Websites and Wikis

Today I created a wiki using www.wikispaces.com and early this year I created a webquest which is a process of building and linking other webpages to form a website. I created my webquest using www.sites.google.com. After being involved in both the creation of a website and contributions made towards a wiki, I would have to say that both websites and wikis have very different functions and therefore would be used for different purposes in the classroom. Both of which, I consider to be e-tools which could facilitate and extend children's learning in the classroom.

You can view my webquest by clicking on the following link: my webquest.

Whilst designing my webquest, I found it very easy to organise the content in a way that children could easy follow. I was able to set up a number of pages within the webquest which led me to think that this e-tool is easy to navigate around for children which is an advantage over wikis. For example, my webquest has a home page, task page, process page, resources page, evaluation page, conclusion page and a teacher’s page. Having these different pages allows the information on the website to be easily organised and accessible for children.

Website's are an effective tool that can be used in the classroom to:
-Connect with people from all over the world to enrich their thinking and learning
-Provide creative and hands-on experiences for students to engage in
-Report progress and learning for parents and the school community to view
-Keep up to date with upcoming events

Another advantage of using websites compared to wikis is that sites can be protected from outside viewers, where options are available to secure the site. This therefore, is considerate of anonymity and respects the ethical and professional protocols that educators must follow. However, when using the web, teachers need to be considerate of inappropriate uses. Websites can also be a time consuming tool for those 'Digital Immigrants', however, if knowledge is built on this tool and used regularly, it can be a quick and effective tool.

Not only have I been using a wiki space for this course but also 'Global Science'. We use a shared wiki space to contribute our developing ideas about science concepts. This tool is currently being used as a point of call for all students to record important information and facts to guide our understandings before our final exam. This is a great way of looking back and reflecting upon experiences explored and content covered.

I would consider a wiki space to be an effective tool for both teachers and students as they can be viewed by anyone. Teachers can have access to students thinking and progress to support further planning while; students can use it as a means of reflecting upon learning and keeping ideas in one place.

You can view our Global Science Wiki by clicking here. You will see that I have made a number of contributions to this wiki space.