The world of WIKIpedia

Until embarking on the GDLT course, I had never before used WIKIpedia. The reason being the lack of academic information available. Mind you, this was more word of mouth than my own experience. Having used WIKIpedia numerous times in this course I have found it to be useful as a starting platform for information. I now wish I had access to an online encyclopedia when I was at school. All we had was a huge volume of books covering a range of topics. The bookcase in my home had different types of encyclopedias that took up most of the book case. I do no think my children will ever experience this (or maybe they will at grandma's where she still has a set accessible in her bookcase). It is reassuring to know that WIKIpedia has guidelines and moderators ensuring the information posted is accurate and up-to-date. For this reason I would be comfortable for students in my classes to use WIKIpedia.

I have seen students in secondary classes use WIKIpedia for the EEI projects as a quick and easy place to start searching for information. From there students are able to find journals articles and other references they may find useful. This results in students being responsible for their learning. I have observed teachers using WIKIpedia to find answers to student's questions during a class. This indicates to students that teachers "don't know everything" and sometimes they need to check their facts and what a quick way to do that. Students are also able to see teachers embrace ICTs and use them with ease.