Thing 14- Wikis

Wikis are websites that use special software to enable users to create or edit linked hierarchical pages. They often take the form of a table of contents, with higher-level pages that lead to specific subpages. Wikipedia is the largest one, but there are thousands of them in existence, with new ones popping up every day. They have been around since 1995, and are still growing in popularity.

Wikipedia models itself after an encyclopedia, but that is not the only way that wikis can be used. Some libraries use internal wikis to manage their policies and procedures. Many companies are replacing their old Intranets with wikis. Some individuals use them for personal knowledge management. Since most wikis allow discussion and comments on page changes, they can lead to dynamic, vibrant communities of users.

For Thing 14, we are going to take a look at wikis, and create some pages of our own.

Start out by going to Wikipedia.

Wikipedia is a giant encyclopedia that allows anyone to add to or edit. It handles multiple languages, and is the largest wiki in existence.

In the search box, enter a subject of your choice. It can be anything that interests you- feel free to try something obscure.

You should find an article on that subject. Read through it, paying attention to how the information is organized. Do you agree with everything that is said there? Are there any warnings on the page relating to the quality of the information?

At the top of the article will be a tab called Discussion. Go to it to see comments people have left about various changes they (or others) have made to this page.

Now go to the History tab to see how the page has changed over time. Write about this article in your blog entry for Thing 14 after you complete the second part.

Now go to the Lamar wiki.

If you are on your district laptop, you will not need to login but if you are on your home computer you will need to login with your district login (laptop login). Notice your name at the top of the page. If you click on your name, it will take you to your very own Wiki page.

From this tool bar you have the ability to edit your page and even add other pages to your Wiki. Don’t worry about messing anything up… you can always delete pages and start over!

One thing you will want to do is to set the permissions for your Wiki pages. You can allow everyone to view and contribute to your Wiki pages or you can restrict access to specific users. Click on the “More” button to see all of your options for restricting access to your pages.

Want to see some examples? Check out the Teacher Wiki pages at Nimitz High School http://www.irvingisd.net/nimitz/staff/teacherwebsites/

A good example for student/parent information is Richard Missler. His site includes lesson plans for each six weeks. Another fun one is Ashleigh McWilliams.
Practice with your Wiki page and then share the URL on your Thing 14 blog.