The school year 2008-2009 has to be called the "Year of the Wiki" around here. There are always lots of technology initiatives to try and motivate/inspire students. For the most part, however, there has always been a stumbling block.
Whether it's software licensed by the Ministry of Education or the school board, the software typically is installed on school computers and is only available from there. This severely limits the ability to extend technology and the motivation that comes with it to the homes. Sure, they are some great applications like Dreamweaver or Kidpix, but their effective use is limited to classtime and sometimes before/after school or during lunch.
With the use of wikis, the spirit of collaboration can extend into the evening hours, on weekends, and really supports the home/school connection.
It's so rewarding to see this technology used in this manner. And, just as you would see the history of a FirstClass email message, wikis have a historical timeline on them. It's not uncommon to see students working and perfecting their efforts well into the evenings. This, without special software installed.
Since technology can be such a motivating factor, it only makes sense to try and use the tools there.
The use of wikis for this sort of thing hasn't been limited to classrooms. Throughout this past year, a number of district documents have been revised. When you think of the traditional "bring writing teams together" format, it's refreshing to see documents live and breathe through the development cycle on a wiki.
But, where's the human element? Where's the collaboration? Where's the feedback? The documents don't necessarily go through all of the process on the web. You do need to have an initial meeting to set the stage and then a meeting at the end of the process to tie it all together. But, rather than trying to book a series of times to do the writing, it's far more convenient to book just a couple.
The use of the wiki, in addition to the power of collaboration, is also the launch pad to the incorporation of Web applications. These may be embedded right into the wiki itself or be used to further enhance the production of the content.
For the most part, the simplicity of web delivery makes it equitable for all - teachers and students learning and working together developing new content.
This will be the final edition of GEC Computers in the Classroom for this school year. I wish everyone a terrific summer and I know that there are some that will head to new endeavours at the end of June. My best wishes to them.
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