Erlyn's Master's Thesis

Book Report 2.0:

Using Wikis for Book Reviews in a Middle School Classroom

A Field Project Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Education

TOURO UNIVERSITY - CALIFORNIA

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree of

MASTERS OF ARTS

in

EDUCATION

With Emphasis in

Technology

By

Erlyn D. Fukushima

December 2010

Book Report 2.0

Using Wikis for Book Reviews in a Middle School Classroom

In partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the

MASTER OF ARTS DEGREE

In

EDUCATION

BY

Erlyn D. Fukushima

TOURO UNIVERSITY – CALIFORNIA

December 2010

Under the guidance and approval of the committee and approval by all the members, this
field project has been accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree.

Approved:

___________________________ ___________________
Pamela A. Redmond, Ed.D. Date

__________________________ ___________________
Jim O’Connor, Ph.D, Dean Date

TOURO UNIVERSITY CALIFORNIA
College of Education
Author Release

Name: Erlyn D. Fukushima

The Touro University California Graduate School of Education has permission to use my
MA thesis or field project as an example of acceptable work. This permission includes
the right to duplicate the manuscript as well as permits the document to be checked out
from the College Library or School website.

In addition, I give Dr. Pamela Redmond permission to share my handbook with others via
the Internet.

Signature: __________________________________

Date: ______________________________________

Abstract

There are many obstacles teachers face, including having to meet the needs of the 21st

century learner. This generation of digital natives relies heavily on the use of technology.

Using Web 2.0 sites, such as wikis, is one way to engage these students. This project

seeks to utilize wikis to publish and discuss book reviews by students, instead of the

traditional pen and paper reports. By effectively using these sites, students actively learn,

develop their writing skills, hone digital literacy, and work collaboratively.

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Table of Contents

LIST OF TABLES..................................................................................................III

LIST OF FIGURES................................................................................................III

CHAPTER I.............................................................................................................1
Statement of the Problem...............................................................................................................................2

Background and Need....................................................................................................................................3

Purpose of the Project....................................................................................................................................3

Project Objective............................................................................................................................................4

Definition of Terms.........................................................................................................................................4

Summary.........................................................................................................................................................5

CHAPTER II............................................................................................................6
Introduction.....................................................................................................................................................6

Necessary Skills...............................................................................................................................................7

Enter the Digital Natives..............................................................................................................................10

Literacy .........................................................................................................................................................12

What Good Are You, Web 2.0?...................................................................................................................15

Summary.......................................................................................................................................................17

CHAPTER III.........................................................................................................19
Components of the Project .........................................................................................................................20

Standing on the Shoulders of Giants...........................................................................................................21

Wiki Handbook ............................................................................................................................................22

Summary.......................................................................................................................................................24

CHAPTER IV........................................................................................................25
Project Outcomes..........................................................................................................................................26

Proposed Audience, Procedures, and Implementation Timeline:............................................................27

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Evaluation of the Project:............................................................................................................................29

Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................................31

REFERENCES......................................................................................................32

APPENDIX: USING WIKIS FOR PUBLISHING BOOK REVIEWS....................35

iii

List of Tables

Table 1: Workplace Know-How as Identified by the SCANS Report (1991) ....................8
Table 2: Workplace Know-How as Identified by the SCANS Report (1991)
with strikethrough items....................................................................................................17
Table 3: Workplace Know-How as Identified by the SCANS Report (1991)
as Evidenced in this Project .............................................................................................30

List of Figures

Figure 1: Graphic of Student Outcomes and Support System, Source: The Partnership
for 21st Century Learning website: http://p21.org (2001)..................................................14

Chapter I

The emergence and accessibility of computer technology has impacted the lives

of students. Marc Prensky (2001) wrote, “Our students have changed radically. Today’s

students are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach” (p. 1).

He described students as digital natives, or “native speakers of the digital language of

computers, video games and the Internet” (p.1). Prensky contended that these students

were used to receiving information really fast. They liked to parallel process and multi-

task. They thrived on instant gratification and frequent rewards and preferred games to

“serious” work (p.2). This change in students affects how teachers teach. The old,

traditional pedagogy no longer engages digital natives. Their minds think and process

information differently than students of the past because of their daily interactions with

technology. Teachers must instruct these students differently than students before.

Since 1994, the amount of technology in the classroom has changed. In 1994,

when the researcher received her licensure, the percentage of schools nationally with at

least one internet connection was only 35%, while the percentage of classrooms wired

was only 3% (Atkinson & Gottlieb, 2001, p. 28). In 2010, those numbers grew

exponentially - even some of the most rural schools were wired for the internet.

As a middle school English teacher, this author believed that teachers and book

reports go together like peanut butter and jelly. She required her students to read novels,

truly believing “the more you read, the more you know”. Students read a book every five

weeks or so, and then did a project based on their understanding of the book. Wanting to

avoid the kind of book reports her middle school teachers assigned; five paragraph essays

summarizing the story elements found in the book, this author created projects instead of

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reports. These projects required students to not only summarize what was read, but

creatively show their understanding of the book by combining artistic ways that were also

appealing to the eyes (postcards written from the main character or author telling about

their book, time capsules filled with important items from the main character, etc.). The

question for 21st century learners is, where is the engaging technology in that?

