practicum Post 5

As a college student wikipedia is a great source for information on a collegiate level. At times some of the articles are even hard for me to understand without reading them a couple of times. Consequently, it is obvious that many people may have trouble reading and comprehending many wikipedia articles. As a result, wikipedia is developing "Simple English Wikipedia." The site's stated aim is to provide an encyclopedia for "people with different needs, such as students, children, adults with learning difficulties and who are trying to learn English. Some of the main characteristics of Simple English Wikipedia are the presentation of only basic information (common accepted facts) and uses around 2000 common words based on Basic English.

Personally, this feature of wikipedia does not serve a very useful function in my life but it is clearly a useful tool for many people. I have many young cousins so I decided to talk to one of them to see if they have ever used Simple English Wikipedia. My 8 year old cousin told me that she uses it all the time in her class room and at home. She actually told me that in her technology class Simple English Wikipedia is the home page of her computer. After talking to her mother I found out that she is a huge fan of Simple English Wikipedia and truly believes that it has allowed her to learn easier. I found her testimony enough to convince me of the value of Simple English Wikipedia. Besides for children, Simple English Wikipedia can be a very valuable tool for many people around the world.