This is an interesting discussion, and I would like to add my two cents. I am quite new to wikieducator, however, this discussion, in general terms, is not really new. I spend some time on Linux forums and you often see the same issues. For example, on the Gentoo forum (my Linux distro) there is a couple times a month a thread started titled something like "is Gentoo dead?".
The thing is with software development or collaborative editing is that there are trade-offs. You want a product (software, text, learning tools, etc.) that is open to new ideas, new features, and new approaches. One the other hand you need somebody (a "maintainer" in open software circles) who will maintain direction and purpose to the project. Likewise, you need to have different perspectives, approaches, etc. to topics. One the other hand you need some coherence to specific areas. In physics there are competing theorems on the universe. There is string theory and quantum gravity. Which is correct? We do not know. The issue for a physics wiki is not which is best, but providing for adequate discussion of the differences and similarities. My point here is that wikis are not "the best" vs. "many different kinds". But a trade-off between the two. You will never have an organization like wikieducator without politics. However, I think that is very healthly as long as it is kept in the open. Some people will leave, new ones will join. Hopefully, WE will keep going. ________________________________ From: Minhaaj ur Rehman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: WikiEducator <[email protected]> Sent: Thursday, October 30, 2008 4:09:18 PM Subject: [WikiEducator] Re: !!RE: [WikiEducator] Re: Another Milestone Dear Leigh, i am amazed by your continous bringing up of controversial topics in wikieducator like me and i would like to applaud you for your tenacity. You can most certainly ignore people like Patricia and Randy who are ACTUALLY the destructive profiteers. Thanks for highlighting the issues that i am catching up on at the moment. Just came back from UAE and now have some time to catch up on politics :) Don't be discouraged by the vultures because an eagle flies far above them :) On Oct 30, 1:38 pm, "Leigh Blackall" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > That was a fresh and accessible read thanks Peter. I especially liked and > found interesting the 5 suggested areas of development research. There was a > sudden jump in the level of detail, but I hung in there. > > BTW, have you heard of this thing called the Delphi > Technique<http://www.illinoisloop.org/delphi_battey.html> > ? > > > > > > On Thu, Oct 30, 2008 at 8:27 PM, Peter <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > Holly Poop! > > > This is a thread that is really getting to the nut of the issue. And > > an issue that has me thinking, well to be honest, I've always found > > myself an anarchist and my trust of western philosophies "imposed" on > > others has often got my goat. You know, what right do we have to think > > we have it right... So many initiatives started in good faith gone > > awry. Look at development efforts over the last 40 years... Can we > > actually say they have done more good than disruption? We will never > > know cause they were (in general) imposed... enough ranting... For > > those so inclined, I believe we can do an incredible amount of > > development work from home; > >http://www.gg.rhul.ac.uk/ict4d/Research%20at%20home.pdf > > And I also believe that work done from your home community provides an > > arms length where the "recipients" have greater choice in what they > > "consume". Working from home also lessens your environmental impact... > > > I honestly believe we need diversity. I do not believe in centralized > > control. We need a platform that encourages diversity, not singularity > > negotiated. We do not need one place or one piece of OER to fill a > > common need. We need the ability to subclass, reuse, alter, and create > > multiple versions of OER. Localized yet reference the source... This > > would provide diversity and celebrate similarities. I look forward to > > the day where we can have multiple versions of the same OER, > > localized. > > > All this said, any work we do toward the goal of CC-BY-SA OER is good > > work... > > > Sincerely. > > > On Oct 29, 10:51 pm, "Chris Harvey" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > Names stand for ideas, so there will be the one and the only page about > > > > "constructivism" and "math" and "multiplication" in any wiki. > > > > This is wrong, in an encyclopedia or dictionary this may be true. > > > > Warm regards > > > Chris Harvey > > > chris.superuser.com.au > > > > On Thu, Oct 30, 2008 at 3:24 PM, Leigh Blackall <[EMAIL PROTECTED] > > >wrote: > > > > > Great