Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/University of Michigan/The Italian Mafia (F2021)

This course incorporates history, anthropology, social theory, literature, testimony, and movies to analyze a social phenomenon viewed by some as typically Italian: the mafia. From its origins in nineteenth-century Sicily to its global reach today, we study the mafia as a business model, a cultural phenomenon, a social structure, a form of terrorism, and a challenge to international policing. Topics covered include representations of the mafia as an indigenous Sicilian movement, protecting the property and the rights of Sicilians; laws enacted to fight the mafia; and the antimafia, a youth movement that works to reclaim land and property from the mafia. We study the spread of mafia crime in the US, from New Orleans in the nineteenth century to New York, Las Vegas, and Chicago in the twentieth century. Students also research the little-known history of the Detroit mafia, who exploited the presence of the auto industry and the Teamsters Union, the proximity of the Canadian border, and their ties in Sicily, between Prohibition and the 1990s.

Week 2
Welcome to your Wikipedia assignment's course timeline. This page guides you through the steps you'll need to complete for your Wikipedia assignment, with links to training modules and your classmates' work spaces.

Your course has been assigned a Wikipedia Expert. You can reach them through the Get Help button at the top of this page.

Resources:


 * Editing Wikipedia, pages 1–5
 * Evaluating Wikipedia

Exercise
Evaluate an article

Thinking about sources and plagiarism

Week 4
Create an account and join this course page, using the enrollment link your instructor sent you. (Because of Wikipedia's technical restraints, you may receive a message that you cannot create an account. To resolve this, please try again off campus or the next day.)

Exercise
Choose a topic

Resource: Editing Wikipedia, page 6

Week 5
This week, everyone should have a Wikipedia account.

Week 6
Finalize your topic / Find your sources

What's a content gap?

Everyone has begun writing their article drafts.

Week 7
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

Thinking about Wikipedia

Exercise
Add a citation

Week 9
Guiding framework

Week 10
You probably have some feedback from other students and possibly other Wikipedians. Consider their suggestions, decide whether it makes your work more accurate and complete, and edit your draft to make those changes.

Resources:


 * Editing Wikipedia, pages 12 and 14
 * Reach out to your Wikipedia Expert if you have any questions.

Exercise
Add links to your article

Now'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.

Week 11
Now that you've improved your draft based on others' feedback, it's time to move your work live - to the &quot;mainspace.&quot;

Resource: Editing Wikipedia, page 13

Week 12
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!

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 Wikipedia Expert at any time!

Week 13
Guiding questions

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