Recently on WCENTER (the email list for people interested in writing center work) the topic of "handouts" has come up again. This discussion has occurred previously, and IWCA established a "handouts" Web site committee to develop a Web site that would house resources for the writing center community. I rather liked that idea, but felt that the usefulness of the Web site would be considerably constrained if it were bottle-necked through an overworked Web master or site editor.
Given my role as IWCA Web Editor at that time, I proposed the use of a wiki to solve the bottle-necking problem. Almost immediately, however, a disagreement arose about the academic rigor of such a site if it were left completely open to anyone and (perhaps) everyone editing it. I believe that this concern is valid, but I also think that constraining the wiki to a select group of editors has stifled the project.
Therefore, I took it upon myself to revamp the IWCA Handouts Resource wiki by placing a very specific disclaimer on the page that states that IWCA does not vouch for the content for authenticity or endorse any particular method described. I also noted very specifically that the site is open to anyone to edit, not just a select few. I think this is the only way that the resource is going to develop. No doubt there will be bad information provided and approaches that others don't endorse. I believe, however, that such conflict will work itself out collaboratively. If we have to flag pages as problematic, then that decision will be made collaboratively."
Please check out the revived IWCA Handouts Resource wiki at
Clint Gardner
Salt Lake Community College
Salt Lake City, UT
Clint.Gardner@slcc.edu
Source Citation:Gardner, Clint. "Writing Center handouts resource wiki.(NEWS)(
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