User:Avaw13/Report

This Wikipedia project has been a very interesting experience for me in terms of learning the ins and outs of what it means to be a contributor to an online community, as well as the small details that make a big difference in the quality of an article. In this reflection I will discuss my own personal contributions to wikipedia throughout this class, and additionally talk about some suggestions I have for how to improve and enhance user experience within the online community of wikipedia.

Choosing and Critiquing an Article
In the first steps of this project we were given the task of choosing an article to edit that lacked sufficient information on the topic, credibility, references, labeled sections, or a combination of any of these. The process of critiquing articles opened my eyes to just how many different topics have not been updated or maybe ever written about in general on Wikipedia, which was shocking to me because I have always thought of Wikipedia as one of the most powerful online sources with information on any subject. Although it is true that you can find information on almost anything you can think of, many pages are just “stubs” which I learned are extremely lacking in comparison to some of the more classified articles that have been verified as A, B, or C class. Keeping this in mind, I chose to edit an article that started as a “stub” so that I could add notable changes as I am only a beginner Wikipedia contributor. I found it interesting how you could start by clicking on a very broad category of interest such as “Art” and somehow make your way to a very specific event, person, place, etc. After clicking around through various categories that aligned with my interests in sports, art, design, and music, I eventually landed on the Wikipedia stub for the California Roots Music and Arts Festival. The most recent version of the article I decided to edit was very minimal at that point, and lacked reliable sources, images, and overall information on the history of the event and what it is today. I think I chose a good article to edit as a first time contributor because there wasn’t much there to start with, so I was able to pull from many different sources and craft a factual summary with clearly labeled sections and a visual to encompass a better understanding of what the music festival is like.

Summarizing My Editing Process + What I Learned
When I began drafting a more substantial article, I struggled a lot with keeping a neutral tone that presented facts and didn’t convey any sort of bias. After re-reading my initial draft and hearing feedback, I knew I needed to edit my article in a way that didn’t sound like an advertisement persuading someone to come to the festival. I really focused on just giving information on what the festival is, who founded it and was involved in it’s evolution, and what types of artists and fans the event attracts. I ultimately decided that I would organize my article by having an initial lead summary of the event, followed by the history and festival organization sections because I thought the most valuable contributions I could make to the existing article were providing some structure and adding important information without drawing it out for readers. Through this editing process, I spent a lot of time watching and reading tutorials on how to correctly inline my references within my text, as well as learning how to upload a licensed image through Wikimedia Commons that was approved to use. At first I was very frustrated and thought I wouldn’t be able to successfully learn how to do these things without help, but after working through the tutorials and referencing other Wiki pages I was able to figure it out on my own. I think after comparing the original article to the most current I have edited, I have shown how much time and effort I have put into keeping a neutral, unbiased tone, adding organized sections and embedded references, and learning how to upload a verified image to enhance the overall article.

Peer Review Process
In terms of the peer review process, I think it was helpful to receive feedback from peers in the class working on the same project because they had insight on what aspects needed to be included and what additions could be made in order to enhance my article. My one suggestion for the peer review would be to push it back a week so that students could receive feedback while finalizing their articles because it was more beneficial for me to hear critiques or suggestions when I was in the final stages of editing my article. When I was reviewing my peers’ articles I tried to give a suggestion or two regarding adding an image or shortening paragraphs to keep the article concise and to the point, but overall both of my classmates had really strong articles by the time I was checking them over. I thought it was helpful to read feedback I received from my peers because they both thought adding an image would enhance my page (which I believe it did), and they caught some minor errors that I was able to fix before making my article live. I also thought the “Talk” page within my sandbox was perhaps the most helpful and useful way to receive feedback from both my peers and teachers because it was so easily accessible and a really easy way to quickly message back and forth about edits or any recent changes made. With regards to handling feedback, I always thought it was super helpful to hear ways I could improve my article or tricks for how to edit, so I saw this as a positive thing.

Wikipedia Generally
In general, I learned that contributing to Wikipedia is a much more elaborate process than I originally anticipated, and I now have more respect for people who regularly partake in online communities to benefit the public. I now understand how much of a process it is to keep up with editing and updating articles on Wikipedia to make sure they are current and accurate sources of information. This assignment is pretty different from any assignment I have done in the past because there are so many little details to pay attention to, as well as tricks for how to insert images, embed references in your text, and so much more. I think this assignment was really interactive, and I liked the “Talk” page because that was what made this all feel more like a community project rather than something I was completing on my own. Wikipedia is a great way to improve public understanding and knowledge of pretty much any topic or subject you could think of, and I believe this is really important because when it’s taken seriously by contributors, online viewers can read accurate information coming from a variety of credible sources. Additionally, viewers may want to become motivated to make their own contributions and join an online community as a newcomer to learn about how they can make a difference. Another thought I have on the importance of why it’s important for online users to contribute is because in building a sense of community, people will increase their level of commitment in terms of making strong and beneficial edits, following rules that govern online spaces, and most importantly helping out fellow contributors in the space.

Suggestions/Advice for the Wikipedia Community
To conclude, I think my biggest suggestion or take away from my experience as a novice Wikipedia contributor would be that since it is so easy for anyone with an account to make edits on the Wikipedia platform, there should be stricter rules in evaluating who can make edits so that trolls can be avoided. I think Wikipedia has built a great sense of community through incorporating unique aspects such as “Talk” pages and sandboxes into the platform, but it might be smart to consider changing the requirements for user qualifications so that the most beneficial edits are being made by those who are serious and actually passionate about improving the information available online. Perhaps this would be implemented by creating a newcomer course that would be completed by new users before they were able to start contributing so that they would be more educated on how to do so, and it would reduce the likelihood of participation from trolls. Overall, I have learned a ton about what it means to be a successful participant and contributor in an online community, and I enjoyed my first experience as a Wikipedia editor!