Home » Resources » Wikis

Let Wikis Work for You

Put Wikis to Work for You

You have probably heard and read much about Web 2.0, also sometimes known as the Read/Write web. If you haven't noticed, the web has changed considerably over the past several years, the major change being the ease with which users can create their own content so instead of just reading on the web, they are now writing for the web.

Many Web 2.0 applications have found their way into our classrooms because they provide easy-to-use and better yet-free-communication, collaboration, and content-creation tools for both teachers and students. Examples include something as simple as a free online calendar such as 30 Boxes, or an online graphic organizer such as Gliffy, a polling tool such as Polldaddy, a web-based timeline software such as Mnemograph, or a fun photo editing tool such as Befunky. Collect, link, or display all of the above applications in a personal start page such as Protopage, which also permits the creator to display photographs and embed slideshows and videos, all with the click of a button. No HTML code needed to enter!

However, the poster child of Web 2.0 applications, according to David Warlick, blogger, author, programmer, podcaster, and public speaker, is the wiki, an easily created web page which allows users to add or edit content and link out to other web pages or to other pages within the wiki itself. Probably the most famous wiki of all is Wikipedia, the collaborative online encyclopedia which currently hosts more than 2 million articles in more than 200 languages.

And while we haven't yet focused on a specific Web 2.0 application for the busy administrator, the wiki would be our tool of choice. Why? A wiki allows you to quickly (wiki wiki means quick in Hawaiian) and easily create a web page that invites staff or stakeholder collaboration. How does it work? Imagine that you are revising the student handbook at your school, planning the annual field day, writing a grant, or replacing textbooks in a specific grade or subject. You value and encourage staff involvement, yet certain teachers tend to dominate the faculty meeting conversations, the capturing of everyone's thoughts and opinions becomes complicated, and you lose valuable professional development time during lengthy conversations (sometimes thinly disguised as arguments). Enter the wiki.

Setting up a wiki at one of the free wiki sites such as Wikipages, PBWiki, or WetPaint, takes only a few minutes. As a matter of fact, if you can type, you can work in a wiki. Create a wiki account by registering your email address and preferred name for the wiki, along with establishing privacy options. Then create a password for the wiki which users will need in order to edit. Next, enter the content for which you need input, collaboration, or information. Lastly, distribute the wiki URL and the password to the stakeholders whose help you are seeking, inviting their participation. You'll be amazed at the swiftness with which the collaboration occurs. No need to keep checking the wiki to see if anyone's been contributing. You can select an option that generates a notification email to you whenever someone makes a change. In addition, you can track all the changes and their authors in the history page of the wiki. The final decision-maker (could be you or your designee) crafts the final product from the wiki input in a new wiki page, easily added with the click of a button.

Planning a menu for the faculty dinner? Want input on an assembly agenda? Couldn't you just send out an email? Sure you could, but then you would have to open and read each individual email, organize the emails in an Outlook folder, aggregate the suggestions or input in some type of document, and then communicate the results to your stakeholders, maybe by email, or maybe by a handout in their mailboxes. Or . . . you could set up a wiki, get input from anyone with whom you share access, provide transparency and democratization because all invitees can see the suggestions of others as the document takes shape. You'll soon find that wikis help to sidebar trivial or administrative issues, leaving previous staff meeting time available for meatier topics.

Using a wiki to house staff meeting notes is another perfect application. Set up a staff meeting wiki, with one page for every meeting. Assign a different staff member to take notes at each meeting, but encourage others to visit the wiki after the meeting to offer clarification, enter additional items which may have been overlooked, or correct something that was entered erroneously. The original notes are done by the end of the meeting, they are available to all staff without using a copy machine or a mail box, and best of all, you've saved lots of time and provided a way for teachers to have input.

To learn more about wikis, pick up a copy of Will Richardson's book, Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms. To choose the best wiki for your purposes, visit www.wikimatrix.org for a comparison of all the available wikis, whether free or fee-based.

Jane Perzyk
Consultant
MI-LIFE
Michigan Leadership Improvement Framework Endorsement