Wikipedia:Meetup/Boston/WikipediaArchaeology

= Archaeology on Wikipedia =

Overview
A one-hour learning session, focused on archaeological articles and Wikiprojects.

We will learn the governing principles of Wikipedia, how to assess article quality, and how to make useful contributions.

We will also discuss the value of improving archaeological article quality, both in terms of enhancing our own research skills and sharing knowledge with the public.


 * Our slide deck

Register
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Participant list
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= FAQ = What should I have? How reliable is Wikipedia? Who edits Wikipedia? Also worth knowing about
 * 1) Rtbhive (talk) 19:25, 16 November 2016 (UTC)
 * 2) Rektifi3r (talk) 20:23, 17 November 2016 (UTC)
 * 3) Ricrod (talk) 20:27, 17 November 2016 (UTC)
 * A laptop and charger
 * An interest in the state of public knowledge about archaeology
 * Check out Accuracy of content
 * Check out Wikipedia
 * Wikipedia is a work in progress: perfection is not required
 * The perfect article

= Thinking like a Wikipedian = Basic guidelines, communication customs, editing customs

The focus here is on developing your "Wikipedia hat," so you can read and evaluate Wikipedia articles based on Wikipedia's standards, not those from your own areas of expertise.

Read over the following Wikipedia policy/guideline pages, and then use what you've learned to evaluate one of the articles listed.

(Hint: Read "nutshells" and intros most carefully, then skim the rest of each policy/guideline page. That will give you the sense you need.)


 * Be bold
 * Your first article
 * The five pillars of Wikipedia
 * Identifying reliable sources
 * Neutral point of view
 * What Wikipedia is not
 * Manual of Style

''Articles to evaluate: pick one, and use your new "Wikipedia hat" to evaluate them. How might they be improved?''


 * Magic Mountain Site
 * Chowigna, California
 * Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology
 * King Archaeological Site
 * Crystal River Archaeological State Park
 * Hoko River Archeological Site
 * American Schools of Oriental Research

Modified from an exercise created by Amanda Rust

Rating and Communicating on Wikipedia
 * What Class Labels mean (Featured Article, C-Class, Start-Class, etc.): Version 1.0 Editorial Team/Assessment
 * The perfect article
 * Talk page guidelines

''Now look up any site or topic from any of your research, from Paper 1 or 2. Explore, Analyze, even Edit!''

= Training to edit Wikipedia =
 * Cheatsheet
 * Featured Articles
 * Policies and guidelines
 * Help:Getting started
 * Starting an article

Going forward: some resources to help you determine what and how to contribute

 * WikiProject
 * What Class Labels mean (Featured Article, C-Class, Start-Class, etc.): Version 1.0 Editorial Team/Assessment
 * Portals on wikipedia
 * Missing articles
 * Stubs
 * Most-wanted articles
 * Translating
 * Red links
 * Women in Red

Good Digital Citizenship and Activism in Wikipedia: Working with Underrepresented Groups and Topics
written by Amanda Rust, February 2016
 * Problem: Wikipedia is a globally distributed network where judgement of quality is not based around contributor expertise, but rather work according to the standards of the project itself -- the most legible unit of work is a good citation. As one of the oldest communities on the Internet, Wikipedia gives students to a chance to practice good digital citizenship: use their critical thinking skills to discover community values, norms and styles of communication, and contribute in a way that will make sense to other community members. However, Wikipedia can, like many other communities, have a bias towards the status quo. Therefore, those working on issues related to underrepresented groups can expect to be accused of activism, bias, an agenda, as if those things do not already exist on Wikipedia.


 * Digital citizenship is doubly important to those working on issues related to underrepresented groups: one must know how to communicate effectively using community standards to convince the Wikipedian community that changes in the status quo does not automatically equal violating policy, and that you are still partners in the same goal of wanting to improve the encyclopedia.

Other possible topics for editing

 * WikiProject Archaeology
 * WikiProject Archaeology/Women in archaeology task force
 * WikiProject Indigenous peoples of North America
 * WikiProject Indigenous peoples of the Americas
 * WikiProject Mesoamerica
 * WikiProject Women in Red
 * Category:Archaeology stubs
 * Citation Hunt = tool to find "citation needed" in articles

Resources we can draw from

 * WorldCat, via MIT Libraries
 * MIT Libraries Anthropology & Archaeology Research Guide
 * Google News
 * Google Books
 * Google Scholar Note! You can synchronize Google Scholar with the MIT Library. Check it out!
 * Better Googling: MIT Libraries Google search tips