User talk:Ellencavanaugh

Babri Mosque
Hi, I noticed the question you left for Tim1357 regarding your student's edit to Babri Mosque. Assuming that EmilyEllis09 is the student in question, it wasn't DASHBot that reverted her edit. You can see in the article history, immediately prior to the DASHBot edit, that Abhishek191288 reverted the edit, with the comment "POV. Please discuss on talk page." In other words, he apparently feels that the content ran against the neutral point of view policy, and that if you disagree, it should be discussed on the article's talk page, Talk:Babri Mosque. Toohool (talk) 00:40, 30 September 2012 (UTC)

Thanks -EPC


 * Any significant addition to a controversial site should be discussed first, although I wouldn't have deleted this simply because it pushes a particular viewpoint. Controversial articles are bound to have differing points of view expressed, and so long as minority viewpoints are not overstated, neutral point of view can be maintained. However, there are a number of stylistic elements that count against the editor, making the edit sound more partisan than it actually is. It is important to maintain a neutral tone in controversial articles that state the facts and do not editorialise. The edit must be seen as an improvement in the quality of the article rather than a political point-scoring exercise. Personally, I would have encouraged a rewrite rather than total deletion of the first section. For example, saying 'However, Sarvepalli Gopal, a Hindu scholar, offers some alternative explanations' is not needed. The opening should say 'The presence of non-Islamic carvings on the pillars of the Babri Masjid can be explained by the use of Hindu craftsmen hired to build the mosque left inscriptions behind, and also portions of other buildings surrounding the mosque site were used to build it.' And then attribute the referencing. EmilyEllis09's edit implies that a Hindu scholar's work is especially noteworthy. In furthering a Hindu claim this encorages the edit to be seen as biased.
 * But the other section should be deleted. Saying there is/was a general British bias against Hindus and a deliberate spread of aprocryphal historical information for political purposes is extremely controversial and would require more referencing than a small part of a single journal article that isnt accessible to most Wikipedia editors. In order to support this claim of British-wide bias and behaviour, the key sections of the text from the article should be inserted into the referencing, so that the claim can be properly assessed. Because the claim is so controversial and the support for the claim is so limited, this should definitely have been discussed on the Talk page in order to minimise the risk of instant deletion. It could also be interpreted that failure to explain or defend the controversial position on the talk page is tacit acceptance that the edit came from a non-neutral point of view and would never be accepted by most other editors. Mdw0 (talk) 06:03, 11 October 2012 (UTC)

Very helpful - thanks! 71.61.3.24 (talk) 13:58, 13 October 2012 (UTC)

re: help requested
I can take a look. Have you registered with the Education Program? Please do if you haven't. --Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus&#124; reply here 05:58, 6 September 2013 (UTC)
 * Chris left you a reply at my talk page: . --Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus&#124; reply here 05:23, 9 September 2013 (UTC)

A belated welcome!
Here's wishing you a belated welcome to Wikipedia, Ellencavanaugh. I see that you've already been around a while and wanted to thank you for your contributions. Though you seem to have been successful in finding your way around, you may benefit from following some of the links below, which help editors get the most out of Wikipedia:
 * Introduction
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Also, when you post on talk pages you should sign your name using four tildes ( ~ ); that should automatically produce your username and the date after your post.

I hope you enjoy editing here and being a Wikipedian! If you have any questions, feel free to leave me a message on, consult Questions, or place helpme on your talk page and ask your question there.

Again, welcome! AdventurousSquirrel (talk) 21:41, 12 September 2013 (UTC)

Creating a user page
Hi, Ellen! I was putting a list of classes in the Wikipedia Education Program together and thought you may want to create a user page for yourself (noticed your red link)! Just include some relevant information, perhaps linking to your Course Page. It's not necessary but is helpful for communicating with others on-wiki! Hope your class is going well! Ping me if you need anything. JMathewson (WMF) (talk) 21:05, 25 October 2013 (UTC)

Wiki Project
Hello! I just finished my wiki project. It took awhile because it kept freezing and deleting my work *ggr*

Hinduism in the United States. I added to Hindu Temples.

(Cookv (talk) 18:38, 2 February 2014 (UTC))

Sorry to bother you again. I can't find the information on blackboard on how this would be submitted for the wiki project. Did you just want me to e-mail you my summary, website I edited, and username? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Cookv (talk • contribs) 16:08, 3 February 2014 (UTC)

This Month in Education: April 2014
Anna Koval (WMF) (talk) 21:45, 15 April 2014 (UTC)

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Questionable edits
Hi Ellen. I'm afraid I'm going to be critical of the edits of your students. I've already reverted the contribution of User:MikeMill11 at Religion and drugs, and given an explanation at Talk:Religion and drugs. Now I notice this edit by User:Roccos1, which starts with "The terms yoga and tantra are commonly interchanged because in the first century of the Common Era, Patañjala Yoga was introduced." This statement cries for an explanation; I'm going to check the sources. It's not my intention to bully your students, but I am critical. I hope my criticism can be used in your class, to help students realize what's needed to write a good article. For a background: I've got a MSc in psychology of religion, and a MA in theology. If there's anything I can do, please contact me. I'm quite willing to offer support and help. Joshua Jonathan - Let's talk!  05:08, 10 February 2015 (UTC)
 * I've also reverted Roccos1 edit; see Talk:Tantra for an extensive explanation, and literature suggestions; and User talk:Roccos1 for a more workable topic. Tantra is extremely difficult... Best regards, Joshua Jonathan  - Let's talk!  05:59, 10 February 2015 (UTC)

Change in your user rights
Your Wikipedia account was previously granted a user right called "course instructor" by the Wiki Education Foundation. That right enabled you to create a course page through the EducationProgram MediaWiki extension. Starting in fall 2015, the Wiki Education Foundation has discontinued its use of this extension. Going forward, users should create course pages through the Wiki Education Foundation website. That application is more user-friendly, and any content is automatically mirrored to Wikipedia. To prevent confusion, we'll be removing your "course instructor" user right, as it is not needed with the new system. This is simply a notification of the technical change to your account. No action is needed from you at this time.

If you plan on teaching with Wikipedia for the fall 2015 term, please email me (helaine@undefinedwikiedu.org) for instructions how to create your next course page using our new system. --Helaine (Wiki Ed) (talk), sent by MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 02:34, 21 July 2015 (UTC)

Procedural revocation of account creator right
Hi Ellencavanaugh, this notification is to let you know that If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask. Thank you! &mdash; MusikAnimal  talk  00:35, 26 October 2015 (UTC)