This article provides a nice review of Lazy Virtues, a book initially written and published by Robert Cummings. Potts extracts some interesting points and notes that the book itself provides a useful foundation for researching Wikipedia and its uses in higher education. Grossek (2009) and CCNMTL (2008) expand on this theoretical framework and demonstrate some of the advantages and disadvantages of employing various Web 2.0 tools in higher education settings, in particular the use of wikis and Wikipedia.

Wikipedia is becoming a more acceptable tool in e-learning environments, and to a further extent providing an alternative to conventional course books (CCNMTL, 2008). It is interesting that Robert Cummings 'Lazy Virtues' notes that students were sceptical about the use of Wikipedia in their courses back in 2005, with many students being relatively unfamiliar with the concept of Wikipedia. Yet in 2007/2008, Cummings found that 83% of undergraduate medical students employed the use of Wikipedia for their studies, with 9% of students having edited one of the pages. Thus we see that incorporating Wikipedia in e-learning environments and educational institutions is becoming more acceptable amongst both students and teachers.

As we move into a digital era, we are beginning to witness a shift in conventional teaching methods with more and more teachers beginning to push for the use of wikis and other Web 2.0 technologies within the classroom, noting that these platforms help to increase the sense of community within the classroom (Grossek, 2009) and create somewhat of a virtual learning environment (CCNMTL, 2008). They are a valuable tool for promoting collaboration among students and compliment current teaching methods (Grossek, 2009).

Additional References:

CCNMTL (Nov 3rd, 2008). Promoting Collaborative Learning using Wikis. [YouTube Video]. Retrieved 22nd March 2012 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ul9YM7QZZis

Grossek, G. (2009). To use or not to use web 2.0 in higher education? Procedia Social and Behavioural Sciences. Pp478-482. Retrieved 21st March 2012 from http://webpages.csus.edu/~sac43949/pdfs/to%20use%20or%20not%20to%20use.pdf

This is a nice review of James Surowiecki's publication of The Wisdom of the Crowds, as reviewed by just that- 'the crowds' on Wikipedia. Since his publication in 2004, the term "wisdom of the crowds" has been used in many research papers and articles, especially when in reference to collaboration and knowledge contribution in various Web 2.0 sites such as Wikipedia. Similarly, the publications I have selected incorporate this theory and extend it into the practices of education (Grossek, 2009) and businesses/corporations (Hasan & Pfaff, 2006; Hendrix & Johannsen, 2008).

For example, Hendrix and Johannsen (2008) discuss the Shell wiki and how it was used to facilitate knowledge sharing amongst employees, leading to the production of a nine-volume "Shell exploration and production handbook". Thus here we see employees dispersed geographically collaborating and sharing knowledge to achieve a common goal. We are now beginning to see just how powerful a diverse range of opinions from a wide range of people can be when working towards a common goal. Whether it is a group project, or designing a company workbook, two heads are better than one.

Overall this article is a nice representation discussing the main points of Surowiecki's work, and it is interesting to see how the 'Wisdom of the Crowds' theoretical framework can be applied to various aspects of today's Web 2.0 technologies.

Additional References:

Grossek, G. (2009). To use or not to use web 2.0 in higher education? Procedia Social and Behavioural Sciences. Pp478-482. Retrieved 21st March 2012 from http://webpages.csus.edu/~sac43949/pdfs/to%20use%20or%20not%20to%20use.pdf

Hasan, H., & Pfaff, C.C. (2006). The wiki: an environment to revolutionise employees' interaction with corporate knowledge. OZCHI. 11(24-26). Pp377-380. Retrieved 19th March 2012 from http://www.ozchi.org/proceedings/2006/sessions/short-papers/social/hasan-p377.pdf

Hendrix, D., & Johannsen, G. (May 16th, 2008). A knowledge sharing and collaboration platform. Inside Knowledge. 11(8). Retrieved 20th March 2012 from http://www.ikmagazine.com/xq/asp/sid.0/articleid.0A6EF1DD-1D6A-4CD0-94EA-DC872A5A708E/eTitle.Case_study_Shell_Wiki/qx/display.htm

CCNMTL (Nov 3rd, 2008). Promoting Collaborative Learning using Wikis. [YouTube Video]. Retrieved 22nd March 2012 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ul9YM7QZZis

I have selected this YouTube video as it explains how wikis provide a valuable communication and collaboration platform for students and help to facilitate a virtual classroom within educational institutions.

Derrick Higginbotham, Leila May-Landy and Don Beeby discuss how they have successfully implemented wikis in their courses to encourage student collaboration and organisation. The speakers presented this talk at the New Media in Education Conference in 2008.

As the other articles that I have selected indicate, wikis are a valuable collaboration tool for educational institutions and corporate organisations if implemented effectively. In terms of education, they provide a dynamic and interactive platform for students to share ideas and collaborate on group work within a virtual classroom. Leila May-Landy, a teacher at Columbia University, notes that various wikis are being used as replacements for various course platforms, providing an alternative to conventional course books. In addition, it allows students to share documents and embed other forms of multimedia such as videos and podcasts into their work, offering a trackback mechanism to assist students' reflection on group tasks.

