Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/School of the Art Institute of Chicago/New Histories of Chicago Media (Fall 2015)

The history of media in Chicago is largely unwritten. Yet, the city has been home to generations of aesthetically and socially radical moving image artists (e.g., Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, Dan Sandin, Kartemquin Films) whose work has played a profound role in the development of artistic and commercial moving image. Through lectures, screenings, artist visits, field trips, and discussions, this class will excavate Chicago's media history. Students will conduct primary and secondary research, learn how to navigate moving image archives, and actively contribute to a new understanding of media's past. Through this work, we will also consider the ways “history” is written and how it can be used to illuminate our present moment.

Week 1: Getting Started

 * Overview of the assignment
 * Introduction to Wikipedia
 * Understanding Wikipedia as a community

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Handout: Editing Wikipedia


 * Basics of editing
 * Anatomy of Wikipedia articles, what makes a good article, how to distinguish between good and bad articles
 * Collaborating and engaging with the Wiki editing community

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Handouts:, Evaluating Wikipedia

 == Students will work in pairs on the following subject areas: ==  Tom Palazzolo == Anda Korsts ==  Larry Janiak == Judy Hoffman ==  JoAnn Elam == Peter Kuttner ==  Jane Veeder</li> <li>== Tom Weinberg == </li> <li>Start compiling your bibliography. Post 1-2 sources per subject to your sandbox.</li></ul>


 * Create an account and then complete the online training for students. During this training, you will make edits in a sandbox and learn the basic rules of Wikipedia.
 * Create a User page.
 * To practice editing and communicating on Wikipedia, introduce yourself to another student on their user talk page.
 * Explore topics related to your topic area to get a feel for how Wikipedia is organized.

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Resources: Online Training for Students

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

All students have begun research on their individual subjects.

Week 2

 * Be prepared to explain close paraphrasing, plagiarism, and copyright violations on Wikipedia.

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Handouts: and


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


 * Compile an extensive bibliography of relevant, reliable sources and post it your sandbox. Read your sources as you find them; they will lead you to other sources.

Week 3

 * Talk about Wikipedia culture and etiquette, and (optionally) revisit the concept of sandboxes and how to use them.
 * Discuss getting started with writing.


 * We'll discuss moving your article out of your sandboxes and into Wikipedia's main space.
 * A general reminder: Don't panic if your contribution disappears, and don't try to force it back in.
 * Check to see if there is an explanation of the edit on the article's talk page. If not, (politely) ask why it was removed.
 * Contact your instructor or Wikipedia Content Expert and let them know.

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Handout:


 * Write an outline of the topic in the form of a standard Wikipedia lead section of 3–4 paragraphs in your sandbox. Wikipedia articles use &quot;summary style&quot;, in which the lead section provides a balanced summary of the entire body of the article, with the first sentence serving to define the topic and place it in context. The lead section should summarize, very briefly, each of the main aspects of the topic that will be covered in detail in the rest of the article. Make sure to check that page often to gather any feedback the community might provide.
 * Begin working with classmates and other editors to polish your lead section and fix any major issues.
 * Continue research in preparation for writing the body of the article.


 * Move your sandbox articles into main space.
 * Do NOT copy and paste your text, or there will be no record of your work history. Follow the instructions in the &quot;Moving out of your sandbox&quot; handout.
 * Begin expanding your article into a comprehensive treatment of the topic.

All students have started writing drafts on Wikipedia.


 * Expand your article into a complete first draft.

Week 4

 * We'll discuss the process of peer review.


 * Select three class articles that you will peer review and copyedit. On the table at the bottom of this course page, add your username next to the articles you will peer review.


 * Peer review three of your classmates’ articles. Leave suggestions on the article talk pages.
 * Copy-edit the three reviewed articles.


 * Make edits to your article based on peers’ feedback. If you disagree with a suggestion, use talk pages to politely discuss and come to a consensus on your edit.

Every student has finished reviewing their assigned articles, making sure that every article has been reviewed. Every student has responded to and incorporated peer review suggestions in their articles.

Week 5

 * As a group, offer suggestions for improving one or two other students' articles, based on your ideas of what makes a solid encyclopedia article. Come up with improvement goals for each article for next week.


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


 * Return to your classmates' articles you previously reviewed, and provide more suggestions for further improvement. If there is a disagreement, suggest a compromise.
 * Do additional research and writing to make further improvements to your article, based on your classmates' suggestions and any additional areas for improvement you can identify.

Week 6

 * Add final touches to your Wikipedia article.

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Handout:

Students have finished all their work on Wikipedia that will be considered for grading.