insight Maria! You are more than close I think. A thing that has > > > > troubled me very much about the WIkieducator project is this one-ness. > > We > > > > all encourage each other to identify as Wikieductors (up until this > > thread), > > > > and the Wikipedia article gave me clarity on this concern. Some of us > > use > > > > words like, "Wikieducator family", and "Wikieducator community" and > > this > > > > spreads a feeling of commitment to the collective and one-ness. Stephen > > > > Downes' talk about the differences between groups and networks is the > > best > > > > yet articulation of this problem. > > > > > Your observtion about wikis is very close to my sense too Maria, but I > > can > > > > think of one very (the most) successful open education resource wiki > > that is > > > > not - Wikispaces. Wikispaces is first and foremost about the many > > different > > > > spaces on the platform. The Wikispace platform and business takes a > > very > > > > back seat in it all, and in the early stages the owners went out of > > their > > > > way to promote the projects on Wikispaces more than the Wikispace > > platform > > > > itself. Today, it is clear to see (in comparison to Wikieducator and > > > > Wikipedia) that Wikispaces is all about the projects on the platform. > > > > > To some extent I think Wikiversity is successfully doing this, but > > there is > > > > plenty of evidence to centrally control the project, and have users > > adopt > > > > group identity and a sense of one-ness. > > > > > Where this gets most unsettling for me is when that sense of one-ness > > is > > > > then represented by a single person, or celebrity. In the case of > > Wikipedia, > > > > it is of course Jim Wales. > > > > > Alex, regarding globalisation. The roots of this is in the very > > inception > > > > of the Commonwealth. Today it is through the free marketeering speer > > headed > > > > by the USA, but echoed in the "West". Some wonder just how much bodies > > like > > > > the UN and perhaps COL, inadvertently represent that globalised view. > > > > > This might be seen as a new form of colonisation, a concept that the > > > > Commonwealth again knows all about. The new form of colonisation is no > > > > different. Its culltural, its educational, its delivered through media > > and > > > > peak bodies, and relies on a sense of one-ness > > > > On Thu, Oct 30, 2008 at 11:21 AM, Maria Droujkova <[EMAIL PROTECTED] > > >wrote: > > > > >> Some entities involved in this conversation are new to me. From this > > > >> extreme newbie perspective, this conversation seems to be about > > "voting for > > > >> the best, the most logical, the most streamlined" vs. having many > > different > > > >> sorts, kinds and flavors of... curricula, connections, models, > > theories. Am > > > >> I close? > > > > >> Ever since wiki was invented, I've been wondering about this question, > > > >> though, even if it only relates to this conversation through a > > tangent. So I > > > >> am going to formulate it again. Wiki uses a "single idea, single > > space" > > > >> metaphor, hardcoded by allowing one single page by each name. Names > > stand > > > >> for ideas, so there will be the one and the only page about > > "constructivism" > > > >> and "math" and "multiplication" in any wiki. This calls up all > > territorial > > > >> mechanisms of controlling this seemingly limited "land" - and do these > > > >> necessarily lead to wars? As Leigh said resignedly, in this thread, > > "Off to > > > >> start an edit war in Wikipedia." > > > > >> In general, human groups need a healthy balance between convergence > > and > > > >> divergence of ideas. It looks like wikis tend to promote convergence > > (either > > > >> synergy-style, or survival-of-the-fittest style) rather than > > collections of > > > >> multitudes of ideas. So, would wiki ed projects attract people who > > work in > > > >> "the bestest single curriculum" direction? > > > > >> -- > > > >> Cheers, > > > >> MariaD > > > > >> I write, 'In the beginning was the Deed!' - Goethe, Faust > > > > >> naturalmath.com: a sketch of a social math site > > > >> groups.google.com/group/naturalmath: a mailing list about math maker > > > >> activities > > > > > -- > > > > -- > > > > Leigh Blackall > > > >+64(0)21736539 > > > > skype - leigh_blackall > > > > SL - Leroy Goalpost > > > >http://learnonline.wordpress.com > > > >http://www.wikieducator.org/User:Leighblackall > > -- > -- > Leigh Blackall > +64(0)21736539 > skype - leigh_blackall > SL - Leroy > Goalposthttp://learnonline.wordpress.comhttp://www.wikieducator.org/User:Leighblackall- > Hide quoted text - > > - Show quoted text - --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "WikiEducator" group. 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