Wikis

=Wikis and Blogs=

Wikis VS Blogs
Blogs are more like journals where an individual would "post" information. The content is managed by one person with feedback coming through visitor comments. Wikis can be more collaborative with one or more persons contributing to the content. Unlike the sequential posting of blogs, wikis are able to branch into different directions.

Wikis **OR** Blogs
Which is better? Really it depends on how you want information to flow. The way to answer the question is to look at examples of how each is being used and then experiment to create something that fits your needs. And it's ok to make mistakes. This D14 Technology wiki is my third attempt (fifth if we include blogging experiments) at creating a technology resource website. There are no incremental costs to creating 3, 4, 5,.... a 1000 wikis and blogs. You create, you learn, you create again. And every time, the product gets better.

__**Blogs**__

Currently, I'm recommending media type="custom" key="51593". Free to educators, this service has some good features such only allowing members to comment and being able to moderate (preview) any comments before they appear on the page.

Examples: [|Room 504's Digital Space] [| The Fischbowl] (lots of classroom examples links)

__**Wikis**__

Here are some of the resources I've been using to guide teachers (and myself) to the way of the wiki.

This site is not a wiki but does a great job of explaining wikis (ie what is a wiki vs a blog). http://www.teachersfirst.com/content/wiki/

These next three links are about wikis and how these are being used in education and classroom specifics. http://schoolcomputing.wikia.com/wiki/Wikis http://greatidea.wikispaces.com/wikis http://educationalwikis.wikispaces.com/

The last link is a Wikispaces sign up page for Educators, making sure that you are given a free, no-ads Wikispace. An available option is the Private version that only members can see and/or edit. http://www.wikispaces.com/site/for/teachers100K