blog 7

I learned some things about Wikis this week. I learned that it’s possible for a group of people to work on a Wiki website and discuss things on it.I learned that it is possible to revert to a previous version of a Wiki. I learned that Wikis are used for science because science is ever changing and it is faster to spread information by posting it on a website than it is to publish it in a book, for example. I learned that Wikipedia can block someone that vandalizes the articles contained within it. I also learned to not always post a new subject and respond under reply if I’m writing about a subject that has already been posted. I learned that when working in groups on a Wiki one person can be the author for a Wiki.

The article “Bridging the Digital Divide: A Building Block for Teachers” by Colleen Swain and Tamara Pearson describes how access to technology in schools can be limited and how teachers can overcome those limitations in order to use technology more in the classroom. The article includes websites for lesson plans that make use of technology. It also describes how a teacher’s knowledge and ability to use technology affects students’ work. Also mentioned in the article is how teachers can reflect on their use of technology to decide whether or not it is used more for teachers or for the students’ learning experience. The article describes how low funding for schools is not an excuse for not using more technology in the classroom and cites that High Technology and Low-Income Communities: Prospects for the Positive Use of Advanced Information Technology can help schools with low funding. The article lists websites that can help with getting funding for technology such as computers.