Week 3 - Engagement Activity 3

The purpose of this reflection is to discuss creating a wiki.  Wikis are an effective digital tool that have the potential to support Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework, and the potential to facilitate effective learning and teaching when combined with an appropriate scaffold, in the primary school setting (CQUniversity Australia, 2012).  To be successful, this requires teachers to have a thorough understanding of how to utilise wikis to empower students to use them in a way that enhances deep understanding of a topic (CQUniversity Australia, 2012).  The students understanding can then be viewed by the teacher as they display their thoughts and understandings as part of participation in a wiki (CQUniversity Australia, 2012).  The teacher needs to create a scaffold in the wiki based on cognitive, affective and psychomotor aspects of learning related to Bloom's Taxonomy (CQUniversity Australia, 2012).

Wikis support Connectivism learning theory by enabling students to enhance their learning experiences though the use of the internet, computer and technology based around these (CQUniversity Australia, 2012).  Wikis support Social Constructivism learning theory as this theory focuses on developing a student's own deep understanding of a topic through collaboration and social interactions between other students, the teacher and community (CQUniversity Australia, 2012).  Behaviourism learning theory could also be utilised through the use of positive reinforcement in the form of comments from the teacher, and constructive criticism from other students (CQUniversity Australia, 2012).  The SWOT analysis below focuses on the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of Wikis.

Strengths (things wikis can do)	Weaknesses	Opportunities	Threats
It facilitates the use of multiple forms of technology including links, videos, and photos.	It cannot support multiple students accessing and editing it at the same time, as it is only able to save one student's editing, if two or more students are editing at the same time.	It has the potential to meet the needs of a problem based curriculum.	There is a potential for negative criticism.
It facilitates academic engagement.	It requires good internet access.	It provides the opportunity to discuss topics and share information with other schools.	There is a risk of bullying.
It meets the needs of different learning styles.	Without an effective scaffold, the wiki will be not benefit students.	Students have the potential to learn a great deal from one another.	It alters the teachers role to that of a facilitator.
It promotes participation.	It is time consuming to set up, particularly for the first time.	Teachers are able to monitor, and promote a positive wikispace.
It improves communication between students, and the teacher.	It takes extra time for the teacher to closely monitor the wiki for appropriate content.	If teachers scaffold the wiki effectively, it can enhance a students learning experience greatly.
It is collaborative.		It has the potential to facilitate group identity, inclusivity and ownership as the class owns the wiki.
It can facilitate deep understanding of a topic through the use of multiple teaching strategies including: -Developing online studyguides or textbooks -Glossary -Answering frequently asked questions -Writing class story books -Presentations -To solve complex maths problems as a class		It has the potential to improve student's reflection on their own work by allowing them to go back and read over the recorded text and alter it or build upon it.
It promotes students self-regulation and student direction as it allows students to adhere to safe, ethical and legal standards to protect themselves and the other students.		It has the potential to be a valuable collaborative tool to support Social Constructivist learning theory.

It is important that the teacher discusses the legal, ethical and safe guidelines and frameworks that must be adhered to, with the students prior to using the wiki for the first time (CQUniversity Australia, 2012).  The supporting documents could be viewed by the students, and a discussion facilitated regarding why it is important to adhere to these requirements (CQUniversity Australia, 2012).  Students own safety and the safety of other students should be reinforced (CQUniversity Australia, 2012).  CQUniversity Australia (2013) state that students should be educated in regards to cybersafety, stranger danger and cyber bullying.  

It is important that the teacher models and teaches students to credit any sources used (The official guide to copyright issues for Australian Schools & TAFE, n.d.d.).  CQUniversity Australia (2012) state that parental permission should be gained before utilising images or voice recordings of student on a wikispace.  The teacher should be aware of inappropriate behaviours discussed on the Education Queensland website and provide supervision when students are participating in all internet activities (CQUniversity Australia, 2013; Education Queensland, 2012).

The Official Guide to Copyright issues for Australian Schools and TAFE (n.d.d.) state that teachers should provide links wherever possible in wikispaces as opposed to cutting and pasting information into the wikispace. It is also recommended that the teacher utilises free educational material or asks the copyright owner of the site for permission prior to utilising it if it is not free (The official guide to copyright issues for Australian Schools & TAFE, n.d.d.).  The teacher is also able to have control over who views the wiki through student accounts, and what students are able to do with the content on the wiki (Wikispaces, 2012).  The teacher can also see the entire wiki history and restore it if a student accidently deletes the other students' input (CQUniversity Australia, 2012; Wikispaces, 2012).  The students should also be made aware of class ownership of the wiki (CQUniversity Australia, 2012). 

As a primary school teacher in the future, I believe that wikis can facilitate engagement, creativity, and a deep understanding of a topic with students through a variety of forms such as class story writing, science glossaries, frequently asked questions and discussions, and that is just to begin with (CQUniversity Australia, 2012).

This is the link to my wikispace.  There is also a link on my wikispace to a YouTube video that explains ways to implement wikis in the classroom.
http://emmataylor411.wikispaces.com/

References:

CQUniversity Australia. (2012). EDED20491- ICTs for learning design:

            online study guide. Retrieved from  

             http://moodle.cqu.edu.au/mod/page/view.php?id=115238

CQUniversity Australia. (2013). EDED20491- ICTs for learning design:       
            online learning materials. Retrieved from 
            http://moodle.cqu.edu.au/mod/page/view.php?id=115325

Education Queensland. (2012). Risk management. Retrieved from
            http://education.qld.gov.au/web/schools/riskman.html

Smart Teaching. (2013). 50 ways to use wikis for a more collaborative

            and interactive classroom. Retrieved from
            http://www.smartteaching.org/blog/2008/08/50-ways-to-use-wikis-for-a-

            more-collaborative-and-  interactive-classroom/

Teachers First. (2013). Wiki ideas for the classroom. Retrieved from

 http://www.teachersfirst.com/content/wiki/