Sixth+Form

=How can interactive technology be used effectively in the sixth form?=

Can Wikipedia be described as interactive technology?

If the answer to the above is 'yes' doesn't it mean highlight a possible flaw in (some) interactive technologies; - they can be unreliable because they are interactive.

This is a really interesting question! Interactive in computing terms means that a computer allows a human to enter commands or data so all programs we use in learning and teaching (such as MS Word or MS Excel) are interactive. I think “interactive” in human terms is about our ability to communicate and collaborate. I’d define Wikipedia as “//collaborative” technology in that its, “////14 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world, and almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site//” ([]). This collaborative approach has led to criticisms about its reliability – you can find out much more about this in Wikipedia itself by following the link above and scrolling down to the ”reliability” section. I use Wikipedia as a starting point and then research further – as someone once said to me (and I can’t remember who), “If you just use Wikipedia you’ve done a search – if you follow this up elsewhere it becomes re-search”. You’ve set me thinking about the way we throw terminology such as “interactive” around so I’ll do some more research into the definition of “interactive technology” and get back to you as soon as I can…