Getting to Know Wiki's!

I am fairly new when it comes to the subject of Wikis so while I was listening to the pod cast I wanted to research the advantages and disadvantages of Wiki’s. Here are my findings.

Advantages

• anyone can edit
• easy to use and learn
• Wikis are instantaneous so there is no need to wait for a publisher to create a new edition or update information
• people located in different parts of the world can work on the same document
• the wiki software keeps track of every edit made and it's a simple process to revert back to a previous version of an article
• widens access to the power of web publishing to non-technical users
• the wiki has no predetermined structure - consequently it is a flexible tool which can be used for a wide range of applications
• there are a wide range of open source software wiki's to choose from so licensing costs shouldn't be a barrier to installing an institutional wiki

Adam stated a lot of interesting advantages of Wikis such as; groups of people can edit each others work, students are very involved, collaborative environment and Wikis are good for incremental work.

Disadvantages

Advantages in one context, may be disadvantages in another.

• Anyone can edit so this may be too open for some applications, for example confidential documentation. However it is possible to regulate user access.
• Open to SPAM and Vandalism if not managed properly. There are easy ways to restore a page however, and on WikiEducator you must be logged in to edit pages so this reduces vandalism by automated spam bots.
• Requires Internet connectivity to collaborate, but technologies to produce print versions of articles are improving
• The flexibility of a wiki's structure can mean that information becomes disorganised. As a wiki grows, the community plans and administers the structure collaboratively.

Overall, I belive that incorporating a Wiki lesson in your classroom is a good idea especially for reading and writing classes. But it seem as if Wikis can be incorporated with in any subject. I think that the one advantage that is really important but was not stated is that it gives students and individuals ownership of the final product.

This information was found in a Wiki (http://www.wikieducator.org/Wikieducator_tutorial/What_is_a_wiki/Advantages_and_disadvantages).


Click on this think to watch "PB Wiki-Helping Educators Educate"
http://heyjude.vodpod.com/video/64404-pb-wikihelping-educators-educate