Statement of the Problem

Students cannot imagine life without their cell phones, the use of a computer, or

the ability to play video games. So, how can teachers effectively harness this interest in

technology and relate it to that of their education? In the report, published through the

Henry K Kaiser Family Foundation, Generation M²: Media in the Lives of 8 -18 Year

Olds, it stated,

8 – 18 year olds devote an average of 7 hours and 38 minutes (7:38) to using

entertainment media across a typical day (more than 53 hours a week). And

because they spend so much of that time ‘media tasking’ (using more than one

medium at a time), they actually manage to pack a total of 10 hours and 45

minutes (10:45) worth of media content into those 7 ½ hours (Rideout, Foehr,

& Roberts, 2010, p. 11).

Children raised on technology see it as their friend and grasp its ideals quickly. These

“students are ahead of many of their teachers when it comes to using technology to

support learning” (Engstrom & Jewett, 2005, p.12). Teachers need to keep students

motivated by using what keeps them interested the most – technology and the internet.

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Background and Need

The report, Generation M²: Media in the Lives of 8 -18 Year Olds (Rideout,

Foehr, & Roberts, 2010), reported:

Children who are heavy media users are more likely to report getting

fair or poor grades (mostly C’s or lower) than other children. Indeed,

nearly half (47%) of all heavy media users say they usually get fair or

poor grades, compared to 23% of light media users (Rideout, Foehr, &

Roberts, 2010, p. 13).

These students were disengaged in class because they were used to multi-tasking or

“media-tasking”. Students that were asked to learn one concept at a time, found that

pace slow and boring. Digital natives needed to multi-task to stay engaged.

Most teachers are digital immigrants - not born into the digital world but have

many or most aspects of the new technology (Prensky, 2001, p.1). They are not at the

same level of digital literacy as our students. Teachers need to make their curriculum

relevant and teach effective and meaningful to our digital native students. Teachers need

to stay abreast of what is current and meet the needs of our students.

Purpose of the Project

Web 2.0 sites, like wikis, allow users the freedom to organize, create and modify

content that can be published on the internet. In addition, these sites are used as

platforms for discussion and allow the creators immediate feedback on their created

content. By allowing students the ability to create on such a huge canvas as the internet,

this project helped augment their technology skills, and gave them the freedom to

produce a project that is as unique as they are. Using wikis allowed students to engage in

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inquiry-based learning. In addition, students worked collaboratively and provided

immediate feedback to their classmates. Students commented on wikis and developed

their writing and language skills, and provided (as well as accepted) positive criticism.

All the work students did for this project helped strengthen the skills they needed in their

future educational endeavors.

Project Objective

After learning about Web 2.0 sites, specifically wikis, students created and posted

their summaries and book reviews on the internet. Students posted their reviews to the

website PBworks. Students were required to comment and provide some sort of feedback

on other students’ wikis.

The success of the project was assessed from student self-reflection, student

feedback, as well as daily checks to the website for additional changes to the wikis. This

researcher made comments on each student’s wiki about their progress.

Definition of Terms

Blog or Web Log A blog (short for "web log") is essentially an online journal or
diary where one can post messages, photos, music and video on
their own.(Blog, n.d.).
Blogger A contributor to a blog or online journal. (Blogger, n.d.)
Blogosphere Blogosphere is a collective term encompassing all blogs and their
interconnections. (Wikipedia, n.d.).
Digital Immigrant A person who was not born into the digital world but has adopted
many or most aspects of the new technology. (Prensky, 2001)
Web 2.0 The term given to describe a second generation of the World Wide
Web that is focused on the ability for people to collaborate and
share information online. (Web 2.0, n.d.)

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Wiki a website that allows the easy creation and editing of any number
of interlinked web pages. (Wikipedia, n.d.)

Summary

Education is impacted by the exponential changes available to students and

teachers. Unfortunately, teachers haven’t kept up with the resources available outside of

school, yet this has not stopped our students from making use of such technology tools in

their daily lives to communicate and find information. Teachers need change their

pedagogy in order to engage these students. Infusing Web 2.0 sites into this researcher’s

curriculum helped her already technologically experienced students stay motivated to

learn. The creativity it provided for them, on a medium that kept them engaged, was a

logical choice most teachers should welcome and embrace.

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Chapter II

Introduction

Educators are mandated by the state (or government) to teach concepts that are

deemed appropriate for each grade level, with the hope that students understand and can

apply these concepts in their future educational careers, and hopefully into their adult

endeavors. As mentioned in Chapter 1, most teachers find themselves surrounded by

digital natives, whose educational needs differed from those of students in the past. With

this new breed of students, educators are still left with the basic goals to teach concepts,

but were also left to provide some insight as to what skills they need to be successful

adults in the work field.

