Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/College of DuPage/English 1102, section 96 (Spring 2017)

Week 1
Welcome to your Wikipedia project's course timeline. This page will guide you through the Wikipedia project for your course. Be sure to check with your instructor to see if there are other pages you should be following as well.

This page breaks down writing a Wikipedia article into a series of steps, or milestones. These steps include online trainings to help you get started on Wikipedia.

Your course has also been assigned a Wikipedia Content Expert. Check your Talk page for notes from them. You can also reach them through the &quot;Get Help&quot; button on this page.

Due Tuesday, 4/11 - you MUST come to class with your username enrolled on the Students tab above and with the first two trainings marked as complete next to your name.


 * Create an account and join this course page, using the enrollment link your instructor sent you.
 * It's time to dive into Wikipedia. Below, you'll find the first set of online trainings you'll need to take. New modules will appear on this timeline as you get to new milestones. Be sure to check back and complete them! These trainings are required for your course.
 * When you finish the trainings, practice by introducing yourself to a classmate on that classmate's Talk page.
 * As you get started, please review the following handouts:
 * Editing Wikipedia pages 1–5
 * Evaluating Wikipedia

This week, everyone should have a Wikipedia account.

Week 2
Now that you're thinking about what makes a &quot;good&quot; Wikipedia article, let's consider some additional questions.


 * Wikipedians often talk about &quot;content gaps.&quot; What do you think a content gap is, and what are some possible ways to identify them?
 * What are some reasons a content gap might arise? What are some ways to remedy them?
 * Does it matter who writes Wikipedia?
 * What does it mean to be &quot;unbiased&quot; on Wikipedia? How is that different, or similar, to your own definition of &quot;bias&quot;?

Due Thursday 4/13

It's time to think critically about Wikipedia articles. You'll evaluate a Wikipedia article related to the course and leave suggestions for improving it on the article's Talk page.


 * Complete the &quot;Evaluating Articles and Sources&quot; training (linked below).
 * Create a section in your sandbox titled &quot;Article evaluation&quot; where you'll leave notes about your observations and learnings.
 * Choose two of the following articles to read and evaluate on Wikipedia.
 * Research
 * Primary source
 * Secondary source
 * Tertiary source
 * Bibliography
 * History of books
 * Academic publishing
 * Encyclopedia
 * Jimmy Wales
 * English studies
 * As you read, consider the following questions (but don't feel limited to these):
 * Is everything in the article relevant to the article topic? Is there anything that distracted you?
 * Is the article neutral? Are there any claims, or frames, that appear heavily biased toward a particular position?
 * Are there viewpoints that are overrepresented, or underrepresented?
 * Check a few citations. Do the links work? Does the source support the claims in the article?
 * Is each fact referenced with an appropriate, reliable reference? Where does the information come from? Are these neutral sources? If biased, is that bias noted?
 * Is any information out of date? Is anything missing that could be added?
 * Check out the Talk page of the article. What kinds of conversations, if any, are going on behind the scenes about how to represent this topic?
 * How is the article rated? Is it a part of any WikiProjects?
 * How does the way Wikipedia discusses this topic differ from the way we've talked about it in class?
 * Optional: Choose at least 1 question relevant to the article you're evaluating and leave your evaluation on the article's Talk page. Be sure to sign your feedback with four tildes — Srmcgraw1 (talk) 15:55, 4 May 2017 (UTC).
 * Come to class on Thursday ready to share and discuss your notes.

Today in class we will familiarize ourselves with editing Wikipedia by copyediting an article.

To start, choose an article to work on. For help finding an article to work on, consider browsing the list of stubs on Wikipedia here. Use the alphabetization to find a topic you're interested in. Some examples:


 * Toy company stubs
 * Zoologist stubs
 * Book stubs

Once you've chosen your article, read through it, thinking about ways to improve the language, such as fixing grammatical mistakes. Then, make the appropriate changes. You don’t need to contribute new information to the article yet.

Due Tuesday 4/18


 * Review page 6 of your Editing Wikipedia guidebook.
 * Look up 3-5 potential topics related to the course that you might want to update on Wikipedia. Review the content of the article and check the Talk page to see what other Wikipedians are already contributing. Identify one or two areas from each that you could improve.
 * Remember: you can browse all of Wikipedia's stubs here in case you need help finding some topics.
 * Choose 2-3 potential articles from that list that you can tackle, and post links to the articles and your notes about what you might improve in your sandbox.
 * Finally, come to class on Tuesday ready to discuss your options.

Week 3
Today in class we will spend some time discussing your ideas for topics and will help you finalize your final topic for the project.

In order for your topic to move forward you'll have to be able to find 2-5 independent sources to help substantiate the expansion or creation of an article.

Once you have your topic finalized, head to the Students tab above and assign yourself your article topic.

Hint: if you are creating a new article, assign yourself the article title as it will stand once the article is live. Read through this article title help page for some ideas of how to get started.

Due Thursday, 4/20

In your sandbox, write a few sentences about what you plan to contribute to the selected article.


 * Think back to when you did an article critique. What can you add? Post some of your ideas to the article's talk page, too.
 * Start compiling a list of relevant, reliable books, journal articles, or other sources. Post that bibliography to the talk page of the article you'll be working on, and in your sandbox. Make sure to check in on the Talk page to see if anyone has advice on your bibliography.


