Potential uses of a Wiki in education

Potential uses of the Wiki as an educational tool:'''

·        Students can use the wiki to construct group projects. The wiki itself allows for a permanent record and ongoing documentation of their work.

·        Wikis are good for students to summarize and reflect on readings or course material. It allows sharing of resources and enables use of a communal bibliography.

·        It is especially advantageous for online, distance or blended learning where the teacher or instructor can publish materials, readings or alter and update the syllabus as the course progresses.

·        Wikis can be used as a communal educational resource and experience sharing environment in teacher communities of practice. It allows teachers to share materials along with their comments, reflections and critiques and make modifications on the fly.

·        Wikis can be used as a concept mapping tool. Students can use the hyperlink functionality to connect related topics and then change these connections as their knowledge base extends.

·        Wikis offer an alternative to more commonly used presentation software such as PowerPoint. Not only is it free, but allows for similar use of multimedia. It also allows for in-situ modification and comments by members of a group or peers.

·        Wikis offer an attractive alternative to conventional group work. Rather than having to rely on gathering in the same location, or sending files around via email, the wiki allows for groups to work together regardless of geographical location. It also offers advantages over similar tools such as Google Drive or Dropbox by keeping track of all the revisions and modifications made, allowing users to undo potential mistakes. It also makes it significantly easier for assessment of group work as it allows the assessor to identify the contributions of each individual member of the group and often encountered issues.

·        Wikis also offer an alternative venue for students providing feedback for courses or units. They can collaboratively express a group opinion on a topic or course.