To prepare students for the future and allow them opportunities to hone their

proficiency with literacies necessary to be successful in the work force makes a study of

this nature important for teachers. The following literature review gave insight into the

necessary competencies students need for the future workplace as outlined by the

government and public opinion. Characteristics of this new breed of students, or digital

natives, were pointed out, as well as the affects technology and the internet had on their

learning. This literature examined the use of wikis in the classrooms and the benefits to

students including the necessary literacies needed to prepare them for adulthood.

Because of the popularity and vast amount of up-to-the-minute information found on the

Internet, teachers and educators needed to harness this tool effectively into their

classrooms.

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Necessary Skills

In 1991, the US Department of Labor published What Work Requires of Schools;

A SCANS Report for America 2000. The Secretary’s Commission on Achieving

Necessary Skills (SCANS) report outlined what the Department of Labor felt are the

skills necessary for students to acquire in order to succeed as adults. Their conclusions

were obtained from “discussions and meetings with business owners, public employers,

unions, and workers and supervisors in shops, plants and stores” (p. viii). These

published findings were not only targeted toward educators but to parents and employers

as well.

The report pointed out that “effective job performance” requires that a person has

“workplace know-how”. This know-how consisted of two elements: competencies and

foundation. Table 1 outlines the five competencies and three categories of foundation

one must have in order to successfully make it in the workplace. SCANS (1991) found

that most students were not acquiring the necessary academic skills or “foundation”

competencies once they left high school. “Less than half of all young adults have

achieved these reading and writing minimums; even fewer can handle the mathematics;

and, schools today only indirectly address listening and speaking skills” (p. xi). The

reports demanded that a change in our schools is needed.

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Table 1
Workplace Know-How as Identified by the SCANS Report
COMPETENCIES - effective workers can
productively use:
Resources Allocating time, money, materials, space,
and staff;
Interpersonal Skills Working on teams, teaching others, serving
customers, leading, negotiating, and
working well with people from culturally
diverse backgrounds
Information Acquiring and evaluating data, organizing
and maintaining files, interpreting and
communicating, and using computers to
process information
Systems Understanding social, organizational, and
technological systems, monitoring and
correcting performance, and designing or
improving system
Technology Selecting equipment and tools, applying
technology to specific tasks, and
maintaining and troubleshooting
technologies
THE FOUNDATION - competence
requires:
Basic Skills Reading, writing, arithmetic and
mathematics, speaking and listening
Thinking Skills Thinking creatively, making decisions,
solving problems, seeing things in the
mind’s eye, knowing how to learn and
reasoning
Personal Qualities Individual responsibility, self-esteem,
sociability, self-management, and integrity

Along with the SCANS (1991) report, The Partnership for 21st Century Skills

(2009), or P21, conducted a poll among 800 registered voters from September 10th to the

12th, 2007 and found that most Americans were concerned that our educational system

was not preparing young people with the necessary skills they would need to compete in

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the global economy. Both SCANS and P21 concluded that schools lacked the guidance

to prepare students with the right skills. SCANS stated that schools “continue with the

system and methodologies they inherited from a system designed nearly 100 years ago

for the needs of business organizations that are now quite different” (p. 5). P21 found

that “Americans believe schools have not kept pace with changing times” (p. 3).

With the creation of the personal computer and its overall effectiveness in the

workplace, most employers expected some sort of technology experience in their

applicants, as well. From the 1990’s to the date of this study, computers had altered the

typical work place. “It has created not only a new industry; it has redefined the way

thousands of different kinds of work are now carried out” (SCANS, 1991, p.2). Because

of the computer’s efficiency, certain jobs became extinct. On the other hand, the

computer’s capabilities created new jobs. What was once considered the basic skills

needed for a job; a high school diploma and a willingness to work, no longer guarantees

one in our world. “A well-developed mind, a passion to learn and the ability to put

knowledge to work,” (p.2) were only some of the qualities employers looked for in their

applicants.

“Workplace know-how is not something you can just pick up” (SCANS, 1991,

p.5). These skills needed to somehow be infused in our educational curriculum,

alongside the academic skills or foundation. P21 (2009) stated, “Twenty-first century

skills must be an integral part of teaching and learning of all academic subjects, not add-

ons to the curriculum” (p. 6) Our digital natives were ready for the challenge.

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Enter the Digital Natives

There are so many names for this generation, those born into a world where

technology was always prevalent. Leading the pack is the Millenials, or Generation Y.

Some speculated that they were those “born in or after 1982” (Howe & Strauss, 2000,

pg.4), during the beginnings of the use of the internet. More recently, the term

Generation Z was formed (Posnick-Goodwin, 2010, pg.8). These kids were the start of

the next generation of digital natives, students born as early as 1991. This generation has

never known a world without technology. They are often masters at multi-tasking and

are at ease with the use of technology and are able to grasp it much more quickly than

previous generations.

Sherry Posnick-Goodwin (2010), in her article for the California Educator, Meet

Generation Z, wrote that these students “are intimately familiar with the Internet, cell

phones, MP3 players and all manner of digital media. They use technology for work, for

play and to form relationships with people they have never met” (p.10). Digital natives

know how and where to acquire information for answers, thanks to technology. With the

immediate results that technology brings them, digital natives expect constant feedback

for all that they do.

