Wikis for Class

I'll be teaching a class for NAU-Yavapai next month, "Technology and Human Values."  All of the classes for this new university are hybrid format, and since this is an super-accelerated course conducted in five weeks, I'm structuring it so we address a new topic each week, five topics that allow students to investigate how technological changes are (or are not) influencing basic topics in humanities.  We'll meet twice a week for two and a half hours, plus there will be considerable online learning as well.  The college is being touted as a new type of university, addressing the needs of 21st century students.





That being the case, I've decided to go whole-hog on the engaged learner thing we've been discussing in school.  I'd already decided not to use a textbook in favor of finding articles and other sources that address the most recent theories and events related to our topics.  But now, building the source material is going to be a big part of the "online" part of the hybrid class.  Each week, for each topic, students will have to find articles, blogs, Twitter feeds, discussion forums, videos, wikis or other online material to add to the class wiki, which I've created in response to this week's assignment.  Each week's assignment will require students to find a variety of sources AND to write a short justification of why each source is credible and useful.  I might have students evaluate each other's sources as well, perhaps a vote will determine which sources will be added to the class wiki, rather than just adding them all.  I'm also setting up a "class notes" page on the class wiki, to create communal notes, and a class bulletin board for questions.

The NAU-Yavapai format, where I will have the students for a couple hours twice a week, as well as online, means I can take the time to ensure that each student has mastered all the various technological formats necessary to do this sort of work.  I've already asked that the class be scheduled for a classroom with computers, so in week one all the students will establish Blogger, Twitter, Lino and Google accounts, set up a Google Reader and a Twitter feed on their blogs, etc.  This way, I don't have to struggle with varying levels of technical knowledge or computer access.  All the students know that their courses are hybrid, and are required to have adequate computer and Internet access to enroll.

I'm very curious to see how this works out.  My classes have always been very free-form and open.  I'd rather address what students want to talk about than to stick to a lesson plan.  But I've never taught a class like this before, where the students will determine not only the conversations but produce the course materials as well.  I have no idea how it will work out...