Using MediaWiki to Increase Teaching Expertise in Engineering Colleges

Abstract

A scarcity in qualified and motivated teachers is a common problem in most Indian engineering colleges and specifically in the state of Andhra Pradesh where engineering colleges have increased exponentially in the last decade [1]. Additionally, a vast majority of the available teachers have no formal training in teaching unlike their counterparts in degree institutions and schools, ultimately affecting the quality of their teaching and thus the quality of the graduating students [2]. EnhanceEdu, has conceived the Art of Teaching workshop wherein MediaWiki was used as a platform for teachers to collaboratively work and design lesson plans incorporating Learner Styles, Bloom's taxonomy, Rubric design and Active teaching techniques. Over 200 teachers have been trained in the last one year through these workshops. MediaWiki not only helped teachers to integrate multimedia resources into lesson plans but also helped EnhanceEdu to remotely monitor post-workshop challenges and provide additional support.