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Wikis and Blogs for the Classroom

In this
article we look at two web tools that have been developed over recent
years and are now commonly used in the language teaching classroom.

The two tools are called wikis
and blogs. Read on to find out what they are, how they can be used in
the classroom and why so many educators are getting excited by the
possibilities they offer.

First of all let’s look at what they are.

What is a wiki?

A wiki is a website that allows its visitors to write content
collaboratively. The users of the site can edit the content, making
changes to what has previously been written by other readers.

There can be several pages of content connected by hyperlinks. As
the content is editable there is a history of changes to enable users
to revert back to earlier versions.

The most famous example of a wiki is Wikipedia, an online
encyclopaedia written by its readers. The English version, which can be
found at http://en.wikipedia.org, has nearly two billion articles. The Cantonese version is located at http://zh.wikipedia.org.

What is a blog?

A blog (or web log) is a website written by an individual or
individuals which acts as a kind of online diary. Entries are posted
chronologically, with the most recent at the top, and provide
commentary or news on a particular subject such as food, politics, or
local events.

A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, web pages, and other media related to its topic.

The ability for readers to leave their comments on the content is an important part of many blogs.

An example of a blog can be found at http://hkeltnetwork.blogspot.com.
As you may notice, the content of this blog is the same as this
article. You can post comments on what you think about blogs and wikis
and add any comments you have about the ELT Network.

Why use wikis and blogs?

The key to this question is that the content on both types of
website can be written by the user. Therefore, teachers and students
can generate their own content.

 

One of the main reasons why these tools have become popular as
classroom tools is their motivational aspect. Students can now see
their work published live on the internet. As they control and publish
it themselves, there is a high level of motivation to work hard. This
often leads to higher quality content than would have been generated in
similar paper-based activities.

Because it is published on the internet, material can be accessed
anywhere with an internet connection (in Hong Kong that's pretty much
everywhere). Students can show their friends and parents what they are
working on and they may also be able to add to it outside class time,
thus increasing involvement and not restricting their participation to
the classroom.

Most of us are fortunate enough to have access to the internet in
the classroom and have a dedicated computer room where students can do
work. What better way to practice writing than on a something that
publishes, stores and shares a student's work?

As well as these benefits, wikis and blogs are very easy to use and
their application in the classroom is only limited by our imagination.

Some uses of wikis in the classroom

Writing Video Reviews

In this lesson plan
we look at how you can set up your own wiki for use by your students.
In this example, the teacher has embedded a number of music videos into
a wiki and the students collaboratively write reviews of the videos.

This wiki is produced using a website called www.wikispaces.com.
You can view an example of the exercise by going to the wikispaces
website and signing in (top right corner) using the following details:

username: eltn-user

password: english

Download the lesson plan and follow the instructions.

This exercise fits nicely with the English through Pop Culture elective in the new secondary syllabus.

Another similar exercise which would fit in with the electives would
be based on writing film trailers. It would be easy, following the
steps in the lesson plan [link], to develop pages with embedded movie
trailers where your students can write the reviews of recently released
movies.

The website www.YouTube.com offers a large number of trailers for movies. Just type the word trailer and the name of a film into the search.

Process writing

An old collaborative writing exercise involves writing the start of
a story and passing it on to another student for them to add another
sentence and so on and so forth. This simple activity type lends itself
perfectly to wikis.

You can find an example of one that we started here using a wiki called writeboard by clicking on this link:

http://writeboard.com/027a99fe410a26f09

Just click on the address and type in the password english. Click Edit this page
and then enter the next line of the story or edit what has already been
written. Don’t forget to leave an unfinished sentence for the next ELT
Network member to complete.

It took less than a minute to set this up. In a classroom setting,
you would need to set up a number of different writeboards, one for
each computer, ideally with a different name for each one. However,
even if you needed to create as many as 20, it would still only take
about 20 minutes preparation. Don’t forget to provide your students
with the links to the website.

Exam essay writing practice

Another use, based on writeboard,
would be for examination questions. Create a number of writeboards,
each with a different essay title. Students can then write their
answers collaboratively and share their results with their peers. After
getting feedback on their efforts they can edit what they have written.
It would provide you, the teacher, with a good record of their work and
provide their parents with a good opportunity to see how their children
are getting on at school.

Some uses of blogs in the classroom

As we mentioned previously, blogs are more often used for online
journals than collaborative writing. However, one feature of blogs
which can be exploited in the language classroom is the ability to add
comments and join discussions.

Discussion Forums

We can use blogs as forums of discussion for our students.

Have a look at a blog we have set up at
http://hkeltnactivities.blogspot.com/ and have a look at the activity
at the bottom entitled Virtual Art Gallery. In this
exercise students practice language for describing artwork and would be
asked to view the pictures on the blog and write their feelings towards
them in the Comments section.

You may wish to change the settings so that only registered users
can post comments. Try and leave a comment on this blog by using the
following details:

Username: HKELT.Network@gmail.com

Password: Engl1sh (watch out for the 1 instead of i)

My Personal Diary

We’re coming to the end of one school year and before we know it,
another will be starting. If you are a class teacher, you will see your
students develop over the year but will you have a record of it? For
that matter, will they have a record of it?

Blogs offer an excellent platform for students to keep reflective
diaries on their school year. Students could keep one going for the
whole year, contributing to it on a weekly basis. Alternatively a group
of students could set up a blog for a particular project.

A popular website that allows you to create blogs is with www.blogger.com. With Blogger it is possible to restrict who can view blogs so it is only open to your class.

Of course, students are required to write in English so what better way is there of practicing the language?

Other uses of wikis and blogs for learning professionals

As we mentioned earlier blogs are often online journals. Have you
ever thought of keeping a journal of your continuing professional
development? By maintaining a blog of your personal development you
will be able to monitor how you have developed and share your
experiences with other ELT professionals.

Issues and solutions

Below are a number of issues that you will need to consider before using any of these ideas:

• Does your school filter internet content?

Many schools do, so you will need to check if the websites you want
to use are accessible in your school. A sound pedagogical use for that
website will often convince your IT administrator to unblock the site.

• Some basic user training may be needed.

Although all the sites listed above are simple to use, some learner
training may be needed the first time you attempt these activities in
class.

• Monitoring is essential.

As in any activity is essential to monitor the content your students
are producing. It is advisable to get your students to accept a code of
conduct before using computers.

• Beware of copyright infringement.

However, music videos and trailers are often posted on
www.YouTube.com by the producers themselves and using these in class
would not break any copyright laws.

The artwork used in the blog activity is from wikipedia. Each photo
in wikipedia contains copyright information so it is possible to check
before copying the pictures.

To conclude

One key thing to remember is that our students undoubtedly know more
about technology and how to use it than we do. It is important for us
as teachers to keep up, otherwise we risk isolating ourselves from what
our students are doing in the real and virtual world.