Wikipedia talk:Education program archive/University of Oklahoma/History of Science from Antiquity to Newton (Fall 2013)/Timeline

Week 1: Wikipedia essentials (August 19-21)

 * In class
 * Overview of the course
 * Introduction to how Wikipedia will be used in the course
 * Handout: Welcome to Wikipedia (available in print or online from the Wikimedia Foundation)


 * Assignment (due week 2)
 * Start the online student orientation. During this training, you will create an account, make edits in a sandbox, and learn the basic rules of Wikipedia.

Week 2: Editing basics (August 26-28)

 * In class
 * Basics of editing
 * Anatomy of Wikipedia articles, what makes a good article, how to distinguish between good and bad articles
 * Examples of good articles: Sidereus Nuncius & Psychology in medieval Islam
 * Tips on finding the best articles to work on for class assignments
 * Handouts: Using talk pages, Evaluating Wikipedia article quality, Wikimarkup cheatsheet, Advice for choosing articles and How to get help
 * Assignments
 * Complete the online training for students. (due before class on Wednesday, August 28)
 * Create a user page, and sign up on the list of students on the course page. (due before class on Wednesday, August 28)
 * To practice editing and communicating on Wikipedia, leave a message for two classmates on their user talk pages or introduce yourself to any Wikipedians helping your class ( Ragesoss). You must leave at least two messages. (due at 12:00am Tuesday, September 3)
 * Critically evaluate an existing Wikipedia article related to the class, and leave suggestions for improving it on the article’s talk page. (Friday, September 13)
 * Research and list 3–5 articles on your Wikipedia user page that you will consider working on as your main project. (Friday, September 13)


 * Milestone:
 * All students have Wikipedia user accounts and are listed on the course page.

Week 4: Using sources (September 9-11)

 * In class
 * Handouts: “Referencing on Wikipedia” and “Understanding Wikipedia’s copyright policy”
 * Table of articles that need work: WikiProject History of Science


 * Assignment (due week 5, Sunday, September 15)
 * Add 1–2 sentences of new information, backed up with a citation to an appropriate source, to a Wikipedia article related to the class.


 * For next week
 * Instructor evaluates student's article selections, by week 5.

Week 5: Choosing articles (September 16-18)

 * In class
 * Discuss the range of topics students will be working on and strategies for researching and writing about them.


 * Assignments (due week 7)
 * Select an article to work on, removing the rest from your user page. Add your article to the class’s course page.
 * Compile a bibliography of relevant research and post it to the talk page of the article you are working on. Begin reading the sources.

Week 7: Drafting starter articles (September 30-October 2)

 * 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 interacting on Wikipedia and getting started with writing.


 * Assignments (due week 9)
 * If you are starting a new article, write a 3–4 paragraph summary version of your article—with citations—in your Wikipedia sandbox. 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 to polish your short starter article and fix any major issues.
 * Continue research in preparation for expanding your article.


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

Week 8: Building articles (October 7-9)

 * 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 9)
 * Expand your article into an initial draft of a comprehensive treatment of the topic.

Week 9: Moving articles to the main space (October 14-16)

 * In class
 * In class WikiBlitz of Two New Sciences
 * Here's an HTML copy of the book
 * We will be using images from The History of Science Collections at the University of Oklahoma
 * There is a folder on the course's learn.ou.edu site containing pdfs related to the project. Please read at least one of these for the project.
 * Handout: Moving out of your sandbox


 * Editing Wikipedia Resources
 * Beginners’ Guide to Wikipedia (account creation, article editing)
 * Five Pillars of Wikipedia (philosophical guidelines and best practices for Wikipedia editing)
 * Tutorial
 * How to Edit a Page
 * Wiki Markup Quick Reference (PDF version of printed handout)
 * Guide to Writing Wikipedia Pages for Notable Women in Computing by Susan H. Rodger (applicable to any biography)
 * Article Development
 * Your First Article (using the Article Wizard if you wish)
 * Manual of Style
 * Citation templates
 * Infobox templates
 * Bookshelf (additional "getting started" resources)


 * Assignments (due this week)
 * Select an article to work on, removing the rest from your user page. Add your article to the class’s course page.
 * Expand your article into an initial draft of a comprehensive treatment of the topic.


 * Homework
 * Move edits into main article space (due November 10)
 * 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.

Week 11: Getting and giving feedback (November 11-13)

 * Your Article is Due!!!!
 * Make sure you've completed your changes to the article and moved them into the main article space.


 * 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 November 17)
 * Peer review two of your classmates' articles. Leave suggestions on the article talk pages.
 * Copy-edit the two reviewed articles.


 * Milestone
 * All article drafting has been completed. All students have marked the articles by their classmates that they will review.

Week 12: Responding to feedback (November 18-20)

 * In class
 * Open discussion of the concepts of neutrality, media literacy, and the impact and limits of Wikipedia.


 * Assignments (due November 25)
 * Make edits to your article based on peers’ feedback.
 * Add final touches to your Wikipedia article.
 * Write a reflective essay (2-5 pages) on your Wikipedia contributions.

Week 13: Due date (November 25)
You made it!


 * Milestone
 * Students have finished all their work on Wikipedia that will be considered for grading, and have submitted reflective essays.

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