Thesis (Ph.D.)--City University of Hong Kong, 2009. / "Submitted to Department of Information Systems in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 72-88)

Thesis (M.S.S.I.S.)--Regis University, Denver, Colo., 2008. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on Feb. 03, 2009). Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Alberta, 2009. / Title from PDF file main screen (viewed on Feb. 19, 2010). A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, [Department of] Humanities Computing, University of Alberta. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--West Virginia University, 2007. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains x, 137 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 85-91).

The project-based collaboration setting is becoming increasingly common at different educational levels. Recent years have witnessed the rising use of wikis as computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environments. However, reports on the application of wiki technology in facilitating collaborative projects at the primary level are few; in particular, information on the affordances and constraints of wikis at this learning stage is limited. Such information is essential for educators when planning and implementing wikis as an effective educational tool. This study aimed to introduce wiki technology to facilitate collaborative project-based learning (Collaborative PjBL) in a primary “General Studies” (GS) course and to explore the associated affordances and constraints. A total of 388 Hong Kong Primary-five (P5) students from 4 local Chinese primary schools used a wiki for their social science group project during their GS course. Adopting a mixed-method approach, a combination of qualitative and quantitative data were collected, including focus group interviews, students’ activities within the wiki platform, students’ reflections written on the wiki pages, and a questionnaire. These data were used to explore the affordances and constraints of the wiki for collaborative projects as perceived by the primary-school students, and to gain an understanding of students’ attitudes towards and perceptions of the wiki in general. The findings showed that the wiki provided five kinds of educational affordances, six kinds of technological affordances, and two kinds of social affordances. The affordances that were aimed for the collaborative PjBL task were therefore achieved. At the same time, constraints were found to be related to technological factors and users’ dispositions. To counterbalance constraints, teachers could select wiki variants and provide more scaffolding on the use of wiki during the process of project completion. Students’ attitudes and perceptions towards the wiki were found to be strongly positive after the group project implementation. The research contributes to our understanding of the use of a form of social media, wiki technology, in primary education. On a theoretical level, it deepens previous research by identifying the categories of the wiki’s affordances and constraints for primary-school students’ collaborative PjBL. On a practical level, the pedagogical implications derived from this study may provide guidelines for primary-school educators to plan collaborative PjBL activities with wiki technology. / published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Philosophy

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Kent State University, 2007. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed July 2, 2007). Advisor: Drew Tiene. Keywords: wikis, online group collaboration, distance education, read/write web, web 2.0, collaborative writing. Includes survey instrument. Includes bibliographical references (p. 246-260).

Honors Project--Smith College, Northampton, Mass., 2009. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A. in education)--Washington State University, August 2007. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2007. / Bruckman, Amy, Committee Member ; Bers, Marina, Committee Member ; Mynatt, Elizabeth, Committee Member ; Guzdial, Mark, Committee Chair ; Kolodner, Janet, Committee Member.

The number of digital projects aimed at documenting and preserving communities' intangible cultural heritage (ICH) has grown considerably in recent years. These projects take advantage of the advancement of digital technologies to enable local communities to manage their ICH, in tune with the deprofessionalisation of heritage practices. However, additional work is needed to overcome some of the barriers that are emerging in these endeavours, especially related to long-term sustainability and the technical knowledge required. The thesis follows the progress of two case studies that used wikis to enable participation in the documentation of cultural heritage. Using action research, the researcher introduced or tried to improve the use of wikis in these case studies. The first case study involved a Scottish heritage wiki at a national level, but the project ran into many problems. Although the software was appropriate for facilitating public engagement, the research showed that the emphasis should be put on local heritage rather than national, and that face-to-face interactions providing engagement and training activities should have been more widely used as well. The second case study was the analysis of a wiki dedicated to collating and documenting the ICH of the Isle of Jura, Scotland. The problems encountered in this case study point to the presence of pre-existing conflicts and the contentious nature of heritage on the island as barriers to the project. The main argument of the thesis is that involvement in digital cultural heritage can enhance community empowerment, but that this depends upon social dimensions of community cohesion and engagement as well as technical knowledge of the software and technologies involved.