Wikis for Collaborative Learning and Knowledge Construction

For this blog, I developed an 8 week lesson plan incorporating Wikis for my dental hygiene students.

Normally, when I teach my dental hygiene students regularly I like to use pictures while they're working to see their technique and show any discrepancies from the "proper form".

1)  Title of the Lesson
Instrumentation in the Clinic

2)  Target Audience
The target audience for this project is the first year dental hygiene students; students who recently began the dental hygiene program and are learning how to use dental instruments for the first time.

3) Learning/ Training Techniques 
The student will learn a new dental instrument each week and be required to show "proper instrumentation form" and be able to explain what specific teeth each instrument is used for.
The student will also use multiple pictures and resources to detail their experience with different dental cleaning instruments as they progress with adding the different techniques associated with each dental instrument.
 
4) Materials needed
The needed materials are a device with digital camera capabilities (i.e. smart phone, Ipad, Webcam on a computer, digital camera). Also the Essentials of Dental Hygiene textbook is needed.

5) Instruction Procedure/ Learning Procedure/ Class Outline and Methods
Classroom:  In the classroom the students will learn about each specific instrument and how the special design differentiates from the other instruments. The students will view power point videos to help retain the information. Practice skulls will also be used to help students learn the normal dental anatomy found and the variations of dental anatomy will be discussed using power points.

Simulation: In simulation lab the students will be able to use the classroom knowledge that they developed and practice their instrumentation form on "Manny the Mannequin" while under the supervision of instructors.

Clinic: After the instructor believes that the student is comfortable and ready to work on another individual, the student will move into the dental clinic to practice on another student "peer" to work on their instrumentation form on an individual and learn the different dental anatomy of others.

6) Suggested Learning Activities

Week 1
Read chapter 1 of the text.
Go over the dental anatomy with the practice skulls.
Post 1 picture of abnormal dental anatomy without the name of the variation on your own Wiki page.
Comment on at least 2 other students dental anatomy Wiki posts by guessing what abnormal anatomy it is.

Week 2
Read chapters 2 & 3 of the text
Go over the differences between all of the instruments in the student's instrument kit.
Practice using an anterior scaler on Manny.
Post 1 picture of yourself doing instrumentation with the anterior scaler and include any comments on how to change your form to make the instrumentation perfect. (The picture only has to include the mannequin's mouth and a full view of your instrumentation hand).

Week 3
Read chapter 7 of the text.
Go over all of the instruments in the student's instrument kit.
Complete the first competency (Pass/Fail) of instrumenting with the anterior scaler using the "Instrumentation" rubric.
Practice instrumenting with a posterior scaler. 
Post 1 picture of yourself doing instrumentation with the posterior scaler and include any comments on how to change your form to make the instrumentation perfect

Week 4
Complete the first competency if you did not pass the first time.
Complete the second competency of instrumenting with the posterior scaler using the "Instrumentation" rubric. 
Practice using a universal curette on the clinic floor practicing on a peer.
Post 1 picture of yourself doing instrumentation with the posterior scaler and include any comments on how to change your form to make the instrumentation perfect.

Week 5
Read chapters 5 & 8 of the text.
Complete any previously failed competencies.
Complete the third competency of instrument with the universal scaler using the "Instrumentation" rubric.
Practice using both a 13/14 and 7/8 gracey curette.
Post 1 picture of yourself doing instrumentation with the 13/14 and 7/8 gracey curette and include any comments on how to change your form to make the instrumentation perfect

Week 6
Read chapter 4 of the text.
Complete any failed competencies.
Complete the fourth and fifth competency on the 13/14 and 7/8 gracey curette. 
Practicing using the "pig's tail" explorer and "shepherd's hook" explorer.
Post 1 picture of yourself doing instrumentation with the "pig's tail" and "shepherd's hook" explorer and include any comments on how to change your form to make the instrumentation perfect

Week 7
Read chapters 6 & 9 of the text.
Complete any and all failed competencies.
Complete the sixth and seventh competency on the "pig's tail" explorer and "shepherd's hook" explorer.
Post 1 picture of yourself doing instrumentation with any instrument.
Comment on at least two other students picture and guess what instrument you think they are using.

Week 8 
Final written exam over all of the instruments taught in this class.
Post 1 picture of your favorite instrument to use and why you think it is the most important instrument in your instrument kit.
Comment on at least 2 other students picture and explain where their favorite instrument is best used in the mouth and why.

7) Evaluation

Grading Scale
Final Exam- 30% 
Participation- 20%
Competencies- 30%
Wiki Postings- 20% 

Final exam: The final exam will be 50 questions, including dental pictures where the student will need to identify the instrument or the dental anatomy.

Participation: The student will be required to either be the patient or be practicing on another student. If the student is absent or is not either being the patient or the operator, no credit will be given for the day.

