Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/University of Wisconsin Madison/Sociology 904 Graduate Seminar in Gender (Spring 2017)

This Dashboard 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. You can access all the steps and trainings on the Timeline tab above.

While this course page has the projects included weekly, you will be completing your project at your own pace. Follow along at will.

Week 2
Welcome to our Wikipedia project timeline. This page will guide you through the Wikipedia project for our course. Be sure to check with your instructor to see if there are other pages you should be following as well.

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. '''While this course page has the projects included weekly, you will be completing your project at your own pace. Follow along at will. '''

Our 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

'''Everyone should do this ASAP. '''


 * Create an account and join this course page, using the enrollment link your instructor sent you.
 * Take the first two training modules, to get familiar with the Wikipedia community and to learn how to make your first edit. Make sure you are enrolled on this page before you get started.
 * When you finish the trainings, practice by introducing yourself to a classmate on that classmate's Talk page. You can view a list of all of our usernames by visiting the Students tab above.

You each should have already done this for the Judith Butler '''article. If you haven't yet, please complete it ASAP.'''


 * Complete the &quot;Evaluating Articles and Sources&quot; training (linked below).
 * Read the article &amp; consider the following questions (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?
 * Create a section in your sandbox space to draft your notes. This will get you familiar with Wikipedia editing.

This week, everyone should have a Wikipedia account.

Week 3

 * Review page 6 of your Editing Wikipedia guidebook.
 * Head to en.wikipedia.org and search for your person. Do they already have a Wikipedia page? If so, read through it. What kinds of information is already there? What is missing?  If your person doesn't have a page, see if they are mentioned or red-linked in any existing articles.
 * Read through the Editing Wikipedia Articles on Biographies guide.
 * On the Students tab, assign your chosen topic to yourself (make sure the first and last name is spelled correctly.)

Week 4

 * You should already have a list of sources based on your bibliography. Post a list of your sources on the &quot;Talk&quot; page of your persons biography as it exists or if it doesn't exist, post the bibliography in your sandbox space.
 * In your sandbox, write a few sentences about what you plan to contribute to the selected article on Wikipedia.
 * Think back to when you did an article critique &amp; what you learned in the Biographies guide. What can you add? Post some of your ideas to the article's talk page, too.

Week 5
If you want to update the biography of your person on Wikipedia (I hope you'll all choose to do this) start drafting your work in your sandbox. Remember, Wikipedia is an encyclopedia. As a tertiary source its goal is to be a summary of the secondary literature. Take the trainings linked below when you're ready.

'''Creating a new article? '''


 * Write an outline of that topic in the form of a standard Wikipedia article's &quot;lead section.&quot; Write it in your sandbox.
 * A &quot;lead&quot; section is not a traditional introduction. It should summarize, very briefly, what the rest of the article will say in detail. The first paragraph should include important, broad facts about the subject. A good example is Ada Lovelace. See Editing Wikipedia page 9 for more ideas.

'''Improving an existing article? '''


 * Identify what's missing from the current form of the article. Think back to the skills you learned while critiquing an article. Make notes for improvement in your sandbox.

Keep reading your sources, too, as you prepare to write the body of the article.

Resources: Editing Wikipedia pages 7–9

Everyone has begun writing their article drafts.

Week 6

 * Keep working on transforming your article into a complete first draft. Get draft ready for peer-review.
 * 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.

In class we are reviewing each others' bibliographies during your presentations. We also want to make sure we peer review the Wikipedia content we want to contribute. When your draft is ready, come to class and mention you are ready for peer review.

__ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Everyone should take the peer review training before they complete their first peer review. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

When someone has announced their ready for peer review, head to the Students tab above and find a link to their sandbox space. Find their draft location in one of their sub-pages and leave suggestions on the Talk page of the article, or sandbox, that your fellow student is working on. As you review, make spelling, grammar, and other adjustments. Pay attention to the tone of the article. Is it encyclopedic?

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

Week 7
After your classmates have completed their peer review:


 * Read Editing Wikipedia pages 12 and 14.
 * Return to your draft or article 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.

Week 8
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;

'''Editing an existing article? '''


 * 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!

'''Creating a new article? '''


 * Read Editing Wikipedia page 13, and follow those steps to move your article from your Sandbox to Mainspace.
 * You can also review the Sandboxes and Mainspace online training.

Week 9
Do additional research and writing to make further improvements to your article, based on suggestions and your own critique.


 * 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.
 * Take a look at the categories listed on the bottom of your article and add at least one new one.

Week 10
As you finalize 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!

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