Wikipedia:United States Education Program/Courses/Sport in Society (Shelly Habel)/Timeline

Week 3: Wikipedia Essentials

 * In class
 * Overview of the course
 * Introduction to how Wikipedia will be used in the course
 * Handout: Welcome to Wikipedia (available in print or online from the Wikimedia Foundation)


 * Assignment 1
 * Read Five pillars, an explanation of Wikipedia's basic rules and principles, create a user page, and add your name to the course page’s list of students

Week 4: Editing basics

 * In class
 * Campus Ambassadors introduce:
 * Basics of editing
 * Anatomy of Wikipedia articles, what makes a good article, how to distinguish between good & bad articles
 * Tips on finding the best articles to work on for class assignments
 * Handouts and videos: Video on creating an account, Talk pages tutorial video, Evaluating Wikipedia article quality brochure, Account and user page creation handout, Wikimarkup cheatsheet
 * Assignment 2
 * Contact an Online Ambassador (via his/her Wikipedia user talk page) as a mentor. Mentors will be available to offer advice and assistance as you start editing.  To practice the editing features of Wikipedia, leave a message for a few classmates on their user talk pages
 * Handouts and videos: Video on creating an account, Talk pages tutorial video, Evaluating Wikipedia article quality brochure, Account and user page creation handout, Wikimarkup cheatsheet


 * Milestone:
 * All students have Wikipedia user accounts and are listed on the course page.

Week 5: Exploring the topic area

 * In class
 * Handout: Advice for choosing articles
 * Assignment 3
 * Critically evaluate an existing Wikipedia article related to the class, and leave suggestions for improving it on the article's discussion page.
 * Research and list 3–5 articles on your Wikipedia user page that you will consider working on as your main project. Ask your class's Online Ambassadors for comments.

Week 6: Using sources and choosing articles

 * In class
 * Handouts and videos: Referencing handout, Referencing: Wikicode handout, Plagiarism handout, Citing sources tutorial video, RefToolbar citation tool tutorial video


 * Discuss the range of topics students will be working on and strategies for researching and writing about them.


 * Assignment 4
 * Select an article to work on, removing the rest from the course page.
 * Compile a bibliography of relevant research and post it to the talk page of the article you are working on. Begin reading the sources.


 * Instructor evaluates student's article selections, by week 7.

Week 7: Drafting starter articles

 * In class
 * Instructor and/or Campus Ambassadors talk about Wikipedia culture & etiquette, and [optionally] introduce the concept of sandboxes and how to use them.
 * Q&A session with instructor and/or Campus Ambassadors about interacting on Wikipedia and getting started with writing
 * Video resource: Sandbox tutorial
 * Assignment 5
 * If you are starting a new article, write a 3–4 paragraph summary version of your article (with citations) in your Wikipedia sandbox. If you are improving an existing article, write a summary version reflecting the content the article will have after it's been improved, and post this along with a brief description of your plans on the article's talk page.
 * Begin working with classmates and Online Ambassadors to polish your short starter article and fix any major transgressions of Wikipedia norms.
 * Continue research in preparation for expanding your article.


 * Milestone
 * All students have started editing articles or drafts on Wikipedia.

Week 10: Did you know and building articles

 * In class
 * Handout: Moving into main space, Submitting articles to Did You Know
 * Campus Ambassadors lead Wikipedia lab/workshop, covering:
 * Article ratings on Wikipedia & how to get there
 * Uploading images, and adding images to articles
 * Handouts and videos: Uploading images handout, Uploading files to Wikimedia Commons video, Evaluating Wikipedia article quality brochure (handed out originally in week 2), Article assessments video, Evolution of an article video


 * Assignment 6
 * Move sandbox articles into main space.
 * For new articles or qualifying expansions of stubs, compose a one-sentence "hook," nominate it for "Did you know," and monitor the nomination for any issues identified by other editors.
 * Begin expanding your article into a comprehensive treatment of the topic.
 * Expand your article into an initial draft of a comprehensive treatment of the topic.

Week 11: Getting and giving feedback

 * In class
 * As a group, have the students offer suggestions for improving one or two of the students' articles, setting the example for what is expected from a solid encyclopedia article.


 * Assignment 7
 * Peer review two of your classmates' articles. Leave suggestions on the article talk pages.
 * Copy-edit the two reviewed articles.


 * Milestone
 * All articles have been reviewed by others. All students have reviewed articles by their classmates.

Week 12: Responding to feedback

 * In class
 * Open discussion of the concepts of neutrality, media literacy, and the impact and limits of Wikipedia


 * Assignment 8
 * Make edits to your article based on peers' feedback.

Week 15: Reflection and Review
Assignment 9
 * In class
 * Prepare for an in-class presentation and reflection about your Wikipedia editing experience.