Week 4 (Thing 7 & Thing 8)

We've all seen, used, or even added to Wikipedia, the online collaborative encyclopedia, but what can a wiki do for the classroom? A wiki is an online collaborate website that allows users to quickly and easily add content on a particular topic. Already the gears are probably engaging in your head.

Wikis are being used to increase student participation, provide lesson notes, disseminate information to the students, and for project based learning.

7a.

Explore the following links to see how and why wikis are becoming more prevalent in education.

50 Uses of Wikis in Education - http://bit.ly/Fifty-Wiki-Uses

How Can I Use Wiki in the Classroom? - http://bit.ly/Wiki-Examples

Extensive examples of wikis for various educational goals - http://educationalwikis.wikispaces.com/Examples+of+educational+wikis

A great example of a wiki used to explain the use of Web2.0 technologies - http://digitallyspeaking.pbworks.com/Wikis

7b.

Create a post on your blog about your findings. What did you find interesting? What types of wiki might be good for your classroom?

8.

Visit the GJSD PD Wiki at http://gjsdprodev.pbworks.com and add to the "Wikis in the Classroom" page. Add a comment or link about a wiki you have created for the classroom or one that you plan to create for this year. Feel free to comment on what others have said (a.k.a. Collaborate), create your own page, etc.

Note: If you want to set up your own free wiki for your classroom try one of these ...

Zoho www.zoho.com

PBworks (specifically designed with education uses in mind) - http://pbworks.com/content/edu+overview

Google Sites - http://sites.google.com

Use the WikiMatrix to help you find a good wiki host - http://www.wikimatrix.org/

Week 3 (Thing 5 & Thing 6)

This week you will explore the vast blogging universe as it relates to education.
You can do this in many ways, but for this week...

5.
Go to either a) 100 Best Blogs for Teachers of the Future and browse the list of blogs, OR b) do a Google search using keywords such as Education, Blog, Teaching, Student Blogging, etc... (you need to include "blog" in one of it's forms).

6.
On your blog site that you created last week explain what you found and how it could be useful to you in your classroom or further professional development.


A quick note: Throughout this course you will know of or find other links and sites that I have not mentioned. It is perfectly ok to use those as your sources, but please share via your blog and the wiki (more about this next week) so we can all benefit!