You may have noticed that I changed my screen name and
profile picture this week. Considering
the public nature of this blog, I decided to err on the side of caution and
increase my level of anonymity. While I
certainly have nothing to hide, my philosophy is that it’s typically best to
take the most conservative approach when trying new things before going all in. One can’t be too careful when it comes to
personal information on the web. Bonus
points to my classmates who understand the pop culture reference to my username
and profile pic without using Skynet…ahem, I mean, Google.
This week I discuss the pros and cons of Wiki’s as
they apply to Adult Learning.
Personally, I have used Wiki’s on two previous occasions with this class
being my third. While I still consider
myself a “rookie” when it comes to Wiki experience, I have identified both
positive and negative aspects to the program.
Pros: First, to
state the obvious, Wiki’s are a useful tool for students and faculty to interact
within a collaborative learning environment to present thoughts and ideas in a
formal and informal manner (King & Cox, 2011). Wiki’s provide a space where Adult Learners,
especially those participating in online distance learning, can work together towards
a common goal. Coupled with other forms
of technology such as Zoom, which allows for video teleconferencing, chat
sessions, and recording a screen capture for “how to” videos, Wiki’s are not
only an excellent platform to share information but also and interactive tool
for third party interaction, input, and critique.
Cons: The devil
is in the details. In my previous Wiki experiences,
an excessive amount of time was spent on the aesthetics of the project. Many would agree that web applications need
to be intuitive, user friendly, and aesthetically pleasing. However, it shouldn’t come at a cost to
content. Kuropatwa (2006), mentions two specific
types of wiki contributions that students make while working together on
projects: (1) Significant contributions
and (2) Constructive Modifications. Most
should be able to produce equal amounts of significant contributions (ie.
adding new content and information relative to the topic), as long as they are
pulling their weight and not relying heavily on others. However, a constructive modification (ie.
editing someone else’s work) is where one can quickly run in to trouble and
potentially even derail a project.
Depending on a user’s skill and experience level, an innocent
constructive modification, which may have good intentions, might significantly modify
the hours of hard work accomplished by other team members. This might be compounded by the fact that many
Wiki projects come with a deadline for completion. An experienced user might have little to no
issues in developing an entire Wiki page in three short weeks. However, the learning curve for a brand-new
user is exponentially steeper, which might lead to mistakes or reduced
participation due to lack of confidence and familiarity. There’s no doubt that Wiki’s are a useful
tool for a collaborative working environment for the distance learner. However, the distance learner will face
challenges and issues that are typically absent in resident courses. For example, the time difference across
multiple time zones creates communication issues for Adult Learners who
typically have competing work and family obligations at different times throughout
the day. This is an issue that I have
continually run in to throughout my experience in this program. Whether I’m eight hours ahead, or five hours
behind, there never seems to be a perfect time for everyone. This becomes especially stressful when last minute
changes are made towards the end of a project, and they’re met with oblivious
silence as your partners are asleep halfway around the world. Of course, this issue isn’t unique to Wiki’s,
but certainly creates additional challenges, especially when dealing with
constructive modifications. Lastly, though
this section is admittedly longer and more extensive than the pros, I chose to highlight
a few personal cons because I feel it’s necessary to reflect on constructive criticism
and focus on ways to incorporate lessons learned for future improvement. In all, my experience with Wiki’s has been
positive and has provided an increased opportunity for student interaction and
collaboration, which has led to a more enriched learning experience.
King, K. P., & Cox, T. D. (2011). The professors
guide to taming technology: Leveraging digital media, Web 2.0, and more for
learning. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Pub.
Kuropatwa, D. (2006, April 29). Wiki solution manuals [Web
log comment]. Retrieved from
http://adifference.blogspot.com/2006/04/wiki-solution-manuals.html
J. Connor, I think you're surfacing some important points. For example, you point out that you have found wikis highly effective in combination with other platforms (you mention Zoom). This made me realize that the literature I have been reading also connects wikis with other tech. For example, Kear, Jones, Holden, & Curcher (2016) note in their case study that the first step was an online discussion forum and that some groups even establish a "wikiquette" about who can modify another group member's contribution and when. Another case study showed that learners used the wiki more for information storage than to create new knowledge (Lari, 2011).
ReplyDeleteI find myself wondering, is wiki truly effective in its constructivist approach on its own, or is it when it is used in conjunction with other tech resources such as discussion boards, IM, videoconferencing, and the like that it becomes powerful?
