TO WIKI OR NOT TO WIKI; THAT IS THE QUESTION!

Pros of Wikis:

A student who is exposed to online learning may have the chance of learning about and using a wiki. Wikis are cooperative efforts that help build a community like environment among students within an online course. A wiki is an open-editing method and according to a recent essay called Essay on Teaching Excellence, a wiki provides the possibility of utilizing Bloom’s Taxonomy which describes higher order thinking (“Pros and Cons”). 

Wikis give students the opportunity to develop critical thinking skills, to learn from each other, and to work cooperatively in groups. This can be compared to a face-to-face class where an instructor divides students into groups and they brainstorm on a subject or idea. They create knowledge instead of just consuming knowledge (“Bloom’s Taxonomy,” 2013). A study also indicated that students worked and learning was more effective. They also felt it was much easier to organize for exams (West and West, 2009) (“Wikis Center for Teaching”).

 

Cons of Wikis:

It is not recommended for instructors to build an online course totally around a wiki. It is better to combine all of the online course tools such as a wiki, blog and discussion boards. This gives students the opportunity to experience all of the asynchronous and synchronous tools of an online course. As an example, students would be able to introduce ideas on all three platforms by listing and referencing issues on the wiki, comment their agreements or disagreements on a blog, and summarize the issues on a threaded discussion. This could not be done with just utilizing a wiki (“Pros and Cons”). 

Students in a study complained that course information was spread out over multiple locations: in syllabi, modules, blogs and wikis. They found it more difficult to locate needed information. Students wanted instructors to list instructions in only one area not listing it all over the course site (“Pros and Cons”).

 

Bloom's Taxonomy of Learning Domains. (2013, May 1). Retrieved from http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/bloom.html

 

Pros & Cons of Course Blogs & Wikis. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2013, from http://assett.colorado.edu/pros-cons-of-course-blogs-wikis/

 

West, J. and West, M. (2009). Using Wikis for Online Collaboration: The Power of the Read-Write Web.  San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

 

Wikis | Center for Teaching | Vanderbilt University. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2013, from http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/teaching-guides/online-education/wikis/

 

The Meaning and Characteristics of Wikis:

 

The word wiki derives its meaning of quick or fast from the Hawaiian language which means that a team can cooperatively and quickly create a wiki web site. Text, links, graphics, audio, video and animation can be incorporated into a wiki. Authorized users of the wiki can add and delete any content. Sometimes a moderator is selected to approve any changes before posting (Lamb & Johnson, 2007).  

Wikis have five, distinct characteristics:

 

1.      Wikis are unique because they provide the chance to share original content.

2.      Wikis are collaborative because they create an online area to share original content which has many contributors.

3.      Wikis are able to be open edited. This means anyone can add to a wiki anytime of the day or night.

4.      Wikis provide the ability for simple coding similar to a word processor.

5.      Wikis are evolving because they are always going through changes.

 

Lamb, A., & Johnson, L. (2007). An information skills workout: Wikis and collaborative writing. Teacher Librarian, 34(5), 57-59,71. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.er.lib.k-state.edu/docview/224877656?accountid=11789