In his article, Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, Mark Prensky (2001) wrote

that because of technology, “students think and process information fundamentally

different from their predecessors” (p.1). He claimed that with the advent of technology,

our usage of it has altered how our brains now function. He quoted Dr. Bruce D. Berry

of Baylor College of Medicine, “Different kinds of experiences lead to different brain

structures,” (pg.1) and with the amount of technology used by students, this has affected

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their brain. Generation Z processes information differently than those generations where

technology was not prevalent. Prensky, in part II of his article, Do They Really Think

Differently? (2001), defined this process as neuroplasticity, where brain cells, when

stimulated, reorganize themselves differently and change. Prensky did not want to call it

“rewiring” of the brain, but he says the idea of it is correct. He continued this thought by

stating research done by social psychologists showed “that people who grow up in

different cultures do not just think about different things, they actually think differently.

The environment and cultures in which people are raised affects and even determines

many of their processes” (p.3).

These differences in processing were ever so evident in our digital natives. John

Palfrey and Urs Gasser (2008), authors of Born Digital, stated that teachers saw the

difference. “Teachers worry that they are out of step with the Digital natives they are

teaching, that the skills they have imparted over time are becoming lost or obsolete, and

that the pedagogy of our educational system cannot keep up with the changes in the

digital landscape” (p. 8). Teachers feared that the digital natives weren’t learning. But

Palfrey and Gasser argued that just because students weren’t processing in the same ways

previous generations have, doesn’t mean they weren’t learning.

Digital natives learned by gathering information in a multistep process that

Palfrey and Gasser called grazing. (p.241) Students mastered the art of grazing due to

the vast amount of information found on the Internet. To students, the idea of

researching a topic didn’t require thinking about a trip to the library but instead they

pondered a Google or Wikipedia search, or an instant message to an on-line friend. For

example, a student asked to find out about Barack Obama will begin by finding a web

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site on our president. As the student grazes over the article, he may notice that our

president grew up in Hawaii. This may spark the student’s interest in Hawaii, so he then

searches for information on the islands and notes that it is one of the few states that has a

live volcano. From there, he might search for “live volcanoes in America.” This process

of gathering more information on different topics can go on and on. Visiting a new web

page can spark interest in related subjects, be it in the material that is read or the

advertisements placed on the web page. The answers they are looking for are only a click

away. Educators need to adapt to the habits of digital natives, and use this interest in

technology to give them the skills to keep them literate in the 21st century. “Parents and

teachers are on the front lines. They have the biggest responsibility and the most

important role to play in reaching out to our digital native learners” (p. 10).

Literacy

What defines a literate person? “At one time, a literate person was one who could

sign his or her name” (Wikipedia, n.d.). On-line, the American Heritage Dictionary

defined literacy as, “the condition or quality of being literate, especially the ability to read

and write,” and it defined literate as a “well-informed, educated person.” With that in

mind, graduating high school seniors should embody this ideal: learned and with the

ability to take their knowledge and apply it in other situations. But is that enough? Based

on the SCANS (1991) and P21 (2009), the answer is no; students lack the 21st century

literacy skills to successfully make it in the world of 2010 and beyond. Furthermore,

these reports found that not all schools are preparing graduates for the 21st century jobs.

The pedagogy by which students were taught information in our schools was not

valid for the digital natives in our technology-filled world. To be literate required more

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than what the dictionary defines. In the article The New Literacy, Sara Armstrong and

David Warlick (2004) stated, “the very nature of information has changed in appearance,

location, accessibility, application and communication. Thus it is crucial that when

teaching literacy to our students, we emphasize skills that reflect the information

environment of the present, not the past” (p.1).

With the popularity of technology and the internet, and an awareness of how our

digital natives process information, teachers must reach students and engage them in

different ways. At the same time, teachers must also teach them to be literate. The task

is teaching them to be literate in more than one form. In Twenty-first Century Literacy

and Technology in K-8 Classrooms, by Brown, Bryan and Brown (2008), the authors

found that “new literacies have emerged in association with technology” (p.1). Besides

the basics of the three R’s (Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic), students must now acquire

digital literacy, global literacy, technology literacy, visual literacy, media and information

literacy, each one with it’s own distinction in technology. Brown et al. quoted Leu

(2001), who said “that literacy is ‘no longer an end point to be achieved but rather a

process of continuously learning how to be literate” (p.1). Leu continued that “literacy is

constantly changing, not static and that teachers also must change in order to prepare

children for increased technology demands” (p.1).

P21 (2009) proposed a framework that concentrated on six elements for 21st

century learning: “Emphasize core subjects, emphasize learning skills, use 21st century

tools to develop learning skills, teach and learn 21st century context, teach and learn 21st

century content, use 21st century assessments that measure 21st century skills” (M.

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Spivey, D.Young, & A. Cottle, 2009). Picture 1 shows all the interconnected

components needed for the 21st century learner as proposed by P21.

