Before you start your wiki with your class(es), make some basic decisions:
- How do you envision using the wiki? ( How will you explain it to parents and administration? Feel free to use the examples here to help.)
- Who will be able to see the wiki? (the public? members only?)
- Who will be able to edit the wiki? (the public? members only? vary by section?)
- Who will be able to join the wiki? (students only? parents? invited guests? the public?)
- What parts of the wiki will you “protect” (lock from changes)?
- Who will moderate the wiki for appropriateness, etc?
- Who will have the ability to reset changes?
- Will you, as the teacher, be notified of all changes?
- Will the wiki have Individual or global memberships? (by individual students if you want an individual record of who made changes, or with one log-in per group or class?)
Administrator Approval
Once you an envision how your wiki will work and be used, it is best to get your principal or supervisor's approval if you are one of the first teachers using such a "new" web tool. Recent news stories about social networking sites have administrators on edge. Your school's Acceptable Use Policy may have some specific rules about using tools like wikis. You want to find out the following:
- Is it permissible to post student work to web?
- What is the policy on posting student names (initials? pseudonyms?)
- What is the policy on posting pictures of students or class scenes?
- What is the policy on posting any information that might identify the wiki class?
- Can these policies be met through security settings, parent and student agreements?
- Does the district filering prevent access to the wiki tools from school? If so,
will your administrator facilitate UNblocking of the wiki's exact URL?
Plan the path for a successful wiki.
Roll your mouse over each topic at the left, and make decisions about each question to assure a wonderful wiki experience!
I will come back to this. I want to play with the wiki tool to see how it works.
Which wiki tool will you use?
Your planning and administrative response will help you decide if a wiki tool has the capabilities and security you need for a successful wiki. Keep the answers to the basic planning and administrative requirements handy as you select a tool.
