sink as well. This means that the instructor has to be very aware of what is going on during the project and provide the appropriate feedback to all members of the team.
:-) Not mine, I just found the picture on net. I'm surprised that anyone scrolled down far enough to see it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your statements about working in a group. But that in and of itself is an important educational experience in my opinion. There are times when I have to work with groups or depend on other people for my job. It is not always easy and sometimes you have to pull extra work just to succeed.
Roy,
Good catch on "form" vs. "from", Roy. Your blog is public... meaning the authors may correct the typo in their next edition! I didn't catch that even though I've read the text several times..... ;-)
ReplyDeleteHi Roy. Good blog. You can blog with the best of them. Oh, yes I am in the KSU class, AF is just my online persona.
ReplyDeleteWikis, agree, good points, specifically about adult learners teaching themselves via wikis, blogs, etc. Does reinforce Malcolm Knowles ascribe characteristics of the Adult Learner (i.e. make learning relevant to the real world, make adult learners active rather than passive learners, and let them incorporate their own experiences...).
Your last point about wikis having no collaborative alternative well that depends on context and what you are using it for. Myself and other Training Development Officers have often used email to exchange ideas and while long chains can be cumbersome I have found it effective. For large documents, Google Docs and cloud computing have made collaboration possible in this medium (documents). So I am not sure why you see not alternative. And while I am no longer an active member, my fellow TDOs in use Facebook as the ultimate collaboration tool. I ran a project with Saba Social and it had a variety of tools to engage and work on different projects. Wikis were only one option.
Roy
ReplyDeleteI agree...good catch on the form/from! :)
You mentioned that the Wiki allows everyone to use the same interface without worries or problems associated with having different versions of Word or not being able to open certain types of files. This is a convenience feature that simplifies things and allows for everyone to collaborate with less restrictions and frustrations. People can give more attention to the important things!