Some thoughts...
Using a Wiki to manage library instruction
- wikis allow for great collaboration--users can upload information, share information with others using the wiki, edit the wiki as one would a word processing document, and etc.
- wikis for library instruction specifically, are great for: collaborating on certain projects and handouts, sharing knowledge, and making sure the workload is split evenly among colleagues.
- efficient and conducive to highly collaborative digital work, wikis are a wonderful tool for sharing information and brainstorming ideas.
- i've used wikis for many different class projects and at work, and now I am helping students at the school where I'm student teaching learn how to use wikis. They are so user-friendly and can be very accessible to a wide range of patrons with different information and learning needs.
- I really enjoy using a wiki to collaborate, but I have heard librarians often talk about how wikis can be difficult to use, and in general, not very user-friendly from their perspective. What does everyone think of this take on wikis??? I'm curious to hear different perspectives on this issue!
- Social tagging or bookmarking, continues to grow increasingly popular with time and use. I think this is a really great method for organizing information from the user's perspective.
- At the same time, I have to wonder if too many tags/labels can become too overwhelming, and too dense. For example, I once collaborated on creating a blog of library performers and programs for an internship I completed in August. Three people including myself were collaborating on this project, and the blog format was absolutely perfect for our needs.
- Eventually we had to set core guidelines for creating metadata/tags, because it was just growing too rapidly and becoming difficult to sift through. We set up specific categories and rules for creating tags/labels, and it went very smoothly from that point. Does anyone have a take on this topic??
- I really appreciate the point presented in the article that social tagging can allow for the "gray" or lesser well-known literature to come to light and be pulled for student research. Information that is ordinarily very difficult to locate is thus way more readily accessible to a wider range of people. This is one of the most fascinating and powerful aspects of social tagging.
- I enjoyed watching this video on the beginnings of wikipedia, and its current development.
- Personally, I take very little issue with wikipedia, though I realize many in the LIS field are uncomfortable with this online information source . Like all information tools and pieces, I believe Wikipedia fills a definite need. Similarly, we should highlight that like all pieces of information found online, we need to be meticulously careful about what we percieve to be reliable information.
- For one, it can be used to teach people how to select information in a smart, careful manner paying great attention to detail.
- An example of this might be: working with high school students on a research project. Students begin with Wikipedia, and are given the task of tracing the information posted on wikipedia, and checking the sources cited.
- This would teach students the need to check all sources for validity and reliability, and the value and importance of collaboration in the dissemination of information. One of the main points here: the power and value of communication among people, and the constantly evolution of this process.
Thanks for posting. I think you're right about Wikipedia. Librarians should embrace it carefully. I have always valued it as a jumping-off point before starting real research.
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