On this page:
“Practically speaking, a wiki is a shared online document or workspace for multiple contributors.”
A wiki is a place to gather information, thoughts and ideas which you can easily share with others. It can also be used to communicate with lecturers and show the process of yours/your groups work.
Creating a Wiki
A wiki article can be used for multiple reasons, so be sure to read the assessment brief thoroughly and understand what you are being asked to create. We will now go through the things you need to know if you've been asked to create a wiki.
What is a Wiki?
You may be familiar with a certain website called Wikipedia.
When asked to create a wiki for an assessment this is what you want to have in mind. However, it doesn’t mean copying and pasting from Wikipedia! On your webpage(s) you may be asked to share reflections about your work, demonstrate your knowledge on a specific topic, or provide evidence to back up your opinions. When using a wiki you can create a single post of content, or a multi-page document. For example, if you were working on a group project, each person could have their own page where they can reflect and/or share references.
Anyone who has access to the wiki can edit it.
Lecturers will be able to see how much each student has contributed and when the site was last used/accessed.
When are they used?
Wiki's can be used for many reasons, such as:
- To document work
- Create collaborative bibliographies – a place where you and your group can summarise and critique your further readings
- Build a collection of links and/or documents related to your course for discussion
- Create e-portfolios
- Reflect on your work and process
How to structure your wiki
If you’re familiar with Wikipedia, you will be aware of how the pages are structured. This is probably one of the only times you’ll be advised to look at Wikipedia for a reference.
- They start off with an introduction about the topic of the page – if your group have multiple pages, they all should have introductions.
- Then there will be a table of contents to navigate readers through the site, it may be that a reader only wants specific information. This table means they don’t have to read the entire article if they don’t want to.
- The page is split into sections with the use of subheadings and visual aids. Again, this helps the reader navigate the page.
- At the end there will be a list of references which will connect readers to external sources.
Video: Structuring a multi-page wiki - uses a music education example but would be applicable to any topic.
The structure of wikis vary depending on their purpose. If it’s an e-portfolio there will be more visual elements. If it’s an annotated bibliography there may not be an extensive list of references at the end, as the entire thing will be this list.
Software to use
You almost certainly be asked to use either Canvas or Pebble Pad to create your wiki.
For Pebble Pad: Go to Pebble Pad’s website for information and video tutorials on how to use it Pebble+ Home (pebblepad.co.uk)
For Canvas: We have our own guide on how to use Canvas: Canvas Guide
Don'ts
Don't have a lengthy title.
Don't overwhelm readers by having a confusing navigation system.
Don't have never-ending text. Break-up your text.
Don't leave out a bibliography and citations.
