Teaching Languages Through Wikis

Peer Editing Through Google Docs

Wiki has been successfull used for teaching learning purposes right from the primary level to Post Gradute courses.

Google has a cool tool to help students do peer editing to improve their writing skills. You can read more about it on this Teachers' FAQ blog. The students can be divided into groups and each group has a wiki topic to work on. They do the editing first using Google Docs and other Google tools and then post it on Wiki.

For example, Group A has about 5 students and they work on Topic 'T' using Google Tools. All the students are able to edit the doc. The reviews and changes over a period of time are saved in Google docs. The group leader makes a presentation to class about the significant changes that were made from the first draft to the final one, the rationale for the changes and the consequent improvement of the doc.

Similarly, Group B works on Topic 'O' and goes through the same process. After all the group leaders have presented their reports to class, the wiki doc is created for one group to edit another group's work. The first level of peer editing was intra group - within one group - and the second level editing can be - inter group - between the groups.

Here again a team of leaders should form the editorial group noting down the changes made during the revision process. The leaders should make presentations to class on specific areas of writing drawing lessons from the actual process of the various revisions carried out by the groups.

There are many reports available online on using Wiki for teaching learning purposes. A Google Search for this topic reveals a lot of useful information.

Wiki as a Teaching Tool is a 16-page report. The authors of the report say, "This paper explains wiki usage, investigates its contribution to various learning paradigms, examines the current literature on wiki use in education,and suggests additional uses in teaching software engineering".

The authors of the report are:

The report can be downloaded in PDF format - Wiki as a Teaching Tool. [You need adobe acrobat reader to open this report. If you do not have one, you can download a free acrobat reader.]The authors of the report are: 

There are few blogs discussing the use of Wiki for language learning and teaching.

The Language Learning Resources Blog has a discussion thread on using Wikis for language learning.

Cycling Through Ed Tech reports a student taking "wikis by storm - she’s giving workshops and lectures all over the state on how to use wikis in the K-12 classroom".

Effortless English Archives has posts on TPRS Wiki Lessons

American Council on The Teaching of Foreign Languages, ACTFL, has Wiki case study

"Building Community, Improving Oral Proficiency:  A Wiki Case Study" and "Discover the Future of L2 Writing through Blogs and Wikis" are the topics covered and there are downloadable PDF documents.

Learning and Teaching Languages Online: A Constructivist Approach is a study that includes the use of wikis as well as blogs and other virtual tools for language learning.

Tuncer Can says, "Creating Microworlds and Hypermedia designs for language learning where collaborative learning (i.e. working in groups for creating a content website, film making or preparing presentation on a specific language piece using wikis), problem-based learning (i.e. solving real life communication and interaction problems between people, creating focused wikis) and goal-based scenarios (i.e. creating scripts for events and texts, writing for blogs) are elaborated could construe a prosperous context for meaningful language input, real life and simultaneous language practice, comprehensive output, pragmatic and discourse awareness. This would boost the learning opportunities and contexts as well as other skills necessary for technology and knowledge creation"

The project plan of  Teaching English to Young Learners by CIEFL, Hyderabad includes "To develop materials through WIKI for teachers'language proficiency and professional competence". More information can be obtained from http://wikieducator.org/TEYL.