922D3Marcone,+Nicole

D**3 Proposal-**

To KC Perry, Due to the fact that Providence will soon be working on a new ELA curriculum I thought that this would be a great time to begin to implement more technology into our program of study. There is a movement for educators and students to use Open Educational Resources, which is a means of accessing a rapidly growing number of FREE, OPEN educational resources. I would like FHS to only focus on one aspect of this movement- the use of wikis in the classroom. First and foremost you need to understand what a wiki is. A wiki is a collaborative Webspace where users can create content for instant publication or add, edit, and embellish content that has already been published. The potential for both instructive and creative uses of wikis in the classroom, school-wide or even within individual departments is vast. // If you can use a word processor, you can use a wiki! // Visitors can see a history of changes and revert to earlier versions. Visitors can discuss the page in a threaded forum. Wikis can be extremely useful in the classroom setting by acting as a medium to have: Wikis also allow a teacher to : >
 * Collaboratively Authored Class Texts
 * Writing Projects
 * Group Projects
 * Sharing Resources
 * Grade Level Teams
 * Subject Area Teams
 * Professional Development
 * Post tasks online, linked directly to relevant websites.
 * Provide lesson information, resources, and syllabus for long-term absentees.
 * Provide an ordered list of course requirements; gave structure to students work (and helped organize the teacher).
 * Post exemplar work/model answers for pupils online.
 * Create a medium that allows the students and the teacher(s) to communicate not only with each other, but also with anyone else that may be working on a similar assignment.
 * Allow students the ability to publish their work and receive feedback on it from people other than just the teacher.
 * Regularly update links/materials.
 * Edit/add new links in lessons, immediately they are suggested by students.
 * Post a skills ‘toolbox’ to assist in essay planning etc.
 * Post revision materials online – for pupils with identified problems.
 * Post general paperwork, syllabuses, trip letters, health and safety forms posted online to save administration time and paper.
 * Post homework online – no excuse for forgetting/misinterpreting tasks.

Wikis have the added advantage of being multi-dimensional, so images and links can be added, and features such as vocabulary definitions can be embedded in the text. In this regard, wikis help to differentiate instruction and teach to multiple intelligences. Because most of the work is student generated and monitored, wikis are an excellent way for schools and districts to showcase student work. Furthermore, giving students control of the editorial content on a wiki affords them a sense of responsibility and ownership while cultivating social skills such as negotiating and collaborating. To get a better example of how wikis work well and how tech-savvy teachers and students can create a media rich, differentiated classroom, you can access the following websites: Sharon Peters’ wiki that includes projects, assignments, management tips, etc. at https://k12onlinespeters.wikispaces.com, and Mark Wagner’s website that includes both basic information for understanding and more in depth discussions/tutorials [] and Wagner’s video here []. There are of course some justifiable concerns about the use of wikis in our classrooms. First and foremost is the concern of students’ safety on a very public Internet. Wikispaces, which is the wiki provider that I feel, is best suited to our needs, offers options for restricted and/ or open access. For instance, if I had a classroom wiki I could set it up so that only people that had a username and password could access and edit information. If at any point it is decided that it would be beneficial for the students to share their knowledge and their work, collaborate with others beyond the district or community who share interest in particular topics, and enhance their understanding of any given topic, then the wiki can be made more open and accessible with a simple click of the mouse. Another concern is vandalism and inappropriate use of the wiki. Any wiki used in a classroom must have a site manager (I volunteer for my class and/or department) whose job it is to maintain the appropriateness and accuracy of the content. Also, I would review and reinforce with my students the appropriate and inappropriate uses of the wiki before allowing any of them to access it. Students who violate the protocol will be temporarily banned from accessing and adding content to the wiki until they show they can follow rules, and I would make the creation of content on the wiki a part of each quarterly grade, so those who get temporarily banned would see their grades suffer. Furthermore, I would send letters home to my students’ parents explaining exactly what a wiki is, how their students would be using it in the classroom and at home, and the appropriate wiki protocol and penalties for violating it. The letter would also request parental and/ or guardian permission in the form of a signature. Any student who does not return a signed permission form will not be allowed to access a wiki. I will create traditional methods for the creation, evaluation and assessment of student work in those cases. As I mentioned before I am proposing that we use Wikispaces as our wiki provider. They offer free wikis for educators with varying levels of privacy and security to suit your liking. Also using this tool is fairly simple and therefore would not require extensive PD and training for teachers and students. In the future I foresee each classroom with its own wiki. Rather than teachers having to make copies of handouts etc. everything would be right on the wiki for anyone-teachers, students, parents and administrators to access at any time. More importantly than efficiency and environmental factors, is the wonderful possibility of the endless possibilities for students to have more ownership of not only their own work, but also of what the whole classroom, or even the whole school creates. A wiki allows students to publish their work in ways that have not been possible before. Teachers and students can collaborate with the peers in others districts, states and even countries. Students can learn from each other and at the same time can work towards becoming technologically savvy and literate. Our society is changing faster than many of us even imagine and our students must keep up in order to be successful in life. Although having a classroom wiki is only the first step to this process, it is vitally important to provide our students with this opportunity. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Nicole Marcone