Week #7 - EDUC5101G - Blogs versus Wikis

A colleague recently approached me with a question about collaboration tools.  She is currently designing and developing a leadership program and an element of the program requires the learners to collaborate before, during and after the six-month program.  She is unsure as to the best tool to use.  I mentioned to her that we effectively use Blogs and Wikis in this M. Ed program to collaborate.  She asked what the difference was, and was particularly unsure as to the purpose of a Wiki.  In order to be able to provide her with a somewhat educated response, I thought I would do some research.  Although I have used a few course Wikis (created posts), created my own Blogs and created/responded to Blog posts, I would have to say that my usage is limited relative to the full functionality of these tools.  I want to go back to my colleague with a recommendation and state why.  If possible, I would also like to be able to suggest a few specific tools for the recommended collaboration approach.

I came across two tables that were very helpful in summarizing the similarities and differences between Wikis and Blogs (Starbuck & Orlowski, 2008).

Similarities Between Blogs and Wikis

No html computer language is necessary for basic look Simple to set up using free software Can be accessible to anyone in the world Students can express their own ideas Can last beyond the official end of a course Easy to edit in your web browser Can link to other websites, media, and insert photos  Need to be aware of the fact that anyone can type anything they want.  Entries are not necessarily reliable. Good way to stay current in your field and read about what others are doing

Differences Between Blogs and Wikis
Blogs	Wikis
·         Distinct, dated entries usually made up of text containing news, commentary, notes, and personal reflections1	·         A group of interlinked pages, each with a unique name 1
·         Suited more for individual authoring, although it can be collaborative	·         Suited for collaborative authoring, as many people can edit each page, although it can be an individual project
·         Written in reverse chronological order (newest entry is always at the top)	·         Written according to content, or any arrangement someone wants
·         Only the blogger can edit their own post	·         Have the capability to edit other people’s entries
·         Usually a signature follows each post	·         More likely to be anonymous entries
·         Outside commenting on entries such as from peers, coaches, teaching team, and others at a distance1	·         Can have a discussion function to talk about disputed points of an entry. Similar to a discussion board, but  less structured
·         No automatic saving function of previous post versions.	·         Previous versions of a page saved and retrievable in the event of mistakes1
References for this chart: 1 = http://riee.stevens.edu/fileadmin/riee/pdf/ASEE2005_Paper_Wikis_and_Weblogs.pdf

After reviewing the similarities and differences noted above, I then reflected back on my experiences as a learner in this program (I do not use Wikis and Blogs in my workplace).  How have I used Wikis and Blogs?  From a collaborative perspective, how effective were the tools?

In one course, a class Wiki was created and we were asked to browse the Wiki, contribute to it and change content to the Wiki – with the intention that the class Wiki gets bigger and better with every class. An emphasis was on quality contributions and the collaboration in the building of this Wiki.  This approach resulted in contributions from a large, diverse group of learners all with an interest in education.  It was quite impactful knowing that all of our contributions were being consolidated.  I also found the class Wiki helpful for my assignments.  This class Wiki was built using MediaWiki.  Another course also used a Wiki—this one used the tool Wikispaces.  Learners were asked to contribute six Wiki posts throughout the course.  The tool was easy to use, but the purpose was to submit posts, rather than collaborate with other learners.

From a Blogging perspective, my very first course had learners post the first assignment (personal reflection but well supported by literature) on a Wordpress blogsite with the requirement that it had to be accessible by classmates.  Another course had us create a Blog using Blogger and create five posts throughout the course.  Again our Blogs were to be accessible by all classmates.  A Weebly site was created for this course - designed for us to create our own Blogs, submit posts and respond to other posts.  It also provided a social platform for housing course materials, assignments, readings, tools and accessing blog feeds and twitter feeds.  A final course took a similar approach but uses a personalized social network called Ning.  

When I was researching to determine how one chooses – Blog or Wiki, it was suggested that you ask what outcomes you want to achieve.  In this situation, we specifically need a way for learners to collaborate online.  Based on experiences in this program and my research, I would say the Wiki approach would be the recommendation for my colleague.  It is a stronger collaborative tool, as opposed to individual authoring.  To have our leaders share insights, experiences and best practices – having all of this shared knowledge in one spot, while allowing other leaders to build upon what has already been posted, will be powerful.  It’s the collaborative knowledge and the power of many minds working together that will encourage learners to go to the Wiki when they are seeking for insights on leadership.  I would also recommend that TikiWiki and MediaWiki be considered as potential tools - they are the top two most popular wiki software on the net.

References:

Starbuck, E. & Orlowski, M. (2008). Blogs & wikis: New education tools. Center for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning.  Retrieved from http://meblog.pbworks.com/w/page/11074186/Similarities%20and%20Differences

UNSW Australia Teaching. (2015). Blog, wiki or fWorum – which should you use?  Retrieved from https://teaching.unsw.edu.au/assessment-blog-Wiki-or-forum-which-should-you-use