Wiki: Who, What, Where, When and can you use them with ELL students?

 

Wiki what?
 
Wiki, the very word sounds strange and yet it has such a ring to it. But what is a Wiki exactly? Well, if you want to get down to the nitty-gritty its conglomeration of text and images and code designed to act as a place to display information. A miniature website if you will. However, it can also act as a place for your students to interact with you, their teacher, and with each other. I have already previously spoken about the 10 Specific Uses of the Wiki in the ELL Classroom. But better yet, the Wiki can act as a place where you can keep all of your more permanent materials that can be accessed and used over several courses, you need only update the materials as necessary. 

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Two Wiki's we can learn from.
 

Wikinomics!

Mr. Welker who teaches AP/IB Economics has a very nice Wiki. His Wiki is called Welker's Wikinomics and he teaches at Shanghai American School and Zurich International School. He also incorporates a blog which is updated daily. I enjoy Mr. Welkers wiki a great deal because:

•  It's easy to use. All of his lesson materials are accessible for download directly from the Wiki.  
• Each unit has it's own individual page which makes it easier to navigate.
• He has a 'thread' bar at the bottom of the front page where students can ask questions.
• Each unit page includes links to other resources, news footage, photos, or other helpful graphics that can help integrate student learning. 
• He included a resource page for both students and teachers.
• He includes a set of rules on netiquette that students must follow.

For every good thing there must be a negative and in the case of Mr. Welker's Wiki a few issues did come up.

• While the blog is updated daily the website has not been updated since 2009. Several of the video links no longer work. If he is still using this Wiki to teach he might want to consider going through the site to update these.
• Following up what I just wrote, since the site has not been updated in several years many of the hyperlinks no longer work either. An update is needed!
• The notes available for PDF download (not the ones meant for students) are NOT for free! I am all for paying for good materials but I would like to know this before I click on the link.

Ask Mrs. Walters!
Another Wiki that I found truly enjoyable was authored by a High School teacher in North Carolina:

Ask Mrs. Walters! I really enjoyed Mrs. Walters page because:

•  She included links to both her AP English and English III classes.
• There are files with all the notes needed for book readings and exams.
• She has a resources page that includes SAT prep and MLA/APA format links.
• She includes web-quests to encourage students to develop research skills and to evaluate websites with a critical eye.  
• She has a page specifically about college admissions for students considering becoming English majors.  
• On the individual class pages she states up front what the class requirements are and includes a grading scale. 

What didn't I like about this Wiki:

• It's not pretty, there are only two images on the site and no videos. I feel that sometimes a few images and/or videos add the pizazz needed to capture student attention.
• It isn't a Wiki so much as it is just a regular website.
• There is no forum or thread for students to ask questions with however, she does include her email.
• It is out of date by almost a year (she is currently on maternity leave so really this shouldn't count).

 Using a Wiki to Teach ELL Students:

 

Most people wouldn't consider it, but a Wiki can be used to teach several of the curriculum standards in ELL, sometimes using the same activity. For instance you can combine online Wiki discussions with classroom activities in order to ensure that your ELL students are using all four major skill areas (apparently Creativity and Humor are not skills I can officially grade). In this example I used Writing Prompts with these associated standards:

 

Writing Accomplishments Grade 3 -12

W.2.1 Write in a variety of forms, including persuasive forms, such as logical argument and expression of opinion; personal forms such as autobiographical

narrative; literary forms such as stories; and descriptive forms, such as reports

and expositions.

Speaking Accomplishments Grade 3 -12

S.2 Provide basic information on a relevant topic in a conversation.

S.3 Provide detailed information on a relevant topic in a conversation.

S.4 Argue in favor of or against a particular relevant topic.

Reading Accomplishments Grade 3 -12

R.4.1 Identify main idea/theme/problem/plot of a passage.

R.4.2 Identify the main purpose of a passage.

R.4.4 Use knowledge of sentence structure to comprehend text. 

Listening Accomplishments Grade 3 -12

L.2 Determine main idea/purpose.

L. 3 Identify important supporting details.

L.4. Determine speaker’s attitude/perspective.

L.4.1 Distinguish between fact and opinion.

L.4.2 Identify author’s opinion, perspective, point of view, purpose, motivation, stance, or position. 

 

Writing Prompts Activity: A classroom Wiki would be a great way to get a debate going. You could start it out with something simple such as "Is Dr. Pepper better than Mt.Dew?" as your students respond you can require them to add to the discussion a short persuasive argument paragraph on why they think one soda flavor is better than the other. Remind your students of proper netiquette (no fighting, just friendly debate). After a week you could take an in class vote and post it on the Wiki. As a follow up your could ask your students (in class) if anyone changed their mind about what soda flavor they preferred and if so, why? And if they didn't change their mind, then why? They can then re-post their opinions on why they did or did not change their minds on the Wiki. This will encourage your ELL students to not only practice their writing, speaking, listening, and reading skills but also their critical thinking skills by asking them to actively think about why they like one particular soda over the other one and to form an argument based on their opinion.  

• >.<