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Assignment directions:

A wiki is a web site in which users can participate by contributing information, graphics, links and other information that is relevant to the topic (in some cases, such as this class, contributors are limited to invited guests). The most recognizable wiki is, of course, Wikipedia, a collaborative online encyclopedia site.

For this class, students will work in small groups to research specific aspects of a current issue in education and build pages in the wiki site that will demonstrate what they've learned.

By clicking the Edit button at the top right of the pages after you create an account and login to the site, participants can use a variety of tools to add text, graphics, audio, video, web links, and other material to make the site more dynamic.

A few "rules":
 * Be respectful of your fellow students. If someone has taken the time to upload information, please do not delete large pieces of their contribution. However, it is a GOOD IDEA to read over and edit contributions for errors.
 * When you upload graphics, you should indicate where you retrieved the files. A small statement at the bottom of the page or under the graphic giving credit is all that's necessary.
 * If you want to upload photos or other graphic elements, you can use the "file" or "widget" button to get content from other places (like YouTube).
 * Summaries of articles or other information should also be credited. You can easly enter a link to the website by clicking on the LINK button and typing in the correct URL.
 * Because a wiki is a collaborative "tool", you should stay in contact with your group members to develop your page(s) content. Check the wiki often over the course of the project to see what has been created.

Each learning team in the two sections of ISTC 201 that I teach will choose an article critique topic from the list of pages on this wiki to create their article critique.

Read some general background information on your chosen topic to get some basic background on the issue (See the Education Commission of the States Website for background reading.) Then each group member should brainstorm sub-topics of this issue that could be made into sub-pages for the topic on the wiki. Do this brainstorming on the main page. Once some sub-topics have been identified, each group member needs to choose ONE of the sub-topic pages to be "in charge" of creating. More than one person can be "in charge" of a sub-topic.

Then **each group member** should locate a peer-reviewed article on the topic/sub-topic, read it, and take notes on the content. Then, write an article critique on the sub-page of your wiki (that you will need to create).

Feel free to include other multimedia and graphics in your wiki if you find useful content. Then, on the main topic page (where you originally brainstormed sub-topics) your group should write a general introduction to the topic that highlights the main points from all the sub-topic pages in a synthesized summary.

Include the correctly formatted APA citations (both in-text and references). A References sub-page should be created to list the APA citation for each source or put the references at the bottom of the page where you wrote the content referenced.

Then, individually, comment to three other group's wiki pages using the comment feature embedded on each page. Your response should generate conversation about the topic, not be a critique of their critique. Feel free to post links to other references, websites etc. that would enrich the discussion.

Grade: 10 points for wiki pages (5 pts. content, 3 pts. mechanics, 2 pts. APA citations) and 5 points for the online discussion (1 point per response for content, 2 pts. for mechanics)

If you want to see an example of what a finished topic might look like, here are two examples created by another faculty member here at Towson that you may use as a guide. http://istc201summer2009.wetpaint.com and http://201bspring2009.wetpaint.com