Using the Blog and Wiki Tools in Blackboard for a Group Project

Athena Smith, Sociology Instructor at the Brandon Campus, uses blogs and wikis successfully in her courses. Here, Athena shares two social sciences group projects that utilize the Blog and Wiki tools in Blackboard.

The word “wiki” means “fast” in Hawaiian and refers to a technology that allows participants to edit a page. The fact that students may edit each other’s work and have their own contributions edited encourages them to write with more attention to detail, accuracy, reason and proper documentation. Possible projects may evolve along the following lines:

---

PROJECT ONE

First Step takes place on a blog:

There is an island in the Pacific with a few natives and plenty of natural resources. You have requested to move there for the next 30 years with a few people that you may choose to start a new society. There are 15 people on the applicants’ list. You may choose only 6. Explain your choices by posting comments on the blog. The 9 top choices will be shifted into the Wiki section, where you can add/edit justifications for eliminating three and keeping the 6 final choices.

1. A lawyer who has become wealthy through malpractice lawsuits
2. A politician who has fought for universal health care
3. A politician who wants to increase defense spending
4. A CEO of a financial institution
5. An Honors graduate student who makes money by selling drugs
6. A former prostitute who now lives off the income from a beauty shop she opened with her savings
7. A former athlete who insists on carrying his gun
8. A drug dealer who has had successful business around the globe having bribed scores of international politicians
9. A 60 year old homeless lady
10. A paraplegic 12-year old boy
11. A young swimmer who won an Olympic medal
12. A gay clergyman who served in poor areas helping the destitute
13. A woman heart surgeon
14. Last year’s Miss Universe
15. Your father who left your mother when you were two and never paid child support
16. Your 95 year old mother

In the Blog we can watch the students explain their choices. The discussion brings to surface preconceived notions, life goals, latent prejudices, thinking processes. The students may comment to each other’s choices, approving, disapproving, adding new details, debating. During this step, students are free to repost with new choices. Once the blog closes after one or two weeks, the professor picks the top 9 choices and moves the discussion in the Wiki section.

Second Step takes place in the Wiki

Here the students are in charge of the game. They are free to edit each other’s contributions in order to approve or disapprove of a choice. Eventually, we will observe certain choices being deleted, with the approval of the majority of the students. The students are asked to evaluate and interpret from a sociological angle the basis for the final choices.

---

PROJECT TWO

First Step takes place on a blog:

Have the students read a provocative article (the one I used most recently was Dutch rethink Christianity for a doubtful world

The students are asked to write a letter to Rev Klaas Hendrikse. In the blog they start exchanging opinions about the ideas of Mr. Hendrikse. They comment to each other and debate. The blog closes after one or two weeks and the Wiki opens.

Second Step takes place in the Wiki

The professor is posting an outline of the letter that comprises the most prevalent points made by the students’ contributions on the blog. The students are asked to add/edit until they come up with a final version approved by the majority.

---

How do you use Blogs and Wikis in your class? Share in the comments area below.