This Course
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Wikipedia Resources
|
Connect
Questions? Ask us:
contact |
![]() | This course page is an automatically-updated version of the main course page at dashboard.wikiedu.org. Please do not edit this page directly; any changes will be overwritten the next time the main course page gets updated. |
We’re accustomed to, and quite comfortable, thinking of technology as a tool—we use it and it makes our lives (hopefully) easier; we put it down, and it no longer impacts us. But tools embody values, and values shape our behaviors, actions, and finally our sense of self (e,g., we <3 efficiency and so our tools help us move and communicate faster, and when’s the last time you “unplugged” and felt comfortable in your solitude?). So technology is not only a tool; it’s also a cultural force.
This course seeks to investigate how technology has shaped and is shaping us in particular relation to our media. What happens to the way we read and write, to the way even that we think, when computer and Internet technologies enter our means of communication? What new forms of media are produced? What new kinds of self are introduced?
In some ways, the study of new media is a recent field. The advances in technology have rapidly changed how media is created, distributed and stored. But, of course, media itself isn’t new; neither is technology. Many people studying new media today harken back to the enormous changes our culture went through with the invention of the printing press. They suggest that we, too, are going through such a sea change today. Are we?
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 "Get Help" button on this page.
In class, we will go over the following:
Read Tech: Cronon (151).
Take the Editing Basics training below—be sure to watch the videos and practice the tutorials when prompted!
Find an article on Wikipedia that you care about and one that needs some love and attention. Visit the Talk Page to see what editors have had to say about it. Either respond to a concern you see posted there and make a change to the article that addresses the concern, or find a section or paragraph whose prose needs some polishing (copy editing, grammar, consistent voice, etc.). Be sure to describe your changes and save them. You can check the View History tab to make sure you documented your changes correctly.
Complete the Finding Articles training. Note: this is designed for instructors but contains helpful hints on how to find out which articles are best to edit. This will be useful later in the Brainstorming assignment, too.
Complete the Sources and Citations training below.
Then practice editing a Wikipedia article by adding a citation. There are two ways you can do this:
In addition to completing the training module for today, you will need to perform a rhetorical analysis on an existing article.
In addition to completing the training module for today, you will need to critique an existing article. In addition, you will leave suggestions for improving it on the article's Talk page.
Most students find the biggest challenge to successfully completing this assignment to be finding a topic that is a) not already on Wikipedia and b) substantial enough to have created a buzz such that sources on the topic are available. Some examples of topics that have worked for students in the past:
As you brainstorm a list of topics, then, you should think about authors, artists, books, short stories, activists, etc., that you’ve researched in other classes or out of your own interest; and think about popular culture that has fascinated you and that media sources have also likely commented on. Wikipedia is especially interested in articles that provide information about marginalized and minority communities in the United States who are often overlooked in traditional media, textbooks, and on Wikipedia itself.
Here’s what I’d like you to turn in to me for this part of the assignment:
Building on what you learned in the library session, each individual member of your group should identify and locate two or three potential sources for your article. Keep in mind you might be using the same search strategies as each other, so try to think outside the box a little to get as many different sources as possible because eventually your group needs to find at least seven-ten sources that can help you write a verifiable and notable article for Wikipedia. (I hope you might be able to find more.)
Remember that what Wikipedia cares about is that secondary sources have confirmed the merit of the topic you’re writing about. I cannot stress the importance of this enough. If the sources you find are self-referential, i.e., directly connected to the topic you are writing about, Wikipedia will not count these sources toward notability, basically because self-interest does not yield verifiability. Note: you might find it valuable to use Facebook and Twitter as resources that lead you to further information; however, Wikipedia will consider them primary sources too closely related to the topic itself. Sources can range from:
● magazine/newspaper/radio journalism
● scholarly article or study
● audio or video from reputable sources
● valid websites.
Post your 2-3 sources in MLA style format to the designated group member's User talk page. (Feel free to use a resource like
http://www.easybib.com/ at this point.)
Review the list of possible sources your group collected for Monday. Based on Monday's library session, what holes do you see if any? What additional sources can be added?
You will need a final list of at least 7-10 sources.
Create a brief annotated bibliography for each, justifying why the resource will be useful for you in a sentence or two—I want to know why the resource will establish both verifiability and notability; I want to know which sections of your article it will help you build. Provide citations in MLA style.
It is up to your group how you delegate work, but the annotated bibliography should be complete and posted to your group's selected User talk page before class.
The group shares the grade.
Use your designated sandbox to draft parts of the article. Keep using the Talk Page to discuss what you’re finding and what concerns you have.
Have one or two people in your group bring a laptop to class.
Resources: Editing Wikipedia, Avoiding Plagiarism, Edit Conflict
Given the feedback of your peers, given your own group's assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of your article, given that you've had a little more time to do research--make changes to your article that get it closer to where you want the finished product to be.
Have one or two people in your group bring a laptop to class.
Given the dynamic, collaborative nature of Wikipedia, you may feel there are gaps in your article, e.g., perhaps none of your sources allowed you to create a Background section. That’s ok. You should aim instead to feel secure in your contributions as a group member, who also helped others in the group do their best work by challenging and provoking and upbuilding them. Additionally, you should feel proud of what you've put forward for others to build upon and you should be excited for editors outside our class to contribute in the future. In fact, part of your assignment for today is to post, as a group, what you think is missing from the article and how you hope future editors will contribute.
Resources:
Polishing Wikipedia Article,
Moving Out of Your Sandbox
I will look for certain criteria when grading:
Apart from exceptional circumstances, group members will share the grade for this portion of the assignment. Please know that your grade is not dependent on whether the article is accepted/published/remains on Wikipedia.