Competencies: An instrumentation rubric will be used to reflect every part of instrumentation (ie. wrist rock, fulcrum, using the correct end, the thumb, the index finger, the middle finger, posture). Each rubric will have 7 different components and will be graded using a Unsatisfactory, Satisfactory, and Excellent. To pass the student cannot get one unsatisfactory on the rubric.

Wiki Postings: Students will be required to have a minimum word posting when scheduled. The instructor will check the Wiki each week. At the end of the eight week course, students will have a Wiki with all of their major instrumentation and improvements with each instrument. Also the student will have comments from the instructors on how to improve their instrumentation based on the picture.
 


8) References

Cooper, M., & Wiechmann, L. (2004). In Essentials of dental hygiene. Prentice Hall.

 Ornelas, J. (n.d.). Sample lesson plan- how can i use all these beans. Retrieved from Lesson plans website: http://www.kansaswic.org/nutrition_education/lesson_plans.html

Wikis: Pros and Cons for Adult Learners

To determine the good and bad about using Wikis, we first must figure out what exactly is a wiki. Below is a great video, short and sweet that explains a Wiki (Leelefever, 2007).

So what is a Wiki? A Wiki is a web site that is always under construction, it's open to the public and anyone can change or edit the contents without any special computer knowledge (2013). Wikis can have millions of contributors and editors, but no specific "author" (2013).

There are many different reasons people would use a Wiki over other technology that is available; while there are positive and negatives to using a Wiki.

• Positives-
• A lot more open structure
• Easy to create, doesn't take a lot of technological knowledge
• Online space for brainstorming and being creative
• Access can be from any internet access
• Students can have a sense of ownership
• Several Wiki services are available
• Stays open even after the class has finished
• Negatives-
• People can change what others have written
• The group of the Wiki can dominate over an individuals opinion
• Difficulty keeping it as a credible source with so many contributors and editors
• Can be difficult to monitor

Overall, Wikis can be used as a great available tool in a teachers technology tool belt. For a Wiki to be successful, it all depends on what you use or create it for. For example, if a class is supposed to create a research type web page, a Wiki may not be the best tool to create it. This is because a research web page should be credible because of the amount of research being put into the project, however anyone can change the information and make it false.

A Wiki would be a good source for a creativity project or an expression type of project. Where the information was from personal opinion and feelings.





(2003, November 20). Using new media to understand 19th-century literature. Retrieved from Academic spotlight website: http://www.bowdoin.edu/news/archives/english/000021.shtml

(2013). Wiki-walk through. Retrieved from Teachers First website: http://www.teachersfirst.com/content/wiki/

 Ferriter, B. (2009, February). Learning with blogs and wikis. Retrieved from Educational leadership website: http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/feb09/vol66/num05/Learning-with-Blogs-and-Wikis.aspx

Leelefever. (2007, May 29). Wikis in plain english [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dnL00TdmLY

Welcome

Welcome everyone to my blog and thanks for reading. This blog has been created for a graduate class, Adult Learners and Integrating Technology into the Curriculum. The following blog posts will be answering questions given from our instructor on technology and the adult learner. Questions and comments are not required but certainly encouraged. Thanks for visiting!

Blogging: Pros and Cons for Adult Learners

Blogging is similar to a discussion board activity, but a blog is so much more than that. Discussion boards only can be seen by the specific group that is involved and normally in a discussion board a question is posed and people answer or discuss the question. In a blog, there could be a question posted, or a thought, an idea, a song lyric, a picture or video, etc. A blog is specific to the blogger and contains whatever the blogger wants (Blogger, 2013). Discussion boards are mostly kept quite to the individuals who are not involved, while blogs are out there for the world to see; anyone and everyone can see what is on someone's blog.

Blogs are much more personal  and comes from what a person thinks, believes or feels. No one has to respond to the bloggers feelings, unlike in a discussion board an answer is always required from the original post. On a blog comments, not answers, are optional. The content of a blog is displayed in reverse chronological order and scrolling is required (Medina, 2009). The entire intent of a discussion board is decision making, where as a blog can be anything, even just a place for an individual to express their feelings (Medina, 2009).

I believe that with any electronic writing source, individuals are given power because they do not physically see the other people they interact with on the blog. However without physical interaction that can also be a negative because people become to bold through a blog and discuss topics about themselves that in any other instance they wouldn't want people knowing about. Blogs can be a positive outlet for a quiet individual or for someone who wanted to publish their poetry or song writing when they didn't have any other ideas how to get the work out to the public.

In my opinion I believe that blogging can be a positive implementation into the learning world when used correctly. Blogs are available to the entire world, so it is important to keep certain information private.


Blogger Tour. Blogger. 2013. http://www.blogger.com/tour_start.g

Medina, C. (2009, May). Differences between blogs, wikis, and discussion boards. Retrieved from      http://goingweb20.blogspot.com/2007/11/difference-between-blogs-wikis-and.html