However, in order for the wiki to work and compliment academic studies, students must be motivated, willing to share their ideas, and motivated to meet deadlines. Leila May-Landy notes that lack of collaboration within the groups can sometimes arise due to linguistic and cultural differences. In addition, there may be inappropriate integration of material and resources used in assignments, and inappropriate referencing, with the majority of work being copied and pasted together. Nevertheless, if appropriately structured and implemented, wikis can provide a good platform for students to collaborate and complete group tasks. As Don Beeby states, "the wiki acts as an extension of the classroom where students can continually better their understanding of the books (they) study through online discussion, sharing links and images". (300 words).

Hendrix, D., & Johannsen, G. (May 16th, 2008). A knowledge sharing and collaboration platform. Inside Knowledge. 11(8). Retrieved 20th March 2012 from http://www.ikmagazine.com/xq/asp/sid.0/articleid.0A6EF1DD-1D6A-4CD0-94EA-DC872A5A708E/eTitle.Case_study_Shell_Wiki/qx/display.htm


'Wisdom of the crowds' is not just limited to groups of people, but branches out and extends to major organisations that employ the use wikis to facilitate knowledge sharing amongst employees. One such company is Shell.

The Shell wiki was initially intended to be a "community managed internal encyclopaedia that made up-to-date knowledge from all Shell's disciplines easily available to staff around the world". However an overwhelming amount of knowledge sharing and collaboration from employees has seen a vast amount of materials arise from the introduction of the wiki, including training manuals and technical handbooks. In addition, the Shell Open University employs the wiki as a learning tool, with the majority of content for the course being published in the Shell wiki. A nine-volume "Shell Exploration and Production handbook" has also been converted from print into a wiki entry, allowing experts in the field, and other Shell employees, to regularly update content.

Reasons for the organisations success in implementing the wiki may relate to the way it was initially set-up. In order to encourage employees to participate in knowledge contribution, they are sent links to training modules that provide information that help develop basic wiki skills. Training sessions are also offered to employees to assist them in understanding and contributing to the wiki. In addition, the company motivates employees by providing incentives and prizes to participants that share information rich content and use the wiki effectively.

Ultimately here we see a major organisation that has successfully implemented a platform to which its employees can build upon content and share knowledge, helping to publish various training manuals whilst keeping company information up-to-date… a success that is not only attributed to the organisation, but also the 'wisdom of the employees'. (288 words).

Hasan, H., & Pfaff, C.C. (2006). The wiki: an environment to revolutionise employees' interaction with corporate knowledge. OZCHI. 11(24-26). Pp377-380. Retrieved 19th March 2012 from http://www.ozchi.org/proceedings/2006/sessions/short-papers/social/hasan-p377.pdf This article focuses on collaborative social software, such as wikis, being used by members to communicate and collaborate electronically within corporate organisations. The authors use the term Knowledge Management (KM) to describe the ways in which wikis can be used within these organisations to share knowledge, create content, distribute documents and edit files. The advantages of using wikis within corporate organisations are that knowledge can be shared quickly and efficiently, allowing editing of pages to be recorded and information to be kept up-to-date. New pages are able to be created and old ones deleted. Editing of pages and knowledge contribution is relatively easy when employing a wiki, even for the novice user. Overall the "wiki takes advantage of the collaborative efforts of all members of the organisation to create an effective library of knowledge" (p.378). Major corporations such as IBM, the Disney Corporation, and British Telecommunications, are three major organisations that have been noted to employ wikis to assist with KM amongst workers. However, some corporate organisations choose not to employ wikis to organise KM for a number of reasons. Wikis may appear to change the organisational structure within companies such that "senior executives may be reluctant to share power with their subordinates" (p.379). There are issues surrounding intellectual property and quality control of information. Privacy concerns also come into play, and conflict may arise if workers are contributing more information or less information to the wiki than other employees. However the authors note that through offering corporate incentives, implementing revision control, and employing u

Grossek, G. (2009). To use or not to use web 2.0 in higher education? Procedia Social and Behavioural Sciences. Pp478-482. Retrieved 21st March 2012 from http://webpages.csus.edu/~sac43949/pdfs/to%20use%20or%20not%20to%20use.pdf

This article focuses on the educational applications of various web 2.0 technologies, including blogs, wikis, photo and video sharing applications, RSS feeds, social bookmarking and social networking platforms. Organisations such as primary schools and higher education facilities are beginning to employ various web 2.o tools within their curriculums, as they provide a platform where students can communicate and collaborate on work for various subjects. Using web 2.0 technologies within these organisations also helps to increase the sense of community within the classroom, allowing students and teachers to create and exchange content by using variety of resources and information. In addition, these tools can be used across multiple educational organisations, facilitating collaboration across schools.

However prior to introducing these tools to the curriculum, teachers must make sure that they will actually work and facilitate learning. As the author notes, "we shouldn't forget that abusing web 2.0 can block or annihilate information processing, and can decrease the quality of learning" (p.481). Teachers must also take on the responsibility to accept these new technologies and incorporate them into the traditional learning environment. Self-training and short courses are also recommended so as teachers can become familiar with the various web 2.0 tools.

Ultimately, web 2.0 technologies have given rise to new ways of collaborating and communicating within educational institutions and across multiple education organisations. Teachers within these organisations are finding new ways to employ web 2.0 technologies within the classroom to compliment current teaching methods, and help facilitate learning and collaboration amongst students. However educators must first make sure that utilising these tools will actually assist learning activity, rather than impede it. (268 words).