 * Blog posts and press releases are considered poor sources of reliable information. Why?
 * What are some reasons you might not want to use a company's website as the main source of information about that company?
 * What is the difference between a copyright violation and plagiarism?
 * What are some good techniques to avoid close paraphrasing and plagiarism?

We might have some time in class today to start our drafts, so be prepared!

Due Tuesday, 4/25

Over the weekend you'll be starting your drafts!

'''Creating a new article? '''


 * Write an outline of that topic in the form of a standard Wikipedia article's &quot;lead section.&quot; Write it in your sandbox.
 * A &quot;lead&quot; section is not a traditional introduction. It should summarize, very briefly, what the rest of the article will say in detail. The first paragraph should include important, broad facts about the subject. A good example is Ada Lovelace. See Editing Wikipedia page 9 for more ideas.

'''Improving an existing article? '''


 * Identify what's missing from the current form of the article. Think back to the skills you learned while critiquing an article. Make notes for improvement in your sandbox.

Keep reading your sources, too, as you prepare to write the body of the article.

Resources: Editing Wikipedia pages 7–9

Everyone has begun writing their article drafts.

Week 4
Discussion prompts


 * What do you think of Wikipedia's definition of &quot;neutrality&quot;?
 * What are the impacts and limits of Wikipedia as a source of information?
 * On Wikipedia, all material must be attributable to reliable, published sources. What kinds of sources does this exclude? Can you think of any problems that might create?
 * If Wikipedia was written 100 years ago, how might its content (and contributors) be different? What about 100 years from now?

Expand your draft


 * In class today, keep working on transforming your article into a complete first draft.
 * On Wednesday 4/26 your instructor will be reviewing drafts and leaving comments on the &quot;Talk&quot; pages of your sandbox spaces. This will be the first part of the review process. You must have a complete first draft by midnight on 4/25.
 * If you'd like a Content Expert to review your draft as well, now is the time! Click the &quot;Get Help&quot; button in your sandbox to request notes.

Due Thursday, April 27th.

Take the &quot;Peer Review&quot; training (linked below).


 * First, take the &quot;Peer Review&quot; online training.
 * Select two classmates’ articles that you will peer review and copyedit. On the Articles tab, find the articles that you want to review, and then assign them to yourself in the Review column.
 * In class: peer review both of your classmates' drafts.
 * Leave suggestions on on the Talk page of the article, or sandbox, that your fellow student is working on. Other editors may be reviewing your work, so look for their comments! Be sure to acknowledge feedback from other Wikipedians.
 * As you review, make spelling, grammar, and other adjustments. Pay attention to the tone of the article. Is it encyclopedic?

Due Tuesday, May 2nd.

Over the weekend, review the notes that your students and instructor left you and begin to implement any proposed changes.


 * Read Editing Wikipedia pages 12 and 14.
 * Return to your draft or article and think about the suggestions. Decide which ones to start implementing.
 * Reach out to your instructor or your Content Expert if you have any questions.

Every student has finished reviewing their assigned articles, making sure that every article has been reviewed.

Week 5
This week it's time to move your work to Wikipedia proper - the &quot;mainspace&quot;!

'''Editing an existing article? '''


 * NEVER copy and paste your draft of an article over the entire article. Instead, edit small sections at a time.
 * Copy your edits into the article. Make many small edits, saving each time, and leaving an edit summary. Never replace more than one to two sentences without saving!
 * Be sure to copy text from your sandbox while the sandbox page is in 'Edit' or 'Edit source' mode. This ensures that the formatting is transferred correctly.

'''Creating a new article? '''


 * Read Editing Wikipedia page 13, and follow those steps to move your article from your Sandbox to Mainspace.
 * You can also review the Sandboxes and Mainspace online training.

Due Thursday, 5/4

Do additional research and writing to make further improvements to your article, based on suggestions and your own critique.


 * Read Editing Wikipedia page 12 to see how to create links from your article to others, and from other articles to your own. Try to link to 3–5 articles, and link to your article from 2–3 other articles.

It's the final day to develop your article.


 * Read Editing Wikipedia page 15 to review a final check-list before completing your assignment.
 * Don't forget that you can ask for help from your Content Expert at any time!

Due Tuesday May 9th.

Write a reflective essay (500 words) on your Wikipedia contributions.

Consider the following questions as you reflect on your Wikipedia assignment:


 * Critiquing articles: What did you learn about Wikipedia during the article evaluation? How did you approach critiquing the article you selected for this assignment? How did you decide what to add to your chosen article?
 * Summarizing your contributions: include a summary of your edits and why you felt they were a valuable addition to the article. How does your article compare to earlier versions?
 * Peer Review: If your class did peer review, include information about the peer review process. What did you contribute in your review of your peers article? What did your peers recommend you change on your article?
 * Feedback: Did you receive feedback from other Wikipedia editors, and if so, how did you respond to and handle that feedback?
 * Wikipedia generally: What did you learn from contributing to Wikipedia? How does a Wikipedia assignment compare to other assignments you've done in the past? How can Wikipedia be used to improve public understanding of our field/your topic? Why is this important?

Everyone should have finished all of the work they'll do on Wikipedia, and be ready for grading.