Figure 1. Graphic of Student Outcomes and Support System. Source: The Partnership
for 21st Century Learning website: http://p21.org

P21 believes that the teaching of the core subjects (or three R’s) must be infused

with the four C’s: Critical thinking and problem solving, Collaboration, Communication

and Creativity and innovation, in order to help prepare our students for the 21st century.

Teachers have the task of encompassing all of P21’s expectations and the skills found in

SCANS’ Work Place Know How into their curriculum. Infusing Web 2.0 technology into

their lessons can help.

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What Good Are You, Web 2.0?

In the 1990’s, the Internet began with sites where the only purpose was to allow

the user to receive information. In the 2000’s, improvements to the Internet have

included the creation of what has been called Web 2.0 sites; socially-based tools and

systems, or social software, where the user can be the receiver and contributor of

information. Web 2.0 sites, like MySpace, Wikipedia, YouTube, or E-blogger allow the

user to upload or publish information onto the internet. In return, the user can allow

others to provide feedback on their creations.

Digital natives are quite aware of Web 2.0 sites, and many use them (although

most do not know the technical term for it). What they are most interested in is the

ability to engage with technology, all the while creating and interacting with others via

the World Wide Web. By harnessing the digital natives’ interest in Web 2.0 sites,

educators can help bridge the gap between our digital natives and the skills they will need

for their future.

Wiki, a Hawaiian term meaning “quick”, is a Web 2.0 technology that allows the

user to collaboratively create, publish and add or edit content at anytime. The wiki

concept was developed in 1995 by Howard G. “Ward” Cunningham and popularized by

Jimmy D. Wales, who created the most famous wiki, the online encyclopedia, Wikipedia.

(Borja, 2006 pg.2)

Wikis tend to be “do it yourself” web sites, where the “learn as you go” ideal is

expected. This is a plus, according to Colleen Sheehy (2008), author of Wikis in the

High School Classroom: A “Cool,” Living Book. She wrote that “technology is central to

the lives of our students. For many students, doing is more important than knowing, and

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learning is accomplished through trial and error rather than a rule-based approach” (p.1).

Using wikis provides inquiry-based learning, which can engage and motivate students.

B. Morgan and R. Smith (2008), in the article A Wiki for Classroom Writing

(2008), wrote that “for classroom purposes, wikis are designed to be created by more than

one student. Together, the students can “compose a single, collaboratively authored

document, or they help each other with their own individual documents” (p.80). C.

Sheehy, K. Clemmons, & A. Sedivy (2010), stated in their article btw, this s a kewl way

to learn: Engaging Diverse Students in Collaborative Conversation Through Wiki

Technology, that by using wikis “students can engage in real collaboration online, with

little to no power struggles that sometimes occur in face-to-face group dynamics” (p.1).

After publishing on a wiki, one of its great uses is its editing abilities. Users can

often go back and change the content. Wikis provide a sort of edit trail, where one can go

back and see prior changes and even revert back to previous publishings. Creators can

also receive feedback from visitors to their page, thus allowing for peer editing, or

critiquing, in order to make the product even better.

By using wikis in the classroom, it allows the students inquiry-based learning, and

the ability to construct knowledge collaboratively, while practicing the skills and

literacies students will need for the future. Wiki usage by itself will not magically

provide all that our digital natives will need for the future. There is no quick fix. But by

adding this Web 2.0 technology to help enhance our school’s curriculum, educators can

effectively help harness the skills the SCANS report and P21 said our students will need.

See Table 2.

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Table 2
Workplace Know-How as Identified by the SCANS Report compared to skills practiced
by using wikis.
COMPETENCIES - effective Skills practiced by using WIKIS
workers can productively use:
Resources Allocating time, money, materials, space, and
staff;
customers, leading, negotiating, and working
well with people from culturally diverse
backgrounds
Information Acquiring and evaluating data, organizing and
maintaining files, interpreting and
communicating, and using computers to process
information
improving system
technology to specific tasks, and maintaining
and troubleshooting technologies
THE FOUNDATION -
competence requires:
Basic Skills Reading, writing, arithmetic and mathematics,
speaking and listening
Thinking Skills Thinking creatively, making decisions, solving
problems, seeing things in the mind’s eye,
knowing how to learn and reasoning
Note: Strikethrough items are not covered.

Summary

In order to prepare our students for the future, and be ready for the demands of the

21st century, educators must first understand what it is that society expects students to

learn. The SCANS (1991) report and P21 (2009) have researched and pointed out what

skills and literacies students must acquire, in order to make it in the future workplace.

Educators must understand who these students are, these digital natives, and how they

process information, in order to teach them these skills and literacies. With this

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understanding, incorporating wikis in the classroom allows students the chance to

actively learn by using technology, all the while, allowing them to work collaboratively,

and practice the skills they will need.

However, evidence of successful wiki use in the elementary and middle schools

were few. If we are to truly prepare our students for the future, we must start 21st century

education at a younger age. This study proposes to use the recommendations of P21 and

SCANS information to help create and design the project of this study, which will use

wiki technology to support middle school students to engage in inquiry-based learning

and write collaborative book reports.

