Wikis For Professional Development
The word wiki is a short form of the Hawaiian wiki-wiki, which means quick. Quick and accessible to everyone might arguably be two attributes which have kept the Wiki, a Web site with audience curated content, not only alive, but regularly referenced by the masses. Think of the number of quick look-ups that occur in a single day on Wikipedia. Mike Fisher writes of the immediacy required for educators to stay connected in order to learn and share effectively, identifying what he calls "just in time" learning in his article for teachthought, Connected Professional Development Is Now an Imperative. These connections have evolved to form digital professional learning networks or (DPLNs), systems where fellow educators "get together" to share what they're doing via social media and online tools and applications. Wikis are an ideal online tool for the type of collaborative learning used in DPLNs and wherever professional practice is shared and developed.Looking closer at a Wiki's use in the educational setting, Foley and Chang (2006) authored a study which examines how Wiki technology can be used to support teacher professional development. Part of their analysis highlights some important inherent features of the Wiki, specifically the high quality of the activities it takes to put a Wiki together: research, synthesis and presentation of the idea for others, and the mutual learning benefits for both Wiki creators and their peers (p.1). Mike Fisher elaborates on the importance of peer collaboration among teachers, citing P21's 21st Century Skills. Among these, communication and collaboration stand out as desired skills for both educators and learners, and correspondingly are key attributes of Wiki creation.
Curious about a topic? Start a Wiki about it.
A great way to explore a professional development topic is to start a Wiki about it. Facilitators can frame the PD topic in the form of a Wiki, setting the stage for participants to add their knowledge, research and questions, resulting in the finished product: a personalized, highly relevant and accessible learning tool.
My Example, Exploring an Existing Technology
Exploring an existing and new-to-some classroom technology, I started mimioteachandlearn using Wikispaces to create a beginning-of-the-year resource to help my colleagues learn more about their new Mimio Projectors and Mimio Notebook software, as well as to identify resources for training, collaboration and trouble shooting. Content is easy to add, and can include videos, images, polls, and documents. What additional pages would I like to see on my Wiki? Classroom examples, a Share-What-You-Know page.
Resources
Foley, B., Chang, T. (2006). Wiki as a professional development tool. Paper presented at the American Education Research Association annual meeting in session "Technology and Teacher Learning." Retrieved from http://www.csun.edu/~bfoley/AERA_Wiki.pdf
