Here I go again

I'm still trying to wrap my head around wikis--I think I'm making them more complex than they are, and I'm confusing them with moodles. Now it's time for the rubber to meet the pavement, and I've contacted 7 teachers in my building who are willing and even excited to start a wiki in their classrooms. Three English teachers and I are going to try the suggestion made by the TeachersFirst link provided in the syllabus--using vocabulary words, students are going to write and edit and add to a story using the vocabulary words for the week. I still don't feel very comfortable; however, I've created two wikis: one for the online class I'm taking, and one for a book study I'm creating with two other literacy support teachers. Some of the teachers I've contacted have used wikis in the past, and I plan to take full advantage of their knowledge! A math teacher is going to create a wiki with me for her geometry students, and a science teacher is going to work with me to create a science wiki. In a week or so I hope to be more knowledgeable about the actual workings of the wiki.



I feel like a struggling student who is trying VERY hard, but still isn't getting it! An uncomfortable place to be, but it places me in the unique position of truly empathizing with my students who are struggling with concepts I know and understand perfectly well, but my students don't.



The wikis my teachers and I create will meet the NETS-S standards 1, 2, 3, and 5.



I found Brian Lamb's article "Wide Open Spaces: Wikis, Ready or Not" very helpful; PBWiki was relatively easy for me (except that note that said "create a wiki in 30 seconds" was not true for me! As I was muddling through all the information, my tech director suggested five wikis that are for librarians that have been EXTREMELY helpful, although I haven't edited a thing yet.



I feel strongly that any wikis I create have to add value: to me, to my dedicated, overworked classroom teachers, to the students we serve every day. Wikis are a tool (one of many) that will help teachers help students to be more effective communicators when they leave our high school.