Thanks for allowing me this opportunity to think "out loud" here.
Best
--Les
Kear, K., Jones, A., Holden, G., & Curcher, M. (2016). Social technologies for online learning: theoretical and contextual issues. Open learning, (31)1, 42–53. doi:10.1080/02680513.2016.1140570
Lari, P. (2011). The use of wikis for collaboration in higher education. In King, K. P. & Cox, T. D. (Eds). The Professor’s Guide to Taming Technology: Leveraging Digital Media, Web 2.0, and More for Learning. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Les, Personally I think it would be extremely difficult to conduct a stand alone Wiki project without some sort of integration of other forms of technology. It's feasible that it could be done in a resident course, where students can meet in person to collaborate, but in an online distance learning environment it seems almost impossible. Also, Wiki content can be pretty flat and boring without incorporating external media (ie. YouTube embedded videos, pictures, surveys, charts/graphs/diagrams etc).
DeleteJake, you brought up something that resonates with me, "the learning curve for a brand-new user is exponentially steeper". It's challenging for a brand-new user to make significant contributions. The lack of experience and self-efficacy may keep one in peripheral participation.
DeleteOn a side note, I'm a little nervous about someone editing my work. This is a skill that may be more indigenous to the native tech user. Let me state that I do believe in peer review and editing, but for someone to, without my knowledge, adjust my writing is a skill that must be exercised to properly develop.
I'm getting there...
J.Conner,
ReplyDeleteI think you nailed some of my fears in your list of cons! Since this is my very first experience with Wikis, I am very much afraid of messing something up trying to edit or add, and would be devastated to ruin someone's hard work!! Also, as I have been learning more about the Wiki and the set up, I am not much of the creative person that would be able to make it " aesthetically pleasing" as you have stated! I guess that would be why a group project or open to others to make it "pretty" for me!
I, too, have noticed how hard it is to get times that people can get together on a group project, and having the chance to do a collobartive project that you can all do without a lot of emailing back and forth. However, I feel that there should be a way to "track changes" so that people can see them when they return.
Anyway, thanks for sharing your thoughts. It really makes me want to keep learning more about Wikis!
My previous experience has led me to do almost ALL of the work in a separate program (ie. Microsoft word, PowerPoint, etc), save it externally, and then upload it in to the Wiki before messing with the editing. It's also good to assign one person as the "lead editor". Typically someone who's familiar with the annoying intricacies of the program. This will be my first Wiki using the K-State dashboard based program. Previously I used Wiki Spaces, which allowed for a lot of customization, but could also be very tricky when it came to formatting headers, font sizes, table of contents etc. However, when completing a collaborative project in an academic setting, most groups try to share the work load of adding significant contributions. Which means if you're the "lead editor", either it's your only responsibility and you're likely not contributing as much as the rest of the group, or it's an additional duty and your spending significantly more time on the project than your peers. So what's the answer to this dilemma? I have a few suggestions, but would like to hear what others have to say first.
DeleteI've come to the same conclusion as well and have actually used Google Docs to collaborate since they do have the 'track changes' feature. In one of the last large group projects, I tracked the heck out of changes and let even the minor edits fly so that our voice sounded more consistent. Part of me felt bad for providing so many edits, but I got the feeling they were welcome and appreciated ultimately improving the overall quality of the project.
DeleteI've had better luck with the integrated Wiki within Canvas over Wikispace. Hopefully, you'll like it better as well.
I have been the editor on several of the wikis and I like having fun with that. Typically I still contribute equally to the group but I have done an entire wiki directly on the wiki. Group members would add content then I would dress it up. We would highlight items that needed attention for other members to address if we found them but we did the entire thing from the page. Im not sure if it helped or hindered with the editing, but it did insure that we at least had a product to turn in on the due date. :)
DeleteI will note though Jake, in our previous wiki I remember being so impressed with the anchor link component you created! While I am sure it was a huge time consumer for you it really did allow our page to stand out. It was also easier to navigate. Just pointing out that sometimes attention to detail works well, I suppose if you get caught up in and it consumes many hours for one piece that isn't truly necessary, that would become a problem. :)
ReplyDeleteI contemplated the very same thing when setting up my first blog. Do I want other readers to know who I am, etc.? I agree nothing to hide but struggled with the decision especially since I am a novice learner and some will be supportive and others might point out my lack of experience.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate the sharing of your personal wikis experience and the fact that it made me stop and reflect on my own personal experiences. The first exposure was one of frustration with the formatting, embedding of images, videos, etc. which consumed so much of my time and energy that the emotions involved where interfering with the learning process and the purpose of the group project. I did learn a lot from other classmates who were further along in the program and the sharing of their tips based on their own learning experiences. The second time a wiki assignment was required going into the assignment with past experience and the knowledge that some obstacles would present created a less stressful and intimidating scenario.
