Wikipedia is a free, openly editable, web-based encyclopedia. A wiki is a Hawaiian term, meaning “quick”. Anyone can create and make changes to Wikipedia articles. It is a voluntary collaboration that operates under the following “five pillar” principles.
• Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia.
• Wikipedia is written from a neutral point of view.
• Wikipedia is free content that anyone can edit, use, modify, and distribute.
• Editors should interact with each other in a respectful and civil manner.
• Wikipedia does not have firm rules.
• Wikipedia is written from a neutral point of view.
• Wikipedia is free content that anyone can edit, use, modify, and distribute.
• Editors should interact with each other in a respectful and civil manner.
• Wikipedia does not have firm rules.
The home page offers featured article, in the news, on this day, and did you know… sections. From this page you can search and access almost any information you are looking for. The project continues to advance, as many volunteers spend hours updating articles of their interest and expertise. Wikipedia is an amazing example of how web 2.0 is changing our world.
Many argue that the information is voluntarily submitted, making accountability an issue. I feel that the information shared is a legitimate source to expand your knowledge base. Volunteers police themselves, creating a culture of accountability and passion. Proper expectations and knowledge of how Wikipedia operates, allows for an enjoyable, learning experience.
As a teacher, I want to embrace technology and our changing world. Wikipedia offers a great opportunity for students to contribute to the web 2.0 world. My endorsement, business, offers students an endless variety of material to edit and share on Wikipedia. Giving the students an assignment to collaborate on Wikipedia is an exciting idea, which not only helps the learning process, but also teaches accountability.
My name is Ben Brink. I live in Lincoln, Nebraska with my wife and three sons. I have a B.S. in Business Administration from Nebraska Wesleyan University. I wanted to mention, that I love the blog format of this class. I have my own blog that I use to share my baseball knowledge and instruction. Web 2.0 is truly fantastic, and it offers unlimited opportunities. Sharing knowledge and experiences is a great environment for learning. I considered myself a good student in high school, but I always wanted to know “why”? How does what we are learning relate to the world outside of the classroom. I continue to ask “why”? I can fully embrace new knowledge, if I can comprehend how it “fits” into my world.
Ben, thanks for the incite! Though my students and I often use Wikipedia, I did not realize the public could produce and make changes to its articles. Agreed; searching info themselves and adding to the insurmountable knowledge there would be a great way for students to work together and contribute. Thanks for the inspiration!
ReplyDeleteWe enjoyed our ball season this summer. Sure makes the summer go fast!
In some cases wikipedia can act as a stepping stone to help students when researching but in other cases as you have mention anybody with a wiki account can add information so there are some cases where not every bit of information is true. I think think that as a "starter" for research projects it can be useful but as for it being the only point of reference, the negatives out weight the potential upsides.
ReplyDeleteHi Ben,
ReplyDeleteWell, most of you know by now how I feel about Wikipedia ;). But for the benefit of those who are new to this group, I basically agree with what Christian said in his comment. I would NEVER let a student cite Wikipedia in a research paper but if students are taught to use Wikipedia as a starting point for more credible research then I have no problem with it.
In our last class, I provided a link to this article:
http://tinyurl.com/28a9y5a
This article is from the Chronicle of Higher Education and talks about how the founder of Wikipedia himself discourages students from using Wikipedia for academic purposes.
There have been many known instances of people changing the content of a Wikipedia page and that drastically decreases it's potential as a credible source of information.
I thought this was a well-written article on why students should not use Wikipedia:
http://tinyurl.com/ybnn6ah
Ok, getting off my soapbox. Wikipedia has its place on the internet, it's a good tool to show what collaboration can accomplish, but I think that students should be taught to use caution when consulting Wikipedia for any academic purpose.
And Ben, I'm guessing you knew I would comment on this one ;)
ReplyDeleteThe emphasis of my post is on the opportunity for students to contribute to web 2.0, NOT on using Wikipedia for a research reference. Web 2.0 collaboration in small groups is a great way to enhance learning. That is what we are doing in this blog format. We are not researching, but sharing our knowledge and experiences.
ReplyDeleteOk, yes, web 2.0 is a good opportunity for students to collaborate but I think we, for obvious reasons, need to be very cautious with Wikipedia even as an example of collaboration (see the 2nd article I posted about the limitations of collaboration on Wikipedia). Sharing knowledge and experience is a noble endeavor but if it's based on very few "expert" contributors that control content, then it is not collaboration in the truest sense of the word.
ReplyDeleteI am speaking of a small group of students working together towards a common goal. That is collaboration. What you refer to as a "noble endeavor", I refer to as "learning". Your comments remind me of Reason #8 in your second article...
ReplyDeleteBen, I apologize if I offended you. I honestly don't have a problem with collaboration of a small group of students on a project. I merely have a problem (as I have expressed often before) with Wikipedia. I don't doubt that you intend for your students to learn through collaboration and that is a good thing, something we all should strive for.
ReplyDeleteI truly did not mean to be overly critical and I don't have "an agenda," unless that agenda is to caution students against using an internet source that is notorious for being unreliable.
With all the information that is out there on the web, students can be dumbfounded when trying to find information for any reserach paper they need to do. I do science fair at my school and the students have a 10 page paper they have to write for it. When starting, they are not sure where to start. I like using Wikipedia to give them ideas where to go. The resources they get from that is what they should be using for research. Very job at giving the information about Wikipedia. As teachers we need to take that information and do with it what we want to.
ReplyDelete