User:Nerwaik1/Assignment details

Task 1. Narrow down possible topics:

On your user page make a heading for article topics that you are considering:

Possible Article Topics
Your assignment is to come up with a list of 3-5 organizations with political interests which do not have fully developed articles already. On the last page of this document is a list of organizations with political interests for which Wikipedia stub articles have already been begun. Look this list over and find a few that look interesting to you.

If you can think of an organization which is not on the list, that’s fine. Just make sure that it only has a paragraph or two about it on Wikipedia. If you really want to do a topic for which there is no article yet, you’ll be in for some extra work. First you are going to need to search thoroughly to make sure it doesn’t have some other heading. Second, you are going to have to be careful as you create your own stub to do it properly: There are Wikipedians lurking waiting to delete new articles that don’t fulfill the requirements.

List your 3-5 possible articles on your user page (I recommend copying the title from the article and pasting it onto your user page so that you have it word perfect) and then make a hyperlink to them by putting double square brackets around them:

article title

Save this page. The article title should show up as a hyperlink to the article stub.

Task 2. “Talk” to a classmate online:

Go to the Course Page. Use the class list at the bottom of to identify your classmates. Go to the user talk page of a classmate and leave a message. Introduce yourself to our Campus Ambassador. Reply to the messages you receive.

Sign your entries by typing four tildas (KN 08:54, 10 December 2011 (UTC))—the program will automatically change this to your signature.

Task 3. Analyze Wikipedia articles

Go to Wikipedia’s main page. Look at “Today’s Featured Article” as well as at least one of the “Did you know. . .?” articles.

a. For each, click on “View History.” How many Wikipedians have been involved in the creation of this article? How long has it been in the process of being edited?

b. For each, click on “Discussion.”  What kinds of conversations are the authors having about the content?

c. For each, look at the references that are used. How many references are there? What kinds of sources did they use?

d. Go to the course page and write a short paragraph describing what you learned. Above your paragraph, make a section heading for this assignment by placing two equals signs around the title:

Comparing DYK and Feature Articles
Be sure to sign your entry by typing four tildas.

Task 4. Reply on the Discussion Board

Go to someone else’s paragraph and make a comment. Put your comment below theirs in the same section. Be sure to sign your comment with four tildas.

Task 5. Edit

Go back to your own paragraph and make an edit. Adjust your paragraph to respond to the comments that have been made. Or fix the spelling or grammar of a sentence. Or rework it so that it flows better. Save your edit.

Assignment 3: Due 26 September

Task 1. Final Topic Selection

Make your final decision about what article you are going to expand. While making this decision you will need to balance your interests with what organizations you are able to find good information from multiple sources.

Go to the course page. Edit the “Articles” section to include your user name and the article you plan to focus on this semester. I have entered myself on one of the lines to show you how to do it. Replace “Example user” with your user name. If you want your name to appear rather than your user name, follow this with a vertical line and your name:

your name

Next replace “Example article” with the title of the article you will be expanding. I recommend copying this from the actual article page and pasting it here.

Example article

Task 2: Select a mentor

Just as you are supported by a team of Campus Ambassadors at your university, you also have a team of Online Ambassadors at your disposal. Online Ambassadors are available to offer advice, assistance, and feedback as you learn your way around Wikipedia. Although you will likely interact with many of the Online Ambassadors during the course of your assignment, we ask that you select one to serve as your mentor. Your mentor will work closely with you and will be your go-to person for your Wikipedia-related questions.

Sign up for a mentor here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Online_Ambassadors/Mentors.

Task 3: Live edits

Improve the clarity of a sentence or two in an already existing article. Follow this link for a list of articles that have been identified as needing editing:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Wikipedia_backlog

The articles are organized according to what improvements each needs, so you can select one based on the specific editing skill(s) you would like to practice.

Assignment 4.

Task 1. Sign up for peer review

Select two classmates' articles that you will peer review and copy-edit. Sign up on the Course Page.

Task 2. Begin your article

On your sandbox, write a summary version of your article reflecting the content the article will have after it's been improved. Begin by copying the text that has already been written on the original article’s page. Include section headings which reflect the organization you expect the article to take. Write short summaries of what you plan on writing in each section. Be sure to insert the bibliographic information for whatever sources you have found.

Task 3. Get feedback on your article

Post the summary draft on the article's talk page.

Task 4. Edit the version

Begin working with classmates, Online Ambassador, and mentor to polish your short starter article and fix any major transgressions of Wikipedia norms.

Continue research in preparation for expanding your article.

Assignmet 5: Task 1. Expand your draft

You should be editing the version of the article that you have in your sandbox. Pay attention to the comments that have been made to the outline you posted on the article’s talk page and adjust it accordingly. Expand it to flow smoothly and contain all the elements of a good quality article. Be sure to follow the Wikipedia standards

Task 2. Move your draft into Wikipedia

Have two windows open. In the first, go to the article you want to edit and open the edit window for the full article.

In the second, go to your sandbox and open its edit window. Highlight the changes you’ve made to the original stub article and right click on “Copy.” Go to the article’s edit page and paste your changes in.

Save the page.

Task 3. Nominate your page for “Did You Know…” status

See the requirements for qualifying for “Did You Know” status on Vista: Did You Know. The last section describes the procedure for nominating your article.

Note that you must nominate within 5 days of expanding it to 5 times the original size. So task 3 needs to occur within 5 days of doing task 2. That’s why this is due on a Saturday.

Final Assignment: Due 28 November

Task 1. Incorporate at least one image into your article

To use an image, it needs to be in the public domain. You will go through the process of uploading an image into its own file on Wikipedia. Then within your article you will reference that file from within your article to get it to show up.

The detailed instructions for uploading an image is found on Vista: Images.

Task 2. Keep expanding your article

As you do so, keep the 10 Rules in mind. You are public now—you want to do your best work. But if you get criticisms from others, don’t panic. Just make the appropriate changes.

Task 3. Give support to your classmates

Peer review two of your classmates' articles. Leave suggestions on the article talk pages.

Copy-edit the two reviewed articles.

Task 4. Nominate your article for Good Article status

Task 5. Prepare for an in-class presentation about your Wikipedia editing experience