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Chapter III

In 2010, most students were quite familiar with technology; from computers to

cell phones, to texting and video chatting, and even on-line gaming - technology media

was common place in their lives. Most of these items did not exist some ten years ago,

when most current teachers went through a credential program. Much of the pedagogy in

which these teachers were taught to educate students remains valid – yet, to stay in-tune

with the learning needs of digital learners (Prensky, 2009), teachers needed to change the

way in which they reach and engage students. As mentioned in Chapters I and II, Marc

Prensky (2009) found that today’s students, which he called Digital Natives, think and

learn differently than those of the past, thanks in part to their daily interactions with

technology.

In addition to these changes in students, the US Department of Labor’s What

Work Requires of Schools; A SCANS Report for America 2000 (1991), the Secretary’s

Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills or SCANS found that graduating students,

Millenials, “those born in or after 1982” (Howe & Strauss, pg.4), lack “workplace

know-how” and graduate with the bare minimum of math and English skills. The

Partnership for 21st Century Skills (2009), or P21, agreed with the SCANS report and

found that most Americans felt that our educational systems are not preparing our

students with enough technology and literacy skills necessary to keep up with today’s

global work force. A change in the way we educate our students is necessary. Using

technology and infusing it into our regulated curriculum can help engage our students and

prepare them with the skills necessary for the work place. This action research project

focused on the technology of a Web 2.0 site; socially based web tools that allowed the

20

users a way to create, edit and discuss published work on the internet, and incorporated

this technology with lessons in the classroom. This project entailed using a wiki to

publish and discuss book reviews.

Components of the Project

The proposal for this project was developed during the spring of 2010. Because

of the author’s background in teaching Language Arts, the idea of infusing technology

into an English class was the main interest. After a thorough examination of technology

trends for the classroom, the idea to publish book reports using technology became

apparent. Initially, the author found that the majority of the literature was written for

library journals. These articles focused on trends or popular formats of literature and

technology, however little research focused on using technology with book reports at the

middle school level. The search topic was found to be too general, so narrowing the topic

to using Web 2.0 sites, like wikis, to publish book reports, brought more success than the

original search. The articles showcased effective and successful wiki use with students.

Students actively and cooperatively learned, developed their writing skills, and honed

digital literacy. However, many of these articles were written about wiki use at the

college level, and some at the high school level. Few articles focused on using wikis at

the elementary or middle school level. With this lack of wiki use in the middle grades,

the author felt strongly that computer skills and technology literacies should start earlier

in the educational years. She decided to create an outline of a handbook for middle

school language arts teachers, showcasing how to implement the use of wikis to publish

and discuss book reviews.

21

Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

The rationale for creating this handbook was taken mainly from the findings in

the SCANS report (1991) and from those found by P21 (2009). The SCANS report

found that graduating students lacked in the areas of competencies and foundations

necessary for a successful career. Table 1 on page 8, outlines the five competencies and

three categories of foundation one must have in order to successfully make it in the

workplace.

P21 (2009) supports SCANS’ (1991) findings that students were not graduating

with the right skills with evidence that our educational system also has gaps in teaching

twenty-first century skills. They proposed “a learning framework that presents a holistic

view of 21st century teaching and learning that combines a discrete focus on 21st century

student outcomes (a blending of specific skills, content knowledge, expertise and

literacies) with innovative support systems to help students master the multi-dimensional

abilities required of them in the 21st century.” Figure 1 on page 14, shows both “21st

century skills student outcomes (as represented by the arches of the rainbow) intertwined

with that of 21st century skills support systems (as represented by the pools at the

bottom)” (Partnership for 21st century skills, 2007).

This lack in teaching work-place-know-how, coupled with the lack of teaching

twenty-first century skills using technology, sets our students up for struggle or even

failure after graduating. Developing and honing these skills, as pointed out by the

SCANS (1991) report and P21 (2001), should be introduced early in a student’s

education, and not just in high school. The Pew Research Center (2010) published

Millenials: A Portrait of Generation Next – Confident. Connected. Open to Change.,

22

which described the Millenial generation as the always connected generation (p.1), and

found that younger Millenials, those presently in elementary school up through high

school, “are more likely than older Millenials to use the internet and social networking

sites” (p. 25), similar to that of wikis. The focus of this project, creating a handbook to

show teachers how to use wikis in the classroom, guides middle school teachers on how

to build a wiki for student publication, and class discussions, all the while building

“work-place-know-how” and twenty-first century skills and literacies.

Wiki Handbook

The handbook was designed to include sections that address issues brought up

when creating a lesson involving the use of wikis, therefore the handbook began with a

rationale statement and purpose behind its creation, and explained the need to infuse

technology into our curriculum. The handbook provides advice on how to get started by

having the reader familiarize themselves by actively looking at wiki websites. The author

was most familiar with PBworks (http://pbworks.com), so for the purpose of this

handbook, directions referred to this website.

