Weblogs+and+Wikis

**Definition **

Weblogs

 * A weblog is "a website that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer” (The Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, 2004).
 * A weblog is a "frequently modified web pages in which dated entries are listed in reverse chronological sequence" (Herring, Scheidt, Bonus, & Wright, 2004, p. 1).
 * A weblog is a “web-based, multimedia publishing system, that is low-cost (often free), very easy to use, customizable in terms of look and feel, content, target audience and hyperlinked to other content spread across the internet” (Cameron & Anderson, 2006, p. 2).
 * Weblogs are personal pages, whereas wikis are communally created.

Wikis

 * A Wiki is a web site in which any individual can add and edit information without needing special administrative access rights.
 * RSS reader is a formatted web page that lists a summary of each change on a site, sorted by date. If you subscribe using an RSS feed - syndication, XML, or RSS- than changes in blogs or wikis will appear in your reader. When I use blogs or wikis for courses, I subscribe to all the class blogs and wikis to keep track of changes. I encourage the learners to do the same.

**Links**
 * The Educational Bloggers Network __[|http][|://][|www.ebn.weblogger.com]__
 * Edublogs __[|http][|://][|www.edublogs.org]__
 * Weblog-Ed __[|http][|://www.weblogg-ed.com]__
 * Blogger __[|http][|://][|www.blogger.com]__
 * Pbwiki [|http://pbwiki.com]/
 * Wikispaces http://www.wikispaces.com

**Usage** > >
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Personal reflections and journals
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Learning and research portfolios
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Post class announcements, handouts, and reminders to learners about assignments
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Peer coaching and peer review
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Small group cooperative learning
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Incorporating links and references can extend learning beyond the discussion topic
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Content Management system see: http://educ661-winter2009.wikispaces.com/
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Class resource repository
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Class Text see: http://educ661-winter2010-wikiarticles.wikispaces.com/
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Lessons Learned with Using Wikis:[]
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Weekly discussion on a specific area of study [[image:http://www.wikispaces.com/i/mime/32/application/msword.png width="32" height="32" link="http://technologybootcamp2011.wikispaces.com/file/view/EDUC+633+Assignment+Appendixes_Blog_example.doc"]] [|EDUC 633 Assignment Appendixes_Blog_example.doc]

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<span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 24px; text-align: left;">**Benefits**
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Access – anytime, anywhere (Turnbull, 2002)
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Promote collaboration, knowledge building, and reflection(Sorensen, 2004).
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Decrease learners’ perceptions of isolation (Dickey, 2004)
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Foster a sense of connection and linking (Rourke & Anderson, 2002).
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Peer relationships are established on blogs in the online environment and mimic the peer interaction that occurs in the traditional classroom.
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Increases learner self-confidence, writing ability, sense of involvement,
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">sense of interdependence, and development of social and teamwork skills (Wang & Fang, 2005).
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Promote learner autonomy and a means of representing and expressing the self and forming identity (Cameron & Anderson, 2006)
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Encourages ownership and responsibility for learning; learners may be more thoughtful abut the content that they write due to their awareness of the large internet audience (Godwin-Jones, 2003).

<span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 22.4px; text-align: left;">**How To Guides**

[|How_to_Guide_Blogs_and_Wikis.doc]