The Wicked Wiki of the West

Wiki's can be pretty wicked in a "gnarly", "bad is good" sort of way. They range from the elaborate to the basically functional, but are emerging as a trendy and tidy way of connecting people online without the stigma of trying to develop and navigate a full blown website. Wiki's seem to be somewhere in between a simple diary like blog and a fully functional website with all the bells and whistles. Wiki's have the capabilities of links, subcategories,widgets, etc., but they don't have to be started from scratch. Like a blog, there is a pre-established template that just needs fillling in. In terms of the Adult Learning Center (YES, I use the American spelling because it is pronounced "er" not "re" as in reply) I see the wiki as being an important tool for communication between staff from different sites. Because you can go into a wiki and make notes, very similarly to what you do no an online message board, comments, post questions, basically have conversations without picking up the phone and possibly during those around you, the wiki is invaluable as a communication tool. This will also be a good first step in introducing web based dialogue and communication via the world wide web to our students. Some students are already familiar with sites like Facebook and MySpace, so teaching them to use online resources for schooling purposes will broaden their online knowledge. Other students have never been on the web before and wikis are fairly uncomplicated to access and use, so they are a good way for students to become comforable with the internet. a couple questions: Should we keep the Wiki private for students only? How do we set it up as far as curriculum goes?