Steve’s Blog K12 Learning2.0

Wow.  Having seen a few examples of the power of wikis, this is really starting to make sense.  It was so easy to see the value that this tool brings from planning a camping trip, to organizing and editing collaborative creative writing pieces, to daily classroom application (lesson plans, assignments, grades, etc..).  I can think of so many ways additional ways to utilize a wiki both personally and in teaching.  I have a very good friend in Europe that I would like to commuicate and develop a site to stay in touch with each others lives, thoughts, activities, people… sort of a virtual coffee shop/journal/story board.  A lot cooler than just talking & writing emails, no?

A few things that came to mind when viewing the following wikispaces:

1-Math 12V Outcomes Portfolio
Used by a teacher in Canada to collaboratively create a curriculum with expectations of material mastery    through topic identification & description with examples generated by users (students) for 4 units of a 12th grade math class (Quadratic Functions, Exponential     Growth, Circle Geometry, & Probability)
2-Small Stones
Woodward AP Calculus students write their own textbook by “scribe posting” a review of each day’s lesson.  I actually know one of the     students in this class! small world indeed… Wiki includes very comprehensive review of AP Calculus lessons over the course of 23 weeks.
3-Welker’s Wikinomics
Extermely thorough & interactive wiki site of an AP Economics classroom.  Not only does it provide a centralized place for all class      material, grading, syllabus, and other pertininen information but also a very in depth discussion forum where students elaborate on     application of the lessons and relevancy to current day events.  Example discussion (where does the music industry make it’s money?)
4-Grazing for Digital Natives
Resources for educators about using new technologies in the classroom Wiki managed by Philadelphia 9th grade history teacher Jennifer Dorman.  Give some background information about Jennifer, but not easily able to see how the wiki is organized or to be used.  There are some messages in the discussion forum from other teachers that     have found her site helpful in educating about Web2.0
5-1001 Flat World Tales
An ongoing global writing workshop emphasizing peer editing and revision
6-Westwood Schools Computer Science
Classroom wiki for Vicki Davis’ (coolcatteacher) high school computer science courses
It is amazing to me with this technology available for several years now that there are not standardized applications of it across all high schools (or middle & elementary).  I can imagine a day when every teacher, every class, every grade has the expectation to have wikis to enrich everyone’s learning process.  People sometimes say that technology drives people apart, lessenign direct in person commuincation.  The class-room will never be replaced, but tools like this I can see how they make the process of learning much more interactive, fun, and meaningful.