Wikipedia talk:Education program archive/Alverno College/BI301 Microbial Ecology (Fall 2016)/Timeline

Week 1: Wikipedia essentials

 * In class
 * Overview of the course
 * Introduction to how Wikipedia will be used in the course
 * Handout: Editing Wikipedia (available in print or online from the Wiki Education Foundation)
 * Basics of editing
 * Anatomy of Wikipedia articles, what makes a good article, how to distinguish between good and bad articles
 * Tips on finding the best articles to work on for class assignments
 * Compare the biographies written about Carl Woese and Rita Colwell on Wikipedia
 * Handouts: Using Talk Pages handout and Evaluating Wikipedia brochure


 * Assignments (due Week 2)
 * Create an account and then complete the online training for students. During this training, you will make edits in a sandbox and learn the basic rules of Wikipedia.
 * Create a User page, and click the "enroll" button on the top left of this course page.
 * To practice editing and communicating on Wikipedia, write a summary of the differences between the biographies on Rita Colwell and Carl Woese, two very important microbiologists.

Week 2: Exploring the topic area

 * In class
 * Explore the research of the women discussed in class and comment on your talk page about which women you are most interested in.
 * Handouts: Citing sources on Wikipedia and Avoiding plagiarism on Wikipedia


 * Assignment (due Week 3)
 * Add 1–2 sentences of information about a woman scientist, backed up with a citation to an appropriate source, to your sandbox.


 * I will respond to you and assign topics to each person by week 3.

Week 3: Bibliographies & Reading Assignments

 * In class
 * Discuss the women we will be researching on how their research is related to each other.
 * Finalize choices and schedule for readings and discussion of each women's research.


 * Assignments (due Week 4 & 5)
 * Compile a bibliography of relevant research and post it your talk page. Begin reading the sources and selecting the ones that the whole class will read.
 * Continue research in preparation for writing your article, read and discuss everyone's topics.

Week 5: Drafting starter articles
interacting on Wikipedia and getting started with writing.
 * In class
 * Talk about Wikipedia culture and etiquette, and (optionally) revisit the concept of sandboxes and how to use them.
 * Q&A session with instructor and/or Wikipedia Ambassadors about


 * Assignments (due Week 6)
 * If you are starting a new article, write 3–4 paragraphs and set up the structure of your article. If you are improving an existing article, write a summary version reflecting the content the article will have after it's been improved, and post this along with a brief description of your plans on the article’s talk page.
 * Begin working with classmates and other editors.


 * Milestone
 * All students have started editing articles or drafts on Wikipedia.

Week 6: Moving articles to the main space

 * In class
 * Handout: Moving out of your sandbox


 * Assignments (due Week 7)
 * Move sandbox articles into main space.
 * Optional: For new articles or qualifying expansions of stubs, compose a one-sentence “hook,” nominate it for “Did you know,” and monitor the nomination for any issues identified by other editors.
 * Begin expanding your article into a comprehensive treatment of the topic.

Week 7: Building articles

 * Workshop in class or outside of class
 * Demo uploading images and adding images to articles.
 * Share experiences and discuss problems.
 * Handouts: “Uploading images” and “Evaluating Wikipedia article quality” (handed out originally in week 2)


 * Assignments (due Week 8)
 * Expand your article into an initial draft of a comprehensive treatment of the topic.
 * Select two classmates’ articles that you will peer review and copy-edit. (You don’t need to start reviewing yet.)

Week 8: Getting and giving feedback

 * In class
 * As a group, have the students offer suggestions for improving one or two of the students' articles, setting the example for what is expected from a solid encyclopedia article.


 * Assignments (due Week 9 - Midterm Week)
 * Peer review two of your classmates' articles. Leave suggestions on the article talk pages.
 * Copy-edit the two reviewed articles.


 * Milestone
 * All articles have been reviewed by others. All students have reviewed articles by their classmates.

Week 9 (Midterm Week): Responding to feedback
and the impact and limits of Wikipedia.
 * In class
 * Open discussion of the concepts of neutrality, media literacy,


 * Assignments (due Week 10)
 * Make edits to your article based on peers’ feedback. Prepare for an in-class presentation about your Wikipedia editing experience.

Week 10: Class discussion

 * In class
 * Students discuss their experiences editing Wikipedia.
 * Add final touches to your Wikipedia article.
 * Write a reflective self assessment

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