After the introduction, the handbook provides a check off list of things teachers

should do before using a wiki in class. The handbook advises teachers to inquire about

their district’s policy on computer/technology use in the classroom due to the fact that

some districts have strict technology guidelines and may limit internet use in the

classroom or to students. The author suggests that teachers inform administration of

their plans to use wikis in their lessons and should seek approval before starting.

Other considerations the handbook point teachers to safety issues. Because

students will access and use an online-line internet program, teachers are asked to

23

consider safety practices for his/her students, which include keeping students safe on the

internet, expected proper behavior on the internet, and proper wiki etiquette. The

handbook heavily emphasizes notifying parents about the lessons. PBworks created a

wiki just for educators (http://educator.pbwiki.com) which provides information on safe

practices, as well as examples of actual wikis created by teachers and students.

The handbook explains and defines a wiki, the basic functions of using a wiki,

and what wikis can do. Though the handbook was specifically written to support the use

of PBworks, it does provide some names of other wiki sites and encourages the reader to

decide which one they felt most comfortable with and one that best suits their needs.

The handbook provides teachers with a rationale for using wikis with students:

wikis helps develop digital literacy, engage students in inquiry-based learning, support

students to work collaboratively, create their wiki project, as well as hones student

writing and communication skills. Wiki based project culminate with the publication of

the project on the internet. The ability to show off their project to family and friends is

another plus for using wikis.

Finally, the handbook provides examples of ways to incorporate wiki building

into teachers’ lessons, and practical advice on managing and grading wiki projects.

Besides publishing book reviews, the handbook provides lessons, examples and links to

sites of how other teachers have used wikis. The examples show that wikis are not

limited to being used as a canvas for student projects but that wikis can be used as a hub

for teacher information that parents and students can easily access.

24

Summary

Through construction of a handbook, the author sought to provide middle school

teachers one way to infuse technology into their regulated curriculum. Research revealed

little use of wikis in the middle school grades, yet incorporation of wikis strongly

supports the development of computer skills and technology literacies that should start

early in the educational years. By using wikis at the middle school level, teachers can

engage their students to actively learn, work collaboratively, develop their writing skills,

hone digital literacy, all the while building the work place know-how and necessary

twenty-first century technology skills they will need, preparing them for their future

careers.

25

Chapter IV

This project began with a focus on infusing technology into a middle school

English class. With technology and media’s popularity in 2010, it seemed logical for

teachers to motivate students by using what keeps them interested the most outside of

school - technology and the internet. After learning about the Web 2.0 technology of

wikis, websites that allow users the freedom to organize create and modify content that

can be published on the internet, this action research project was conceived.

A review of the literature showed that students were graduating high schools

lacking the necessary skills needed to make it in the work force. In 1991, the US

Department of Labor published, “What Work Requires of Schools; A SCANS Report for

America 2000”. The report outlined what the Department of Labor felt were the

necessary skills that students should acquire in order to succeed as adults. The report

pointed out that “effective job performance” required that a person has “workplace know-

how”. SCANS found that most students were not acquiring the necessary academic skills

or “foundation” competencies once they left high school.

The Partnership for 21st Century Skills (2009), or P21, conducted a poll among

800 registered voters from September 10th to the 12th, 2007 and found that most

Americans were concerned that our educational system was not preparing young people

with the necessary skills they would need to compete in the global economy. P21

believed that the teaching of the core subjects (or three R’s) must be infused with the four

C’s: Critical thinking and problem solving, Collaboration, Communication and Creativity

and innovation, in order to help prepare our students for the 21st century.

26

Teachers have the task of encompassing all of P21’s expectations and the skills

found in SCANS’ Work Place Know-How into their curriculum. Infusing technology in

our classrooms helps build these necessary skills. However, much of the research

showed successful use of Web 2.0 technology in high school and higher education

courses, but not much research was found using this technology in the elementary or

middle level schools. This action research project was created based on the findings of

these two articles.

Project Outcomes

The goal of this project was to create a handbook to show teachers how to use
wikis to publish book reviews. The handbook has four chapters:

I. Introduction

a. Purpose of this handbook

b. How to use this handbook

c. What is a wiki?

d. Getting Started

• Familiarize Yourself

• District Policy on Tech Use

• Checking in with administration

• Safety Policies

II. Wiki basics

a. Basic functions

• What it can do

27

• Different sites, different abilities

b. Why use it?

• ISTE

• Cooperative learning

• Publishing

• Discussions

• Building Digital Literacy

III. English/Language Arts Wiki Projects for Your Class

IV. Resources

The purpose of this handbook was to give teachers another way to publish student

book projects or other assignments by posting them on a wiki. By effectively using wikis

in a lesson, students have the ability to actively learn; develop their writing skills, and

hone digital literacy, all the while working collaboratively.

Proposed Audience, Procedures, and Implementation Timeline:

This handbook was created specifically for teachers who have no experience

building or using a wiki. The procedures related to the project were developed as an

expansion of book project tested in a 6th grade classroom. The project began with the

researcher creating her own class wiki that showcased information about her class. This

allowed the researcher time to learn and familiarize herself with using a wiki. For the

purposes of this report, the researcher used PBworks to publish her wiki. The wiki had

28

multiple pages that her students could navigate through to gather class information, like

daily agendas, listings of assignments, and specific folders holding work for a particular

unit covered in class. Students also had opportunities to download assignments. By

doing this, the researcher was able to showcase what a wiki can do, without assigning it

as a formal assignment.

