“The simplest online database that could possibly
work- Wiki in Ward Cunningham’s original description.”
“A Wiki is usually a web application which allows people to add, modify, or delete content in a collaboration with others.”- Wiki’s definition from Wikipedia.
Wiki with its simplest user interface and greatest applications and features is being used a lot in the field of education. Students are really excited to use Wikis because it enables them to represent their ideas. Educators also find Wikis very useful to engage students in the classroom. Let’s learn quickly about how students and educators can use Wikis in the classroom.
Students and educators can use Wikis for sharing documents, PDFs and media.
Students can edit and correct each others’ works through Wikis.
Creating and editing Wikis need no programming knowledge, even non–technical users can contribute their thoughts to the world.
Wikis can be used for pre as well as post lesson activities, online resource supply, assignments, results and collaboration with students and parents.
A blog is mostly a single threaded activity but Wiki can be a source of multiple pages.
There are many Wiki hosting websites which help you create and manage Wikis. Let’s have a look at a few such tools.
Wikispaces Classroom:
Wikispaces is designed to be usable for everyone, everywhere and at any time just with a Web browser and an Internet connection. It enables members to create pages and spaces without undue restrictions or rules and guests to modify them without the need for registration. Wikispaces’ visual editor lets users see the layout and design of their page while you’re editing it, this feature helps non–technical users create and manage content with ease. With Wikispaces, educators can save their time by keeping all online resources in one place. Engage students by starting discussions, ask them to give feedback through comments, give them assignments, etc.
Wetpaint:
“Wetpaint has helped me integrate the Web 2.0 technologies my students love to use in their personal life into their learning process, and now they are actually excited about working on coursework,” says Jason Welker, an AP Economics teacher at the Shanghai American School in China who started a Wiki, Welker’s Wikinomics, for his class.
Wetpaint provides educators with the best aspects of blogs, message boards, social networking, and other collaborative technology tools to advance classroom activities. Wetpaint Wikis are free of cost as well as ad free. Educators can make a classroom without boundaries by using Wikis that allow any student to edit and modify content. It also provides users with widgets to add third party applications like YouTube videos and Google calendar.
PbWiki:
With PbWiki, creating and managing Wikis is just like typing words in Microsoft Word. Insert images and videos easily to provide students with interactive Wikis. Educators can make course work and homework information easily available to both students and parents. Templates are designed with teachers in mind, it enables educators to quickly create unlimited pages for free.
We hope this information is useful for you to know about a few great Wiki hosts. We’d like to know about more tools like these. If you know a few, please feel free to share with us in the comment box.
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