Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/The College of Wooster/Latin America and the United States (Spring 2020)

This writing intensive history seminar explores the history of the intimate but often conflictual relationship between the US and Latin America from the early 19th century to the present. Rather than having any pretensions at exhaustive coverage, we will focus on case studies primarily drawn from U.S. relations with Cuba, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic, as well as emphasizing the evolving cultural, political, and economic roles of Latinx communities within the United States.

Week 1


Welcome to your Wikipedia project's course timeline. This page will guide you through the Wikipedia project for History 201 Latin American &amp; the United  States. 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. Above, you'll find the first set of online trainings you'll need to take; complete them before class on Friday.  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 &amp; has completed basic editing training.

Week 2




In Class






 * What is plagiarism, and why is a big deal?
 * What is the difference between a copyright violation and plagiarism?
 * What are some good techniques to avoid close paraphrasing and plagiarism?

Exercise
Add a citationFamiliarize 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.

Week 3
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 and share it on our course blog before class on Friday. 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 above).
 * Read the Wikipedia article for either “Latin America-United States Relations” or “History of Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States.”  Alternatively, you can pick a Wikipedia related to your research project, if you've already identified what you'd like to work on.  For your blog post, write a 4-5 paragraph critique of your chosen article, considering the following questions:
 * What perspective does the article represent?
 * Is each fact referenced with an appropriate, reliable reference?
 * 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?
 * Where does the information come from? Are these neutral sources? If biased, is that bias noted?
 * Are there viewpoints that are overrepresented, or underrepresented?
 * Check a few citations. Do the links work? Is there any close paraphrasing or plagiarism 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 should be added?
 * Write a blog post that critiques your chosen Wikipedia article.  As you read, consider the following questions (but don't feel limited to these):
 * 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?
 * Tag your post “Wikipedia.”

Week 6
Due before class on Friday:

Evaluate your chosen Wikipedia Entry. How is this aspect of Latin  American history represented? Do you see any biases? What kinds of sources are used? How might you improve the article to meet Wikipedia's standards and show your skills of historical research and analysis? Tag your post &quot;Wikipedia&quot;

Biographies

History

LGBT+ Studies

Political Science

Women's Studies

Week 7

 * Complete the Peer Review Training.
 * 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, and why these additions are important. 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.

Reach out to your Wikipedia Expert if you have questions using the Get Help button at the top of this page.

Resource: Editing Wikipedia, pages 7–9

Week 8

 * I'll assign you three 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.

Once you've made improvements to your article outline 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 the week after Spring Break (Friday, March 27), 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!

Everyone has identified high-quality sources and begun writing their article drafts.

Exercise
Add links to your articleNow's the time to revisit your text and refine your work. You may do more research and find missing information; rewrite the lead section to represent all major points; reorganize the text to communicate the information better; or add images and other media.


 * Your complete, polished first draft is due (posted to the article mainspace) before class on Friday, March 27. Make sure your work is 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.

Peer review your assigned classmates' drafts. Use your best judgement: depending on the kind of change you're proposing, you can  leave suggestions using the &quot;peer review&quot; form the article AND 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 10
Nominating your article for Did You KnowOptional: 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.

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

Week 11
It's the final week to develop your article (due before class on Friday).


 * Read Editing Wikipedia page 15 to review a final check-list before completing your assignment.
 * Look at our Wikipedia grading rubric.  How would you evaluate your work?
 * Don't forget that you can ask for help from your Wikipedia Expert at any time!

Write a reflective essay (500-750 words, about 3 pages) on your Wikipedia contributions and upload it to Moodle before class on Friday, April 10.

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?

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