Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/Texas State University/Introduction to public administration (Spring 2016)

The organization and management of the machinery for executing public policies, with particular emphasis upon the Federal bureaucracy.

Week 1

 * Introduction and overview of the Wikipedia group project.
 * Understanding Wikipedia; we'll discuss our assumptions about using Wikipedia in higher education.
 * 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.

Handouts: Editing Wikipedia , Evaluating Wikipedia


 * Create an account and join this course page.


 * Complete the introductory training modules. During this training, you will make edits in a sandbox and learn the basic rules of Wikipedia.
 * Create a User page.


 * I have created a list of potential topics for your main project. Go to the &quot;sign up&quot; feature on our TRACS page and choose the one you will work on.

All students have Wikipedia user accounts, are listed on the course Wikipedia page, and selected an article to work on for the project.

Week 2

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

Handouts:  and

Students will meet with their teams, discuss expectations, and draft a team charter. Please review the article posted to TRACS on why this step is important to establishing an effective team.

This assignment must be completed during class on Wednesday, February 24, 2016.


 * Compile a bibliography of relevant, reliable sources and post it to the talk page of the article you are working on. Begin reading the sources. Make sure to check in on the talk page (or watchlist) to see if anyone has advice on your bibliography.


 * Students will also need to complete and turn in a written annotated bibliography (please see our TRACS page for guidelines/expectations for the annotated bibliography assignment).


 * Create a detailed outline reflecting your group's proposed changes to improve the existing article. Post this for community feedback, along with a brief description of your plans, on the article’s talk page. Make sure to check back on the talk page often and engage with any responses.
 * Print a hard copy of this outline and turn it in to me as well.
 * Remember to review the detailed expectations/guidelines for this assignment on TRACS.

All students have researched the topic and groups have evaluated existing article, compiled individual research and integrated this information into a detailed outline of proposed changes for article improvement.

Week 3

 * Q&amp;A session with instructor about getting started with writing.
 * We'll discuss moving your group's article out of the sandbox and into Wikipedia's main space.
 * A general reminder about interacting on Wikipedia: 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.

Handouts:  Illustrating Wikipedia and Evaluating Wikipedia[https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Moving_out_of_your_sandbox.pdf

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Each team meets with instructor for project consultation and completes the team mid-term evaluation.


 * Select a classmates’ article that you will peer review. On the table at the bottom of this course page, add your username next to the article you will peer review. (You don’t need to start reviewing yet.)


 * Begin expanding/revising your article into a comprehensive treatment of the topic using a group sandbox, then...
 * Move article revisions from group sandbox into main space.
 * When expanding an existing article, copy your edit into the article. If you are making many small edits, save after each edit before you make the next one. Do NOT paste over the entire existing article, or large sections of the existing article.


 * Peer review one of your classmates’ articles. Leave suggestions on the article talk pages.
 * Please see TRACS for guidelines/expectations for completing the peer review.

All groups have started editing articles on Wikipedia.

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

Week 4

 * Discuss how the articles can be further improved.
 * Prepare for an in-class presentation and reflection essay about your Wikipedia editing experience.

Handout:


 * All groups present their work to the class on either April 25th OR April 27th.


 * Write a reflective essay (2–3 pages) on your Wikipedia contributions.


 * Complete any additional research and writing to make further improvements to your article, based on your classmates' suggestions and/or any areas for improvement you or your group can identify.
 * Copy-edit your article one last time.
 * Add any final touches (photos, illustrations) to your Wikipedia article.

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