Wikipedia:United States Education Program/Courses/Information Fluency/Timeline

Week 1: Wikipedia Essentials

 * In class
 * Overview of the course
 * Introduction to how Wikipedia will be used in the course


 * Assignment (due week 2)
 * Read Five pillars, an explanation of Wikipedia's basic rules and principles
 * Create Wikipedia account

Week 2: Editing basics

 * In class
 * Basics of editing
 * Anatomy of Wikipedia articles
 * Tips on finding the best articles to work on for class assignments
 * Assignments (due week 3)
 * Create a user page; add one article of interest in your major plus related Categories and Wikiprojects to your Sandbox.
 * To practice communicating on Wikipedia, leave a message for a classmate on their user talk page.
 * Read Wikipedia article "Identifying reliable sources"

Week 3: Introduction to Databases

 * In class
 * Boolean logic
 * Field searching
 * Controlled vocabulary
 * Searching the CMA book catalog


 * Assignment
 * Identify a Wikipedia article of interest from either WikiProject Shipwrecks or Category: Engineering failures
 * Locate one monograph held by CMA that contains useful content relevant to your article
 * Briefly describe your source on the article Talk page and explain why you recommend it
 * Add an APA citation for your source under heading "Further Reading" at the bottom of your article

Week 4 & 5: Searching Scholarly Article Databases

 * In class
 * APA citation style
 * Read Wikipedia Talk page guidelines, especially sections on "Layout" and "New topics and headings on talk pages"
 * Read guidelines for Further reading sections
 * In-class worksheets using JSTOR, Science Direct, Academic Search Elite
 * Assignment
 * Locate one scholarly journal article on your topic using JSTOR, Science Direct, or ASE
 * Cite the article on the Wikipedia article Talk page and explain why you recommend it

Week 6: Searching News Databases

 * In class
 * Worksheets using Lexis/Nexis and ABI/Inform
 * What are trade magazines?
 * What are press releases?


 * Assignments


 * Identify a shipping, cruise, or engineering company of interest
 * Locate 2 news stories about the company from 2011-2012 using Lexis/Nexis or ABI/Inform
 * Cite these items in APA style in your Wikipedia sandbox and summarize the most important elements of the stories

Week 7: Evaluating Wikipedia
Jigsaw exercise with four articles on quality of Wikipedia:
 * In class


 * Lindsey, D. (2010). Evaluating quality control of Wikipedia's feature articles. First Monday [Online], 15(4). Retrieved from http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2721/2482
 * Can you trust Wikipedia? (2005 Oct 23). The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2005/oct/24/comment.newmedia
 * Giles, J. (2005 Dec 15). Internet encyclopaedias go head to head. Nature, 900–901. doi:10.1038/438900a
 * Seelye, K. Q. (2005, December 4). Snared in the Web of a Wikipedia Liar. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/04/weekinreview/04seelye.html


 * Assignment
 * Read Lindsey and Giles articles
 * Select one maritime history topic from instructor-provided list
 * Respond to questions in class Moodle forum

Week 8: Evaluating Wikipedia

 * In class
 * Midterm


 * Assignment
 * Compare Wikipedia vs. Oxford Encyclopedia of Maritime History for selected topic from Week 7
 * Post 500 word essay in Sandbox

Week 9: Excel

 * In class
 * Assign numerical rating to four evaluation categories for Wikipedia article
 * Create spreadsheet with data from class and analyze overall quality ratings for maritime history articles

Week 10: Excel

 * In class
 * Hoovers Company Records
 * Primary vs. Secondary information


 * Assignment
 * Use Excel to compute averages and growth for three years of revenue/income of three competing companies

Week 11: Web Sources

 * In class
 * Advanced Google Search
 * Citing web sources
 * Avoiding Plagiarism

Week 13: Graphical Display of Information

 * In class
 * Best practices for slide design
 * SmartArt, Word Clouds, Creative Commons


 * Assignment
 * Create graphical PowerPoint narrative on research process or learning to edit Wikipedia

Week 14: Final Wikipedia Article

 * In class
 * Peer review of draft
 * Individual consult with instructor

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