This paper by Axel Bruns and Sal Humphreys for the International Symposium on Wikis in Montréal, 21-23 Oct. 2007, traces the evolution of a project using a wiki-based learning environment in a tertiary education setting. The project has the pedagogical goal of building learners’ capacities to work effectively in the networked, collaborative, creative environments of the knowledge economy. The paper explores the four key characteristics of a ‘produsage’ environment and identifies four strategic capacities that need to be developed in learners to be effective ‘produsers’ (user-producers). A case study is presented of our experiences with the subject New Media Technologies, run at Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia. This progress report updates our observations made at the 2005 WikiSym conference.

1. c re a tiv e in d u s trie s
Building Collaborative Capacities in Learners:
The M/Cyclopedia Project, Revisited
Dr Axel Bruns – Dr Sal Humphreys
Media & Communication
Creative Industries Faculty
Queensland University of Technology
Brisbane, Australia
a.bruns@qut.edu.au – s.humphreys@qut.edu.au
creativeindustries.qut.com

2. c re a tiv e in d u s trie s
Key Questions
‒ How does education:
• prepare graduates to become expert users of the
information available from user-led content creation
environments?
• prepare graduates to be expert participants in user-led
content creation environments?
creativeindustries.qut.com

3. c re a tiv e in d u s trie s
Produsage
‒ Beyond production:
• ‘anyone can edit’ – users become producers of content
• content is no longer a distinct product – it is a temporary artefact
of an ongoing process, and is continuously evolving
• usage and production are increasingly, inextricably intertwined
• strict distinctions between producers, distributors, and
consumers no longer apply
• a new “Generation C” of content produsers?
this is produsage
creativeindustries.qut.com

4. c re a tiv e in d u s trie s
Common Characteristics
‒ Shared across these environments:
• Community-Based – the community as a whole, if sufficiently large and
varied, can contribute more than a closed team of producers, however
qualified
• Fluid Roles – produsers participate as is appropriate to their personal
skills, interests, and knowledges; this changes as the produsage project
proceeds
• Unfinished Artefacts – content artefacts in produsage projects are
continually under development, and therefore always unfinished; their
development follows evolutionary, iterative, palimpsestic paths
• Common Property, Individual Merit – contributors permit (non-
commercial) community use and adaptation of their intellectual property,
and are rewarded by the status capital gained through this process
creativeindustries.qut.com

5. c re a tiv e in d u s trie s
The C4C
‒ Four crucial graduate capacities:
• Creative:
engage in collaborative creative produsage work (and
understand reasons for wanting to do so) – economic,
social, individual
• Collaborative:
evaluate when, where, and with whom to collaborate
(and when not to do so), and understand potential
positive and negative consequences – especially for
intellectual property and personal reputation
creativeindustries.qut.com

6. c re a tiv e in d u s trie s
The C4C
‒ Four crucial graduate capacities:
• Critical:
evaluate quality of content and skills of collaborators,
assess own capabilities, identify best sites of / venues
for produsage – and be able to express and share
such critique constructively
• Communicative:
understand the communicative models of produsage
environments, and work effectively within them – also
participate successfully in communication about the
shared collaborative effort: metacollaboration
creativeindustries.qut.com

7. c re a tiv e in d u s trie s
New Media Technologies
‒ Context:
• Creative Industries Faculty at Queensland University of
Technology
• second/third-year undergraduate unit
• BCI, BMassComm, BCI/BBus, open elective
• 150-170 students
• second semester (July-Nov.)
• provides an introduction to social and societal
implications of new media technologies
creativeindustries.qut.com

8. c re a tiv e in d u s trie s
Wikis in NMT
‒ Aims:
• students collaboratively develop M/Cyclopedia of New Media
• published to the Web at end of semester
‒ MediaWiki (2004/5):
• standard system, familiar from Wikipedia
• but clunky, counterintuitive interface
• wider use across university would require multiple installs
‒ Confluence (2006/7):
• good WYSIWYG, access management, tagging functions
• allows multiple wiki spaces on same install
• but difficult to export content for wider publication
creativeindustries.qut.com

9. c re a tiv e in d u s trie s
Assessment
‒ 1/2 – Wiki entries:
• create/update entries on set topics in the wiki
• group work (two students)
‒ Key assessment criterion: Collaboration
• Over time: collaboration throughout project period
• Across team: communication and dialogue while collaborating in wiki
• Highest level of achievement:
∘ Edit history shows continuous work in updating content in the weeks before
the assignment due date
∘ Comments on entry page used highly effectively and regularly to enhance
collaboration on content development
creativeindustries.qut.com

10. c re a tiv e in d u s trie s
Assessment
‒ 3 – Wiki gardening: (experimental, new in 2007)
• public peer review of existing entries in the wiki
• proposal for topical portal to entries in the wiki
‒ Key assessment criteria: Critical Review and Knowledge of the Field
• requires students to express critique of peer work fairly and
constructively
• requires students to develop strong understanding of overall wiki
contents
• Highest level of achievement:
∘ Very convincing evaluation, expressed very thoughtfully and respectfully
∘ Very clear and convincing argument for proposed portal page
∘ Selection of entries for portal is highly logical and sensible
creativeindustries.qut.com

11. c re a tiv e in d u s trie s
Further Needs
‒ Lessons from NMT:
• Confluence and similar wikis well suited to student work
• history/commenting functions make group work more transparent
• important contribution to building students’ C4C capacities
‒ But:
• continuing problems with embedding wikis in university access and
authentication systems
• possibility for cross-institutional / international collaboration, but difficult to
implement
• publishing final outcomes to wider Web from Confluence needs further work
‒ And:
• collaborative new media pedagogies only emerging
• development hampered by institutional resistance to change in some
organisations (e.g. prohibiting use of Wikipedia as source)
creativeindustries.qut.com