User:Kkmurray/CHEM 4558: Mass Spectrometry

Course name
CHEM 4558: Mass Spectrometry
Institution
Louisiana State University
Instructor
Kermit Murray
Subject
Chemistry
Course dates
2015-01-15 – 2015-04-22
Approximate number of student editors
5


CHEM 4558 is an advanced analytical chemistry course covering mass spectrometry. Students are either advanced undergraduates or graduate students, typically doctoral candidates in chemistry. This course covers the fundamentals of mass spectrometry, including ion formation, mass separation, detection and structure determination. There will be sections on organic mass spectrometry and compound identification as well as biological mass spectrometry covering proteomics, metabolomics, and other -omics methods. There are periodic assignments (homework and quizzes), a midterm, and a final examination. In addition, students will pick a mass spectrometry or related topic and develop or expand a Wikipedia article. Students will give a class presentation on their topic.


Timeline

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Class is Tuesday/Thursday 1:30-2:50 starting January 15. February 17 is Mardi Gras break and April 7 and 9 is Spring Break. The last class is April 30.

Week 1 (2015-01-19): Wikipedia essentials

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Course meetings
Tuesday, 20 January 2015   |   Thursday, 22 January 2015
In class
  • Overview of the course
  • Introduction to how Wikipedia will be used in the course
  • Wikipedia is a community: a brief overview of its rules, expectations, and etiquette
  • Handout: Editing Wikipedia (available in print or online from the Wiki Education Foundation)

Week 2 (2015-01-26): Editing basics

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Course meetings
Tuesday, 27 January 2015   |   Thursday, 29 January 2015
In class
  • 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
Assignment (due February 3)
  • 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.
Milestones
  • All students have Wikipedia user accounts and are listed on the course page.

Week 3 (2015-02-02): Exploring the topic area

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Course meetings
Tuesday, 3 February 2015   |   Thursday, 5 February 2015
In class
  • 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 note of articles that seem like good candidates for improvement. Use the "choosing an article" handout for guidance.
  • Handouts: Choosing an article and How to get help
Assignment (due February 10)
  • Evaluate an existing Wikipedia article related to the class, and leave suggestions for improving it on the article's talk page.
    • A few questions to consider (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 biased 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?
  • Research and list 3–5 articles on your Wikipedia user page that you will consider working on as your main project. Look at the talk page for existing topics for a sense of who else is working on it and what they're doing. Describe your choices to your instructor for feedback. (Instructor will evaluate these by February 24.)


Week 4 (2015-02-09): Using sources and choosing articles

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Course meetings
Tuesday, 10 February 2015   |   Thursday, 12 February 2015
In class
Assignment (due February 24)
  • 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 next February 24.

Week 5 (2015-02-23): Finalizing topics and starting research

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Course meetings
Tuesday, 24 February 2015   |   Thursday, 26 February 2015
In class
  • Discuss the range of topics students will be working on and strategies for researching and writing about them.
Assignment (due March 5)
  • Select an article to work on, removing the rest from your user page. Add your article to the class’s course page.
  • Mark your article's talk page with a banner to let other editors know you're working on it. Add this code in the top section of the talk page:
{{course assignment | course = User:Kkmurray/CHEM 4558: Mass Spectrometry | term = Spring 2015 }}
  • 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.

Week 6 (2015-03-02): Drafting starter articles

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Course meetings
Tuesday, 3 March 2015   |   Thursday, 5 March 2015
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 about interacting on Wikipedia and getting started with writing.
Assignment (due March 19)
  • 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.
Milestones
  • All students have started editing articles or drafts on Wikipedia.

Week 7 (2015-03-09): Moving articles to the main space

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Course meetings
Tuesday, 10 March 2015   |   Thursday, 12 March 2015
In class
Assignment (due March 19)
  • Move sandbox articles into main space.
    • If you are expanding an existing article, copy your edit 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.
  • Optional: For new articles or qualifying expansions of stubs, compose a one-sentence “hook,” nominate it for “Did you know,” (see detailed instructions) and monitor the nomination for any issues identified by other editors. Wiki Education Foundation staff can provide support for this process.
  • Begin expanding your article into a comprehensive treatment of the topic.

Week 8 (2015-03-16): Building articles, Creating first draft

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Course meetings
Tuesday, 17 March 2015   |   Thursday, 19 March 2015
In class
Assignment (due March 26)
  • Select two classmates’ articles that you will peer review and copyedit. (You don’t need to start reviewing yet.)
  • Expand your article into an initial draft of a comprehensive treatment of the topic.

Week 9 (2015-03-30): Getting and giving feedback

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Course meetings
Tuesday, 31 March 2015   |   Thursday, 2 April 2015
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.
Assignment (due April 14)
  • Peer review two of your classmates’ articles. Leave suggestions on the article talk pages.
  • Copy-edit the two reviewed articles.
Milestones
  • Every student has finished reviewing their assigned articles, making sure that every article has been reviewed.

Week 10 (2015-03-30): Finishing touches

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Course meetings
Tuesday, 14 April 2015   |   Thursday, 16 April 2015   |   Thursday, 23 April 2015   |   Tuesday, 28 April 2015
In class
  • Students give in-class presentations about their experiences editing Wikipedia.
  • Open discussion of the concepts of neutrality, media literacy, and the impact and limits of Wikipedia.
  • Make edits to your article based on peers’ feedback. If you disagree with a suggestion, use talk pages to politely discuss and come to a consensus on your edit.
  • Add final touches to your Wikipedia article. You can find a handy reference guide here.
  • Write a reflective essay (2-5 pages) on your Wikipedia contributions.

Week 13 (2015-04-27): Due date

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Course meetings
Thursday, 30 April 2015
Milestones
  • Students have finished all their work on Wikipedia that will be considered for grading.

Grading

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  0%  
   Completion of Wikipedia training
  30%  
   Early Wikipedia exercises
  20%  
   Peer reviews and collaboration with classmates
  20%  
   Quality of your main Wikipedia contributions
  30%  
   Presentation