Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/The College of Wooster/Colonial Latin America (Fall 2017)

This course examines the history of Latin America from the time of European arrival to the wars of independence. Themes include the encounter between New World, African, and Iberian societies; the transformation of indigenous social, religious, economic, and political frameworks; the creation and maintenance of institutions of colonial rule; the evolution of the Atlantic world economy; and the creation of new Latin American cultures and identities. While short lectures provide the necessary context for these historical processes, students will make extensive use of primary sources to build their own interpretations of colonial Latin America. As a class we will analyze and problematize many of the concepts historians employ to explain the construction of new identities in Colonial Latin America, including hybridity, conversion, syncretism, and diaspora. We will also explore the tools and analytical frameworks that social historians employ in making sense of the past.

Week 1
Welcome to your Wikipedia project's course timeline. This page will guide you through the Wikipedia project for History 215 Colonial Latin America. This schedule is *not* a replacement for our class syllabus, but to provide you more detailed structure for the Wikipedia assignments.

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.

To get started, please review the following handouts:


 * Editing Wikipedia pages 1–5
 * Evaluating Wikipedia


 * Create an account and join this course page, using the enrollment link posted on Moodle.
 * It's time to dive into Wikipedia. Below, you'll find the first set of online trainings you'll need to take; complete them by Sunday. New modules will appear on this timeline as you get to new milestones. Be sure to check back and complete them! Incomplete trainings will be reflected in your grade.
 * When you finish the trainings, practice by introducing yourself to a classmate on that classmate’s Talk page.

This week, everyone should have a Wikipedia account and join our course page.

Week 2
Now that you're thinking about what makes a &quot;good&quot; Wikipedia article, 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;?

It's time to think critically about Wikipedia articles. For this assignment, you'll write a blog post. Considering the questions below, evaluate your choice of any Wikipedia article related to our course themes.


 * Complete the &quot;Evaluating Articles and Sources&quot; training (linked below).
 * Write a blog post that critiques your chosen article.  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?

Week 3
Familiarize yourself with editing Wikipedia by adding a citation to an article. There are two ways you can do this:


 * Add 1-2 sentences to a course-related article, and cite that statement to a reliable source, as you learned in the online training.
 * The Citation Hunt tool shows unreferenced statements from articles. First, evaluate whether the statement in question is true! An uncited statement could just be lacking a reference or it could be inaccurate or misleading. Reliable sources on the subject will help you choose whether to add it or correct the statement.
 * Optional: let me know if you're interested in translating an article.


 * 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?

Week 4
It's time to choose an article and assign it to yourself.


 * Review page 6 of your Editing Wikipedia guidebook.
 * Find an article from the list of &quot;Available Articles&quot; on the Articles tab on this course page. When you find the one you want to work on, click Select to assign it to yourself.
 * Note: if you'd like to propose a different article to work on, that is fine, but today is the deadline to contact me to discuss your ideas.

Week 5

 * On your article's talk page, create a new heading to introduce your proposed edits.
 * On the talk page, write a few sentences about what you plan to contribute to the selected article. Think back to our discussions of content gaps, Wikipedia's 5 Pillars, and the American Historical Association article.
 * Compile a list of at least 6-8 relevant, reliable books, journal articles, or other sources. Post that bibliography to the talk page of the article you'll be working on. Make sure to check in on the Talk page to see if anyone has advice on your bibliography.


 * 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?

Everyone has begun writing their article drafts.

Week 6

 * First, take the &quot;Peer Review&quot; online training.
 * I'll assign you two articles to review (you'll find them in the &quot;My Articles&quot; section of the Home tab.
 * For this first stage of your peer review, use the article &quot;Talk&quot; page to leave feedback on your peers' planned improvements and use of sources.  Do you have any additional ideas?
 * Other editors may be reviewing your work, so look for their comments! Be sure to acknowledge feedback from other Wikipedians.

You have some feedback from other students, your professor, and possibly other Wikipedians. It's time to work with that feedback to improve your article!


 * Read Editing Wikipedia pages 12 and 14.
 * Return to your article plan 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 7
You've picked a topic and found your sources. Now it's time to wrap up your work reading sources and taking careful notes. (This is part of the work you're submitting to me for your Research Prospectus' annotated bibliography.)

Resources: Editing Wikipedia pages 7–9. Complete the Plagiarism training (below) and make sure you understand the requirements for acknowledging all sources of information.

Once you've made improvements to your article based on peer review feedback, it's time to move your work to Wikipedia proper - the &quot;mainspace.&quot;   While your full rough draft isn't due until next week (Wednesday, October 25), you can start working this week.


 * 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.

Week 8

 * Keep working on transforming your article into a complete first draft. Get draft ready for peer-review.
 * Make sure that your new content includes citations and links.  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.
 * If you'd like a Content Expert to review your draft, now is the time! Click the &quot;Get Help&quot; button in your sandbox to request notes.


 * Optional: For new articles or qualifying expansions of stubs, compose a one-sentence “hook,” nominate it for “Did you know,” (see the DYK instructions handout) and monitor the nomination for any issues identified by other editors. Wiki Education staff can provide support for this process.

-

Handout:

Peer review your assigned classmates' drafts. Use your best judgement: depending on the kind of change you're proposing, you can either leave suggestions on on the Talk page of the article, or make direct edits to the article itself (posting explanations of your changes). 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?

Week 9
Continue to expand and improve your work, and format your article to match Wikipedia's tone and standards. Remember to contact your Content Expert at any time if you need further help!

It's the final week 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!

Write a reflective essay (500-750 words) on your Wikipedia contributions and upload it to Moodle by noon on Friday, November 3.

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


 * Why did you select this article to improve? What is the larger cultural significance of this entry, and how does your work make it better?
 * What state was it in before your intervention?  Why?
 * How did you improve this entry?  Why did you choose to intervene in these ways?
 * What did you learn about evaluating sources of information?  How does your work show your skills completing college-level research?
 * How did you shape your edits to meet the Wikipedia community guidelines (5 Pillars)
 * How did your peer review of other students' articles improve their work?
 * How can Wikipedia be used to improve public understanding of our field/your topic? Why is this important?