This Course
|
Wikipedia Resources
|
Connect
Questions? Ask us:
contact |
![]() | This course page is an automatically-updated version of the main course page at dashboard.wikiedu.org. Please do not edit this page directly; any changes will be overwritten the next time the main course page gets updated. |
We’re accustomed to, and quite comfortable, thinking of technology as a tool—we use it and it makes our lives (hopefully) easier; we put it down, and it no longer impacts us. But tools embody values, and values shape our behaviors, actions, and finally our sense of self (e,g., we <3 efficiency and so our tools help us move and communicate faster, and when’s the last time you “unplugged” and felt comfortable in your solitude?). So technology is not only a tool; it’s also a cultural force.
This course seeks to investigate how technology has shaped and is shaping us in particular relation to our media. What happens to the way we read and write, to the way even that we think, when computer and Internet technologies enter our means of communication? What new forms of media are produced? What new kinds of self are introduced?
In some ways, the study of new media is a recent field. The advances in technology have rapidly changed how media is created, distributed and stored. But, of course, media itself isn’t new; neither is technology. Many people studying new media today harken back to the enormous changes our culture went through with the invention of the printing press. They suggest that we, too, are going through such a sea change today. Are we?
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 "Get Help" button on this page.
In class, we will go over the following:
Read Tech: Cronon (151).
Take the Editing Basics training below—be sure to watch the videos and practice the tutorials when prompted!
Find an article on Wikipedia that you care about and one that needs some love and attention. Visit the Talk Page to see what editors have had to say about it. Either respond to a concern you see posted there and make a change to the article that addresses the concern, or find a section or paragraph whose prose needs some polishing (copy editing, grammar, consistent voice, etc.). Be sure to describe your changes and save them. You can check the View History tab to make sure you documented your changes correctly.
Complete the Finding Articles training. Note: this is designed for instructors but contains helpful hints on how to find out which articles are best to edit. This will be useful later in the Brainstorming assignment, too.
Complete the Sources and Citations training below.
Then practice editing a Wikipedia article by adding a citation. There are two ways you can do this:
In addition to completing the training module for today, you will need to perform a rhetorical analysis on an existing article.
In addition to completing the training module for today, you will need to critique an existing article. In addition, you will leave suggestions for improving it on the article's Talk page.
Most students find the biggest challenge to successfully completing this assignment to be finding a topic that is a) not already on Wikipedia and b) substantial enough to have created a buzz such that sources on the topic are available. Some examples of topics that have worked for students in the past:
As you brainstorm a list of topics, then, you should think about authors, artists, books, short stories, activists, etc., that you’ve researched in other classes or out of your own interest; and think about popular culture that has fascinated you and that media sources have also likely commented on. Wikipedia is especially interested in articles that provide information about marginalized and minority communities in the United States who are often overlooked in traditional media, textbooks, and on Wikipedia itself.
Here’s what I’d like you to turn in to me for this part of the assignment:
Building on what you learned in the library session, each individual member of your group should identify and locate two or three potential sources for your article. Keep in mind you might be using the same search strategies as each other, so try to think outside the box a little to get as many different sources as possible because eventually your group needs to find at least seven-ten sources that can help you write a verifiable and notable article for Wikipedia. (I hope you might be able to find more.)
Remember that what Wikipedia cares about is that secondary sources have confirmed the merit of the topic you’re writing about. I cannot stress the importance of this enough. If the sources you find are self-referential, i.e., directly connected to the topic you are writing about, Wikipedia will not count these sources toward notability, basically because self-interest does not yield verifiability. Note: you might find it valuable to use Facebook and Twitter as resources that lead you to further information; however, Wikipedia will consider them primary sources too closely related to the topic itself. Sources can range from:
● magazine/newspaper/radio journalism
● scholarly article or study
● audio or video from reputable sources
● valid websites.
Post your 2-3 sources in MLA style format to the designated group member's User talk page. (Feel free to use a resource like
http://www.easybib.com/ at this point.)
Review the list of possible sources your group collected for Monday. Based on Monday's library session, what holes do you see if any? What additional sources can be added?
You will need a final list of at least 7-10 sources.
Create a brief annotated bibliography for each, justifying why the resource will be useful for you in a sentence or two—I want to know why the resource will establish both verifiability and notability; I want to know which sections of your article it will help you build. Provide citations in MLA style.
It is up to your group how you delegate work, but the annotated bibliography should be complete and posted to your group's selected User talk page before class.
The group shares the grade.
Use your designated sandbox to draft parts of the article. Keep using the Talk Page to discuss what you’re finding and what concerns you have.
Have one or two people in your group bring a laptop to class.
Resources: Editing Wikipedia, Avoiding Plagiarism, Edit Conflict
Given the feedback of your peers, given your own group's assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of your article, given that you've had a little more time to do research--make changes to your article that get it closer to where you want the finished product to be.
Have one or two people in your group bring a laptop to class.
Given the dynamic, collaborative nature of Wikipedia, you may feel there are gaps in your article, e.g., perhaps none of your sources allowed you to create a Background section. That’s ok. You should aim instead to feel secure in your contributions as a group member, who also helped others in the group do their best work by challenging and provoking and upbuilding them. Additionally, you should feel proud of what you've put forward for others to build upon and you should be excited for editors outside our class to contribute in the future. In fact, part of your assignment for today is to post, as a group, what you think is missing from the article and how you hope future editors will contribute.
Resources:
Polishing Wikipedia Article,
Moving Out of Your Sandbox
I will look for certain criteria when grading:
Apart from exceptional circumstances, group members will share the grade for this portion of the assignment. Please know that your grade is not dependent on whether the article is accepted/published/remains on Wikipedia.