User:Shuksan210/CCO History 140 - The World Since 1945

Course name

CCO History 140 - The World Since 1945

Institution

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Instructor

Laura Brade

Subject

History

Course dates

2015-06-22 – 2015-07-17

Approximate number of student editors

25

HIST 140 is an introduction to the contemporary world that examines the Cold War and its international aftermath, decolonization, national development across a variety of cases, and trends in the global economy. Three main themes guide our exploration of the subject:

• political ideologies and the paradoxes of their implementation
• the growth of nation-states, nationalism, supranationalism, and internationalism
• tensions between individual rights and societal claims.

Assignment Description

Students should select a non-US film published between 1945 and 2005 with a non-existent (or “stub”) Wikipedia entry and write a Wikipedia entry on the chosen film. Suggestions of films available for streaming can be found on the Criterion Collection as well as via streaming subscription services like Netflix and Amazon.

The entry must include contributions on the following elements:

• Plot synopsis
• Historical context in which the film was made
• References.

Timeline

Week 1 (2015-06-22): Wikipedia essentials, Editing basics, Exploring the topic area

• Understanding Wikipedia as a community, we'll discuss its expectations and etiquette
• 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
• Collaborating and engaging with the Wiki editing community
• Tips on finding the best articles to work on for class assignments
• Handouts: Using Talk Pages handout and Evaluating Wikipedia brochure

• Handouts: Choosing an article

Assignment (due Friday, June 26)

• 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 then click the "enroll" button on the top left of this course page.

• To practice editing and communicating on Wikipedia, introduce yourself on the user talk page of one of your classmates, who should also be enrolled in the table at the bottom of the page.
• Explore topics related to your topic area to get a feel for how Wikipedia is organized. What areas seem to be missing? As you explore, make a mental note of articles that seem like good candidates for improvement.

• Review pages 4-7 of the Evaluating Wikipedia brochure. This will give you a good, brief overview of what to look for in other articles, and what other people will look for in your own.

• Consider several films that look interesting to you and have "stub" pages. Watch clips or trailers for several films and begin to narrow in on the one that seems most interesting to you. Remember, films are assigned on first come, first served basis -- so make your selection early to ensure you get to work on the film that you are most interested in.

Milestones

• All students have Wikipedia user accounts and are listed on the course page.

Week 2 (2015-06-29): Using sources and choosing articles

• Handouts: Citing sources on Wikipedia and Avoiding plagiarism on Wikipedia.
  • Be prepared to explain close paraphrasing, plagiarism, and copyright violations on Wikipedia.

Assignment (due Friday, June 3)

• Add 1–2 sentences of new information, backed up with a citation to an appropriate source, to a Wikipedia article related to the class.

• Select a stub article for a film to contribute to for the Wikipedia Entry Assignment. Add your article to the class’s course page.

• Mark the article's talk page with a banner to let other editors know you're working on it. To add the banner, add this code in the top section of the talk page:

{{course assignment | course = User:Shuksan210/CCO History 140 - The World Since 1945 | term = Spring 2015 }}

• Add a link to your selected article to the table at the bottom of this course page.

• Compile a bibliography of relevant, reliable sources and post it to the talk page of the article you are working on. Begin reading the sources. Make sure to check in on the talk page (or watchlist) to see if anyone has advice on your bibliography.

• 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, create a detailed outline reflecting your proposed changes, and post this for community feedback, along with a brief description of your plans, on the article’s talk page. Make sure to check back on the talk page often and engage with any responses.

• Begin working with to polish your short starter article and fix any major issues.

• Continue research in preparation for expanding your article.

For next week

• Instructor evaluates student's article selections by Monday, June 6.

Week 3 (2015-07-06): Research, Drafting starter articles, and Moving articles to the Main Space

• Handout: Moving out of your sandbox
• A general reminder: Don't panic if your contribution disappears, and don't try to force it back in.
  • Check to see if there is an explanation of the edit on the article's talk page. If not, (politely) ask why it was removed.
  • Contact your instructor or Wikipedia Content Expert and let them know.

Assignment (due Friday, July 10)

• Move your sandbox articles into the main space.
  • If you are expanding an existing article, copy your edits into the article. If you are making many small edits, save after each edit before you make the next one. Do NOT paste over the entire existing article, or large sections of the existing article.
  • If you are creating a new article, do NOT copy and paste your text, or there will be no record of your work history. Follow these instructions on how to move your work.

• Begin expanding your article into a comprehensive treatment of the topic.

Milestones

• All students have started editing articles or drafts on Wikipedia.

Week 4 (2015-07-13): Moving articles to the main space and Due Date

• Handouts: "Illustrating Wikipedia" (pgs 4-7) and "Evaluating Wikipedia article quality" (handed out originally earlier in the course)

Assignment (due Friday, July 17)

• Students have finished all their work on Wikipedia that will be considered for grading.

Grading

  5%  

   Completion of Wikipedia training

  15%  

   Quality of bibliography

  40%  

   Quality of your main Wikipedia contributions

  40%  

   Quality of your reflection article