Using Wikis

What is a wiki?

Hawaiian Word – meaning ‘quick’A website or a documentReal strength lies in its collaborative nature

Multiple people can edit and contribute to the same document

History is kept as document is revised Easy to use

Wikipedia

The most famous wiki that puts the technology on the Internet map

A collaborative website updated daily by thousands of people

Interesting and useful information Accuracy and validity is in constant debate Nevertheless illustrates the power of collaboration

Wikis in Plain English by CommoncraftHeavy Metal Umlaut – evolution of a wikipedia page

John Udell

How does it work?

A wiki page is basically a web page With Simple navigation structure

Simple user interface Like the EduCat HTML editor Need to know a few formatting codes Easy to spawn off new pages Can handle complex HTML formatting if needed

Authorized persons can edit the page or add new pages All can read content

Everyone is editing the same page Add new information or comments, edit existing information

All revisions are tracked in the History area Can keep multiple versions Cal roll back if needed

Two Main Styles in Wiki

Document Mode Collaborative writing by contributors Usually unsigned to make one coherent document Representation of the shared knowledge of

beliefs of the contributors Threaded Mode

Contributors post and signed leave original messages intact and add to them

Content is more important than form.

Using Wikis in Instruction

Ice –breaker exerciseEasy tool for creating websites as class/training

projectsIdea development with peer reviewGroup authoring toolProject Tracking – from brainstorming to final

productData Collection Review of training/instruction Presentations – in place of ppt & keynotes

Many creative possibilities……

Wikis are versatile

Wiki is easy to use, simple to format, yet

Wiki is very versatile in handling Languages Math equations and symbols – TeX extension Chemical Formulae Musical notations

Who hosts Wiki systems

Hosting services available Some are free, some cost

Some are more limited than othersEach system has a different ‘dialect’

Formatting codes are not standard Not difficult to learn

Our campus hosts a wiki system Easier to deal with user authorization Better support when needed

How to plan for a wiki

Decide the intent of the wiki collaborative or not

Create a structure that is easy to followUsers need to know how to use wiki

Demo? Instruction?Wikis let users collaborate

But it does not teach collaborative skillsSet down the rules of engagement

Are users being assessed/if so, how How much they need to contribute Do they sign / not sign their contribution

Wikipedia Information

Languages - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Wikipedias

Statistics - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Statistics

Employees – 208 (as of July 2014)Wikimedia Foundation - https://

wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Home

Articles about Accuracy and Reliability

http://www.livescience.com/32950-how-accurate-is-wikipedia.html

http://library.blogs.delaware.gov/2013/05/05/is-wikipedia-a-reliable-source/

http://blog.wikimedia.org/2012/08/02/seven-years-after-nature-pilot-study-compares-wikipedia-favorably-to-other-encyclopedias-in-three-languages/