I touched on what you had mentioned regarding time zone issues on another classmates blog. The immediate access that technology provides (West & West, 2009) creates a sense of immediacy and expectations that we desire. For example, when I know I have asked a question or responded to a post, I feel controlled to an extent to constantly check for a response, etc. to allow the collaboration to continue. I could see the time zone being an extremely frustration piece in online learning. That is the one disadvantage I see with some web-based tools regarding notification of updates.
West, J. and West, M. (2009). Using Wikis for online collaboration: The power of the read-write Web. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
@CLH, @Carli, and @Blogontolearnmore, You have all brought up one of the factors that most influences technology knowledge, having someone experienced assisting in the technology skill learning process (Doleck, Bazelais, & Lemay, 2017; King & Cox, 2011, pp. 17-20; Reinhart, Thomas, & Toriskie, 2011). One of the biggest determining factors of technology integration into the classroom is the ongoing training and support of the technology facilitator (Reinhart, Thomas, & Toriskie, 2011, pp. 184-185). In my experience as a new Wiki user, I just asked one of my group members in our ZOOM meeting to talk me through the process of how make a contribution or to modify. It was much simpler than I imagined, yet my self-efficacy blossomed by going on the process with an experienced Wiki builder @Cassie.
DeleteDoleck, T., Bazelais, P., & Lemay, D. J. (2017). Examining CEGEP students’ acceptance of computer-based learning environments: A test of two models. Education Information Technology, 22(5), 2523-2543.
Lari, P. (2011). The professor's guide to taming technology [Kindle version]. King, K. P. & Cox, T. D. (Eds). Information Age Publishing. Retrieved from Amazon.
Reinhart, J. M., Thomas, E., & Toriskie, J. M. (----). K-12 teachers: Technology use and the second level digital divide. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 38(3-4), 181-193.
Technology Integration Specialist = Melissa Kay Hort
DeleteThank you Ksu1msm!
J.Connor T-800 - The way you discussed the cons of the wiki this week validated a train of thought I've been exploring myself. The cons cited are predominately tied to the use of a wiki as a graded course assignment. If the wiki were used as a tool for learning but not assessing, would all of these cons still stand up? I would suggest that the majority of your cons would be eliminated. We could eliminate the concerns over time/skills needed to create aesthetically pleasing layouts, impending deadlines, and the politics of participation with the group. What if a wiki was used to construct a knowledge center that individuals could reference to find information needed to complete an individual project. I could envision the class creating a reference library categorized by topics, uploading podcasts that the group would appreciate, and posting questions to the group that they are grappling with. Could it get off topic? Yes, probably, but imagine the freedom of using a wiki just to learn from each other.
ReplyDeleteJ.Connor T-800, on my long drive this week, I began to contemplate your opening statement, “You may have noticed that I changed my screen name and profile picture this week.” I’ve been trying to decide whether to join you on this “conservative approach.” Fromm states “‘we have become automatons who live under the illusion of being self-willing individuals’” (as cited in Brookfield, 2002, p. 107). Haberman’s sphere of private life can only be influenced if an awareness of the loss of autonomy is understood (Fleming, 2012). Foucault refers to the self-imposed panoptic view (2008). Transparency, safety, and accountability is where much of our this exposure started. Intent was good, but it has led to questioning self of how much is too much transparency? I am thinking that I will join you...as soon as I figure out how to edit my screen name.
ReplyDeleteBrookfield, S. (2002). Overcoming alienation as the practice of adult education: The contribution of Erich Fromm to a critical theory of adult learning and education. Adult Education Quarterly, 52(2), 96-111.
Fleming, T. (2012). Fromm and Habermas: Allies for adult education and democracy. Studies in Philosophy and Education, 31, 123-136.
Foucault, M. (2008). Panopticism from Discipline & Punish: The Birth of the Prison. Race/Ethnicity: Multidisciplinary Global Contexts, 2(1), 1-12.