Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/University of Maryland/INST201-0102 Heroes and Villains in the Age of Information (Spring 2017)

We all rely on Wikipedia to help us quickly get answers to our information needs. Some people generally distrust the accuracy of content on Wikipedia because it is generated by a community of anonymous contributors; however, a lot of research suggests popular Wikipedia pages are very reliable.

How does content get onto Wikipedia’s pages? What is the process for evaluating proposed changes? How does Wikipedia ensure information is correct and non-biased? Understanding how Wikipedia works ties directly into our course discussions on information needs and information literacy. Over several weeks, you’ll complete training on how to edit and evaluate Wikipedia, select and critique an existing article, and submit an edit to an article.

(Based on a Wikipedia course created by Professor Jessica Vitak, for INST201, Fall 2016.)

Week 1
Welcome to your Wikipedia project's course timeline. This page will guide you through the Wikipedia project for your course. Be sure to check with your instructor to see if there are other pages you should be following as well.

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 your instructor sent you.
 * It's time to dive into Wikipedia. Below, you'll find the first set of online trainings you'll need to take. 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. (You can see a list of all the students in the course on the Students tab above.)

Week 2
It's time to think critically about Wikipedia articles. You'll evaluate a Wikipedia article, and leave suggestions for improving it on the article's Talk page.

Step1: Complete the &quot;Evaluating Articles and Sources&quot; training (linked below).

Step 2: Select an article that you'd like to critique from one of the following Wikipedia category/sub-category options. Once you have your article selected, head to the Students tab above and assign it to yourself.


 * Information science
 * Information technology
 * Internet access
 * Technology in society

Step 3: Complete a full review of your  article (400-600 words). You can draft your notes in your sandbox space, *but* upload your critique/evaluation to ELMS (under assignments).

. Use the following questions to guide your review (but don't feel limited to these):


 * 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 any information out of date? Is anything missing that could be added?
 * Choose at least 2 questions relevant to the article you're evaluating. Use your sandbox to draft your article so that you get some practice within Wikipedia's formatting editors. Upload your critique/evaluation to ELMS (under assignments).

Week 3
Familiarize yourself with editing Wikipedia by adding content and a related citation to an article. Don't forget to take the training module!

Step 1: Select a new article article to work on and assign it to yourself on the Students tab (above) or work on the same article you selected last week. If you have trouble thinking of, of finding an article, drill down into the Wikipedia Stubs Categories to find some articles that you're interested and would like to contribute to.

Step 2: Evaluate the article for it's strengths and weaknesses. What might you contribute to make it better? Leave notes from your evaluation in your sandbox space. The notes don't have to be formal -- just provide some insight into your decision process: Why'd you decide to add something to this article? What did you want to add or correct?

Step 3: Make your contribution: (1)  Add 1-2 new sentences to your article, and (2) cite that statement to a reliable source (as you learned in the online training module on Sources/Citations).