Three months later, students were assigned a book project where they were to

read a classic novel and post their review of the book on a wiki. Parents were asked to

sign a form, acknowledging they were aware of this assignment, and that their child will

be using the internet to post this review. A list of classic novels was uploaded onto the

researcher’s wiki. Students were given four weeks to finish the novel and to write a pithy

review of the book. Websites that post book reviews were also posted on the teacher

wiki to give examples of what a pithy review would look like. Explicit directions were

given that they may not include the ending, unless they prefaced it with a “Spoiler Alert”.

Student had to rate the book between one and four stars (four stars being the best), and

finally comment on four other student book reviews. A printed copy of this review had

to be turned in before any work on the wiki could take place.

The researcher was able to create a class wiki with accounts for each of her

students using logins and passwords created by the wiki website, PBworks. Students

were given a week (one period a day) to publish their book review on the wiki, and

embed pictures and links to websites related to their book or author. Work had to be

completed within this time frame. Students were given an extra week to read and

comment or critique on four other book reviews published on their class wiki. Most of

29

these critiques were done on their own time, at home. Anonymity was important, and

only first names were used when publishing or commenting on reviews.

Evaluation of the Project:

The author was successful in implementing the actual lesson of publishing book

reviews on wikis with her class and was very happy with the learning she observed with

her students. Students were engaged with the assignment and were excited to showcase

their work with their peers. Students had a limited amount of basic instruction on how to

publish to the wiki. They previewed the editing page, which looked similar to that of a

word processing page and were given instruction on how to embed links and pictures.

For the most part, students figured out how to do things on their own. When stuck, they

reached out to each other. Evidence that they enjoyed this assignment and practiced the

“Work Place Know-How” skills that SCANS (1991) states graduating student lack (see

table below), were found in their comments to each other, under their book reviews:

Julia- to get the stars, you google search stars or picture of stars. Then
highlight it and right click on it. go to save picture as... and save it as
what you want to call it under my pictures. Now on the wiki, when you go
to your page and edit, on the right side it says up[l]oad pictures. Click on
it, click on your star pic and then open. Click and drag and you will have
your stars!!! – Julie

Maybe you should make it two paragraphs? Or a smaller font? Other than
that it looks fabulous! :) -Julia

You guys did a fantastic job with your wiki page. I can tell you both
worked together well and shared the work evenly, as it seems. Your
critiques caught my eye because I enjoyed the way you described the part
in the story that you liked and why or why not you enjoyed the book. Your
bigraphy is relatable because most people have at least read 1 of his
stories or books, or have been read to, or maybe even saw a play or movie
based on it. You probably should add actuall stars in your critique
though, that way it's a little more lively and exciting. You could also add a
little color. But, those are just adjustments that might make your

30

marvelous report a little better! I am now interested in reading this
original version to see what it's like!!!!!

Very well summarized but i side with michael use of more pronouns
would've been good. great biography and good picture of the cover. is
there a movie about this book. if so i would like to see it.

So when are we going to do another project like this?

The use of wikis to publish book reviews was much more successful than this

researcher predicted. The project generated inquiry-based learning among her students,

and created opportunities for collaborative learning. Most of all, students practiced

twenty-first century skills and literacies they need for their future.

Table 3
Workplace Know-How as Identified by the SCANS Report as Evidenced in this Project.
COMPETENCIES - effective workers can
productively use:
Resources Allocating time, money, materials, space,
and staff;
customers, leading, negotiating, and
working well with people from culturally
diverse backgrounds
Information Acquiring and evaluating data, organizing
and maintaining files, interpreting and
communicating, and using computers to
process information
improving system
technology to specific tasks, and
maintaining and troubleshooting
technologies
THE FOUNDATION - competence
requires:
Basic Skills Reading, writing, arithmetic and
mathematics, speaking and listening

31

Thinking Skills Thinking creatively, making decisions,
solving problems, seeing things in the
mind’s eye, knowing how to learn and
reasoning
Note: Strike-through items were not evident with this particular lesson.

Conclusion

By infusing wiki technology into lesson plans, students were highly motivated

about writing book reviews. Students worked collaboratively, engaged in inquiry-based

learning, and practiced the skills and literacies necessary for their future careers.

Students were enthusiastic about being in class, and looked forward to showing their

project off to family, friends, and teachers who happened to come by the computer lab

when they were there working. An unexpected result was that students built their own

online community on the wiki and supported each other to improve the look of each

others’ wikis and solve problems.

When the assignment was completed, students were eager to be assigned another

project that entailed using Web 2.0 technology. That was all this researcher (and teacher)

could ever hope for in her students, that they learned the 21st century workforce skills

that they need for their future. Students were left wanting to learn more!

32

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Appendix: Using Wikis for Publishing Book Reviews

Erlyn's Master's Thesis

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