The underlying philosophy of using wikis in teaching and learning is constructivism. This involves the empowering of students as they work cooperatively and learn from others. Teachers should be mindful of their changing roles. Their roles shift from providing information, managing learning and controlling students to creating contexts or posing problems to motivate and engage students. Although it is the teacher who will initiate interactions, it is the student who achieves autonomy over his work. For many teachers, this lessening of control is difficult but the more control that the teacher gives up the more effective is the student engagement and interaction (Lamb, 2004). Although wikis are an efficient tool for teaching reading, they are not automatic success or a panacea for all problems. There are limitations to their effective use ( Ebersbach, Glaser and Heighl, (2006). Wikis can work wonders as a tool for reading strategies. Teachers must understand their limitations and know how to use them effectively. Advantages in one context can be disadvantages in another context. A major disadvantage of using wikis is that all users must have internet connection. However, the benefits of using wikis to enhance vocabulary development are significantly greater when compared to the disadvantages.
Hi Peter,I am very excited about using wikis in my classroom in the near future. As you and others have noted wikis can be of tremendous benefit as a tool in teaching/learning. I am still learning about them, however, I know that I am going to use them in my classroom for the form four and five students. My students are challenged with the traditional Literacies and I know that if they are exposed to wikis they will be motivated to explore and complete their assignments.
ReplyDeleteTheir class work and production options for visual Arts ensure that they must do research from which their sketches, drawings and storyboards are comlpeted and from which their production options are made. Imagine how wonderful it would be to post information on line for them or to send them to sites where they could find information that they would use in their completion of their Reflective Journal.
In our school, internet access is a problem sometimes. Like Lamb(2004), I would like to motivate my students even more. They have been doing very well in exams. Last year all of them passed their CXC Art. We now have a new syllabus, that is emphazing the development of student literacy. This is a good thing, as our stakeholders in the fashion and related industries, even our universities have recognised this as important and had their input(by way of CXC) in our new syllabus.
In fact when I had set up my site, Technotalk,2010 @gmail.com, Harvard University from the United States contacted and congratulated me for wanting to use wikis in my classroom. In addition they wanted to do some collaboration. They also sent me seven sessions of working with wikis which I will be studying as soon as I have the time. I do not have the link at hand but I will put it in one of my blogs. Here's to using wikis and other technology in our 21st century classrooms.