Pooling Our Resources

This week, each content area group has been tasked with developing a wiki on which we are to post online resources that can be helpful for our students. This is very different from our past experience with wikis, because now we are working together across class sections, not just within our individual classes. My experience with the resource wiki has been very interesting, as I am the only math preservice teacher in my particular section of TPTE 486. Here, I will describe the ups and downs of working on a wiki with people I do not see everyday in class. 

I have really enjoyed working with the other sections through the resource wiki. This has been an enjoyable experience, because it so simple to collaborate on the wiki. When a big change is made, that member will comment on the page to let the rest of us know what was done and why. Most of the contributions and corrections have been very positive and appropriate. I also love this activity, because we are able to share a plethora of invaluable math resources with one another. It would have taken each individual a very long time to compile this many resources. I am so excited to check out all of these websites!

On the other hand, it is stressful to work with my classmates from other sections without being able to meet face to face with them. One of my biggest concerns with working in the wiki is making a change that others will not agree with. Since I cannot meet face to face with them to explain my reasoning, it is hard to judge if they really understand why I have decided to make that change. Additionally, it is difficult to monitor consistency within the wiki, since anyone, at anytime, can add or delete a contribution or format decision. However, with regular updates and group consensus, consistency becomes easier to maintain. I think that consistency maintenance on this type of wiki is a “learn-as-you-go” type of concept. As more contributions are made, it is easier for individuals recognize and adhere to the formatting of the page.   

I think that the math resource wiki is beautifully designed and fully stocked with great resources. This experience really highlights how wikis can facilitate collaboration between people from many different areas. Whether it’s within the school, the county, the state, or even the nation, wikis can really bring teachers, students, and parents together to create and share great ideas!

The Wiki In Review

Wikis are an incredibly useful tool for classroom use. Many teachers turn to wikis as a means to distribute information to students and parents. Others use wikis as a classroom website to post homework help, interactive activities, weekly schedules, and more. Such is the case for Ms. Genta’s Science Wiki, which serves as her classroom website. On this wiki, Ms. Genta’s provides information for students and parents, Power Point presentations, science games and adventures, and other fun resources for students to explore science. Voted Second Best Educational Wiki in 2009, Ms. Genta’s website is well designed and maintained. A wiki is great for a classroom website because they are extremely easy to edit and use for teachers, students, and parents. I enjoyed the teacher’s contributions to the wiki, and I think that her use of science resources really helps to make the subject fun for students. 

A second great use for wikis is as a place for students to compile notes and review concepts. The classroom wiki of the Data Management course, MDM4U1@FMG, is a wiki in which students summarize their class notes. The goal of the wiki is to evolve into an online textbook. This wiki is being produced to promote better understanding of certain ideas and concepts, many of which are mathematical in nature. I believe this is a great idea because it allows the students to collaborate in summarizing information. It also helps students to synthesize information in order to determine which is most helpful to the intended audience. During high school, I contributed to a wiki in a similar way to this in a physics class. I enjoyed the experience and feel that it definitely helped me study the information. The MDM4U1 wiki also has a great discussion board area where students can discuss topics and give and receive help with the material.  

I can see myself using wikis in both ways in my future classroom! I am excited to have students share and collaborate with each other in mathematics! 

What is Inquiry Based Learning?

The inquiry based activity (IBA) was a great way to simplify the WebQuest experience. In essence, the IBA is a teacher created worksheet that utilizes online resources to help student dig deeper into a topic. There are an abundance of online resources that can be used to help students conceptualize the content that they learn in class. This is especially important in the mathematics classroom, where abstract concepts are hard for students to visualize and understand.

For this reason, I can definitely see myself using this type of activity in my future classroom. I believe this is a great way to get students involved with the content. This type of activity engages the student's curiosity, and this, in turn, motivates them to learn more about the topic. In this way, an IBA is the ultimate thinking cap, because students are discovering new information in a way that build upon what they already know.


An IBA also gives students great experiences with examining web resources in a meaningful way. In order to complete the activity, students must synthesize and organize information, as well evaluate the accuracy and relevancy of the information with regard to the specific question asked. I feel that this type of activity is more effective than using a textbook, because the teacher can include interactive applets, games, and other activities. Again, this is especially important for students in mathematics classes when the concepts become more abstract. Online resources provide students with a great way to have a hands-on experience with this material. Overall, I feel that inquiry based activities are a great tool for the classroom.

Are you ready for a WebQuest?!

WebQuests were a completely new experience for me. Basically, a WebQuest is an online activity that requires students to work in groups to complete web research in order to answer a series of questions or produce a final project such as, video, skit, or podcast. Through an in-class activity, a WebQuest about WebQuests, we learned that a good WebQuest has four main components, efficiency, group work, well developed user interface, and higher-order thinking. Each member of our group evaluated the collection WebQuests based on one of the four components. I looked for WebQuests rich in higher-order thinking. To my surprise, the WebQuests that I found to be the best often lacked in other areas. However, for our group, it was somewhat easy to set aside our individual perspectives because we all agreed that the WebQuest should be up-to-date and well designed, and that the projects were, for the most part, equally efficient. In the end, we decided on a WebQuest that had equal parts of all of these components.

WebQuests are cool activities to use in the classroom. I think these activities can teach students a great deal about using the internet as a resource to expand their knowledge. Many of the WebQuests we looked at had the students create a final project that required extensive knowledge of the topic and of a specific technology. For instance, one required students to make a video podcast, and another required students to produce a movie using movie making software. For this reason, I believe these activities are a great way to get students involved in technology in a way that mimics a real world use for it. Before beginning the activity, I had not thought that a WebQuest would incorporate other forms of technology. However, now I realize that WebQuest can be tailored to any need or lesson in the classroom. This is what makes them such a powerful resource for teachers.

So, let's go WebQuesting!

The Ins and Outs of Website Evaluation

Having never formally evaluated a website, I was surprised by how easy it was to determine if a website is suitable for use in the classroom. Evaluating a website requires  more than evaluating the academic content, as I had previously done. This activity had the class get down to the skeleton of the website. We looked for information on the author(s), the publishing body and it affiliates, and how well the site was designed and maintained. 

One of the most surprising aspects of this activity was how quickly a website can become out dated. Some sites, published in 2008, now have dead links and misinformation. I feel that being more aware of this can help me to determine whether or not to use a website in my classroom. The links and information should be current so that the viewer can get the most out of his or her visit to the site.

After completing an evaluation for a mathematics website, I felt more confident in the content of the site, especially because the site was well designed. Evaluating websites really highlights the importance of good web design principles and practices. A clear and concise website is easy to read and should attract and involve the viewer. I believe the principles of good web design enhance the overall quality of the site. Good design also includes considerations for ease of use for people with disabilities. Teachers must be aware of assistive features that support the use of websites for all learners in their classrooms. Alternative text, or alt tags, can help a website be accessible to all students and are an important point of consideration for use of the website in the classroom. 

Overall, through this activity, I have learned the correct criteria by which to evaluate a website. I believe that website evaluation is an important skill to posses because students need to be able to find reliable information through convenient sources. With website evaluation criteria in their my tool belt, I can help my future students expand their knowledge.