Wikispaces

Throughout term three this year I have seen several wikispace examples. There have been some created for group assignments and some designed for a cohort contribution. Prior to this I had no experience creating or participating in a learning experience through a wiki. After some research, the idea of collaborative learning through a wiki seemed as though it would be a valuable e-learning tool.

The first engagement I had with wikispaces this term was participating in the 'Mobile Phones' page. This page demonstrated how to scaffold an e-learning experience to encourage higher order thinking and analysis. The Mobile Phones page required students to think using different perspectives, and to collaborate ideas with other students. Viewing and comparing personal ideas to the contribution of others deepened the learning experience and transformed my thinking.

When creating my wiki, I found it quite simple to navigate. I created a layout for my wikispace, then added new pages. Adding these pages and changing the sequence of these pages was quick and easy to achieve. I wanted to experience as many of the features in the wiki as possible, therefore I embedded a YouTube video, created a table, added an image and experimented with different widgets. I found a YouTube video that describes how to create a wiki for education. The information was interesting and valuable so I added it to my wiki also.

Using this tool within a primary classroom would enrich a learners experience, keeping them engaged throughout the activity.  Designing a learning experience for children in a similar way to the Thinking Hats page, would enrich the learning experience so as intended learning outcomes are achieved. As this ICT can be used for individual, group or public use it is important that information and contributions are not lost. The benefit of wikispaces is that under the 'history' tab information from previous saves can be retrieved. The wikispace is a rich ICT that gives learners the opportunity to contribute, compare, analyse and reflect upon their own thoughts and the thoughts of others. Developing a learning experience that engages learners while delivering them an authentic education can be achieved using this e-learning tool. I would love to try using it in my classroom in the coming months.

Click on the link below to view my wiki.
http://jennaelliott.wikispaces.com/

Image retrieved from: http://www.tangient.com/wikispaces.png