Thing 21: Wiki

I found quite a few wikis that seem to have value. I think the challenge will be to make wise selections about returning to the appropriate wiki(s) when there's something I need. (Yes, I know that I could mark and tag the site using Delicious, but I think it takes a while to know what the true value of a given wiki might be.

As for getting ideas for classroom wikis, I'm confident that I could use this structure for students to build knowledge. I continue to be concerned about the difference between the 'haves' and the 'have nots.' However, I'm thinking that I could minimize the duplication or the extraneous nature of the online content by asking students who would prefer to work in a hybrid environment to affirm that they will have access to the Internet during the duration of the course. This means that they will either have home access, or will make arrangements through friends, the library, school computer labs or elsewhere to get access when it's needed for homework.

I believe that most kids would prefer to work with online activities, all things being equal. Given the choice, I think it could be reasonably assumed that they (and their parents) could take responsibility for maintaining or arranging access. There are many public access options and the solution need not be home-based.

• Anecdotally, some parents have used computer access as a consequence for child misbehavior, and I've had students who beg for a computer based assignment so they can get their parents to permit them back on the computer.

I'm also wondering about the appropriateness of having a building-based wiki with access limited authorized staff. Could a wiki serve as a clearing house for building or department specific information (kind of like ORCA) but be used for information that might be a little less formal or a little more privileged. One of the things teachers at my school are required to do is keep a logbook of student 'interventions.' Mostly, as it turns out, these are behavioral interventions. Would it be productive--would it be ethical?--to maintain a wiki that uses student names as the topics and details their behavioral challenges and solutions teachers have found? For instance, is there a pattern of behavior that needs to be addressed? Is one teacher having great success with a specific approach to behavioral problems?

Invariable, when I have time to talk with my colleagues and the subject of individual students comes up, I generally get a lot of good suggestions. Unfortunately, these often don't happen until things have gotten really bad and we've scheduled a staffing with parents, student and other teachers. By that point it's often more of a crisis and the poor kid needs to dig his or her way out of a hole.

Would it be appropriate for teachers to use a closed wiki and share information about specific students? I would want assurance that the information was only used for valid instructional purposes, but if it was, it might serve as a great resource for teachers to plan interventions. Of course, it would rely on teachers using good judgment in their postings and being professional, but I'd like to assume that that expectation could go without saying.

Along those lines, is there a way to use the existing infrastructure of a site like ORCA (our district's Intranet and document management system) to achieve the same end without reinventing the wheel? Without duplicating the security requirements?