Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/Northern Arizona University/WGS 300w Feminist Theories (Fall 2021)

WGS 300W: &quot;Foundational overviews of the history of feminist theory. Also addresses contemporary ethnic minority and international theorists&quot;

Week 1
Download and review the complete project guidelines from our BB Learn page

Student expectations and skills:


 * build junior level academic research and writing skills by finding and writing about verifiable, peer-reviewed sources.
 * practice organizing research in a professional manner through composing annotated bibliographies and an appropriately formatted works referenced page.
 * critically apply expert knowledge to the comprehensive and holistic assessment of a Wikipedia article.
 * Add at least a large paragraph’s worth of writing to the article in the “objective and unbiased” writing tone required by Wikipedia, making sure additions and changes reflect the field as it is and not your own opinion of what the field should be, and are substantive/important (i.e. not just grammar fixes).
 * Add and fix in-text and footnote/endnote citations in the complete format requested by Wikipedia.
 * Complete this project, which means ensuring that all work is “live” (i.e. is public); rate the page; check and respond to editor changes; complete changes requested by me.

Grading: your grade is based on the extent of your scholarly research and holistic comprehension as shown in your written work; the quality and breadth of your holistic evaluation of the page; the addition of new material, new citations, and the fixing of incomplete links, citations, and information; and the quality of your interaction with and correction of issues as requested


 * 7 sources + 3 annotated bibs (1 page each)                        (11pts)
 * Introduction to topic (3 pages)                                               (5pts)
 * Critical assessment (3 pages)                                                 (5pts)
 * Literature review (4-6 pages)                                                  (6pts)                                                                                                  
 * Wikipedia assessment and plan (3 pages)                            (4pts)
 * Wikipedia changes and evidence                                           (11pts)
 * Follow-up                                                                                    (2pts)
 * Reflection of work and contribution (3 pages)                       (4pts)

= 48 points total (48% of final grade)

Week 2
Pick a topic and confirm verbally or in writing with me that it is available before you sign up for it on Wikipedia. Topics are first-come-first-serve. If you are interested in soething that is not on this list, by all means ask (make sure there is already a page for it first).

In the next weeks:


 * create an account and join this course page, using the enrollment link provided.
 * link yourself to your chosen wiki page (for help, complete the Finalize your topic exercise)
 * take the above online training modules to help you figure out how to edit, and what is expected for entries. These trainings are required for your course and wikipedia tracks your completion of them.
 * set up wikipedia visual editor

For extra explanation and resources, read this handout and the Women's Studies handout.

Week 3
Extensively research and read about your field. Find and read seven or more scholarly sources. This is the minimum rather than the average or ideal number of sources. You will need to find and read resources from each of these areas:

a) book reference materials

b) scholarly (peer reviewed) journal articles and periodicals

c) online materials (can be news articles, blogs, etc)

Consider using a research log or Zotero to help you keep track of all the information you find.

You will turn in a complete works referenced page documenting the sources you used to become an expert. Standard reference format is required (MLA, APA, or Chicago). You will also turn in 3 annotated biblographies.

Week 5
 Introduction (3 pages):   a comprehensive introduction could go on forever: your job is to pick the most important parts of the topic and convey that in 3 pages. Compose a holistic but general overview from your own personal research as if you were writing to an educated person who has never taken a feminist theories class.


 * Why is this topic important?
 * How and why did it come to be?
 * What are some of the most critical ideas or theories or people that you will be addressing later
 * What must someone absolutely know in order to explain this field to others? To understand your final conclusions?

Week 6
 critical analysis and conclusions:  this is where you offer your final own educated opinion of the topic based on your research. In your educated opinion, is this topic critical to feminist inquiry? Can it be revised and built upon? Should certain texts remain key? Are others problematic? Why? Make sure to wrap up your paper by offering a “so what.” Why is it important for us to know about this and what might it help us do outside the classroom?

Week 8
 Literature review:  your review must address no less than three (but likely more) theorists and their academic texts (books or articles). You must focus on the most famous/canonical ones or the most controversial ones: ones who made significant interventions in the topic or helps shape what it is. A good way to identify these people/texts is to read several articles and summaries. Whose name keeps coming up? What work is always cited? In your literature review DO NOT include:


 * 1)       texts or authors that are summarizing famous people or famous texts (secondary sources). You need to access the primary sources;
 * 2) texts or authors who might talk about something in the field or be part of the field but are not key or canonical (i.e. did not change or shape the field);
 * 3) summary books, anthology books, or other books explaining the field (tertiary sources).

A literature review IS NOT an annotated bibliography, NOT a series of book or article summaries, and NOT a position-based critique. Rather, you creating a picture of the key ideas that authors and texts that have shaped the topic. Synthesize this material rather than summarize. What are some key through lines? How are these texts in conversation with one another? Why did this work or author make such an impact? What did they contribute? We will have a workshop on types of literature reviews before this is due.

Week 11
Go to the Wikipedia page for your field and check the entire entry for:

a) how well it is holistically outlining the field you have researched

b) information you can confirm is accurate from your own research. (note how you will citation if there is none. Note where in your research you confirmed this on the copy you turn in to me.)

c) information you can confirm is inaccurate. (note how you will fix this and add the citation that confirms where you found the correct information. Make sure this work clearly marked on the copy you turn in to me.)

d) areas that need to be expanded on or are entirely absent (i.e. things that you found in your research that are not on the Wikipedia page, or are not discussed extensively enough).

Organize your ideas and create and assessment and plan for altering the page.

Week 12
Write new text making sure you follow Wikipedia required tone for entries, and create full in-text and footnote citations (as per the citation tutorial you tool) that demonstrate where you found the information you are adding. Compose at least a paragraph’s worth of material throughout the entry in addition to edits.

Week 13
Make sure that whatever you add or change is documented immediately (in case editors change your entry) and that you have a hard copy to turn in that clearly outlines what you checked and added. See sample in BB learn folder. Write a one paragraph assessment of the page that explains to me how the page stacks up in comparison to the field, and where the page and your understanding of the field diverge. Double check that your submission is “live” aka on the main public page and not waiting to be submitted or in the sandbox. This is part of the grade.


 * 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!

Week 15
Each student will briefly explain their field to the class and discuss what they did on their Wikipedia entry (5 minutes each). Consider these Guiding questions while preparing for your presentation. This is not graded, it’s just to tell the class about the field you chose and how the entry was/what you did.

Over the next week, check:

a) the view history tab to see what has been changed about your work

b) your talk/messages to see if Wikipedia editors have given you direct feedback

c) your feedback from me

d) confirm or change the “rating” of your page (check how to do this here)

You must make the changes I request; consider the changes an editor asks you to make (perhaps by making the changes or by creating a discussion thread in the “talk” page of the article); fix the rating; and—if there are large deletions by an editor—consider what changes to tone or citations will ensure most of your work remains live.

Week 16
Reflect on the work you did and your contribution. Explain any changes or work you had to do after the page was live.