Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/Indiana University Northwest/J495 Global Cultures and Local Communities (spring 2017)

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.

This page breaks down writing a Wikipedia article into a series of steps, or milestones. These steps include online trainings to help you get started on Wikipedia.

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.

To get started, please review the following handouts:

Editing Wikipedia pages 1–5
Evaluating Wikipedia

Assignment - Practicing the basics

Create an account and join this course page, using the enrollment link your instructor sent you.
It's time to dive into Wikipedia. Below, you'll find the first set of online trainings you'll need to take. New modules will appear on this timeline as you get to new milestones. Be sure to check back and complete them! Incomplete trainings will be reflected in your grade.
When you finish the trainings, practice by introducing yourself to a classmate on that classmate’s Talk page.

Milestones

This week, everyone should have a Wikipedia account.

Week 2

Course meetings

Sunday, 15 January 2017 | Monday, 16 January 2017 | Tuesday, 17 January 2017 | Wednesday, 18 January 2017 | Thursday, 19 January 2017

Assignment - Critique an article

It's time to think critically about Wikipedia articles. You'll evaluate a Wikipedia article, and leave suggestions for improving it on the article's Talk page.

Complete the "Evaluating Articles and Sources" training (linked below).

Assignment - Discussion: What's a content gap?

Now that you're thinking about what makes a "good" Wikipedia article, consider some additional questions. (There is no homework associated with it, but I would like you to think about those questions)

Wikipedians often talk about "content gaps." What do you think a content gap is, and what are some possible ways to identify them?
What are some reasons a content gap might arise? What are some ways to remedy them?
Does it matter who writes Wikipedia?
What does it mean to be "unbiased" on Wikipedia? How is that different, or similar, to your own definition of "bias"?

Week 3

Course meetings

Sunday, 22 January 2017 | Monday, 23 January 2017 | Tuesday, 24 January 2017 | Wednesday, 25 January 2017 | Thursday, 26 January 2017

Assignment - Add to an article

Familiarize yourself with editing Wikipedia by adding a citation to an article. There are two ways you can do this: (sources and citations training are required; the following exercise is asking you to add a sentence or two and add a citation to a wikipedia article. It is optional but you are encouraged to do it.)

Add 1-2 sentences to a course-related article, and cite that statement to a reliable source, as you learned in the online training.
The Citation Hunt tool shows unreferenced statements from articles. First, evaluate whether the statement in question is true! An uncited statement could just be lacking a reference or it could be inaccurate or misleading. Reliable sources on the subject will help you choose whether to add it or correct the statement.

Week 4

Course meetings

Sunday, 29 January 2017 | Monday, 30 January 2017 | Tuesday, 31 January 2017 | Wednesday, 1 February 2017 | Thursday, 2 February 2017

Assignment - Discussion: Thinking about sources and plagiarism

There is no assignment associated with this: these questions are for you to think about.

Blog posts and press releases are considered poor sources of reliable information. Why?
What are some reasons you might not want to use a company's website as the main source of information about that company?
What is the difference between a copyright violation and plagiarism?
What are some good techniques to avoid close paraphrasing and plagiarism?

Assignment - Choose possible topics

This is when you begin selecting your potential topic for wikipedia posting. The articles you find on wikipedia should be somewhat related to your topic. If you are writing a largely annotated bibliography, the articles you select here should bear some relevance to the content you will be covering. You are expected to eventually build links to these articles from your essay, and build links to your essay from these articles.
Review page 6 of your Editing Wikipedia guidebook.
Choose 3–5 potential articles that you can tackle, and post links to them on your Wikipedia user page. For articles that already exist, check the Talk page to see what other Wikipedians might be doing. Finally, present your choices to your instructor for feedback.

Week 5

Course meetings

Sunday, 5 February 2017 | Monday, 6 February 2017 | Tuesday, 7 February 2017 | Wednesday, 8 February 2017 | Thursday, 9 February 2017

Assignment - Finalize your topic / Find your sources

On the Students tab, assign your chosen topic to yourself.
In your sandbox, write a few sentences about what you plan to contribute to the selected article.
- Think back to when you did an article critique. What can you add? Post some of your ideas to the article's talk page, too.
- Compile a list of relevant, reliable books, journal articles, or other sources. Post that bibliography to the talk page of the article you'll be working on, and in your sandbox. Make sure to check in on the Talk page to see if anyone has advice on your bibliography.

Assignment - Draft your article

You've picked a topic and found your sources. Now it's time to start writing.

Creating a new article?

Write an outline of that topic in the form of a standard Wikipedia article's "lead section." Write it in your sandbox.
- A "lead" section is not a traditional introduction. It should summarize, very briefly, what the rest of the article will say in detail. The first paragraph should include important, broad facts about the subject. A good example is Ada Lovelace. See Editing Wikipedia page 9 for more ideas.

Improving an existing article?

Identify what's missing from the current form of the article. Think back to the skills you learned while critiquing an article. Make notes for improvement in your sandbox.

Keep reading your sources, too, as you prepare to write the body of the article.

Resources: Editing Wikipedia pages 7–9

Milestones

Everyone has begun writing their article drafts.

Week 6

Course meetings

Sunday, 12 February 2017 | Monday, 13 February 2017 | Tuesday, 14 February 2017 | Wednesday, 15 February 2017 | Thursday, 16 February 2017

Assignment - Discussion: Thinking about Wikipedia

What do you think of Wikipedia's definition of "neutrality"?
What are the impacts and limits of Wikipedia as a source of information?
On Wikipedia, all material must be attributable to reliable, published sources. What kinds of sources does this exclude? Can you think of any problems that might create?
If Wikipedia was written 100 years ago, how might its content (and contributors) be different? What about 100 years from now?

Assignment - Expand your draft

Keep working on transforming your article into a complete first draft. Get draft ready for peer-review.
If you'd like a Content Expert to review your draft, now is the time! Click the "Get Help" button in your sandbox to request notes.

Assignment - Peer review and copy edit

First, take the "Peer Review" online training.
Select a classmates’ article that you will peer review and copyedit. On the Articles tab, find the article that you want to review, and then assign it to yourself in the Review column.
Peer review your classmate's draft. Leave suggestions on the Talk page of the article, or sandbox, that your fellow student is working on. Other editors may be reviewing your work, so look for their comments! Be sure to acknowledge feedback from other Wikipedians.
As you review, make spelling, grammar, and other adjustments. Pay attention to the tone of the article. Is it encyclopedic?

Note that you may not be completely done with your draft by week 6. This is fine so long as you make progress each week. You can start peer reviewing your classmate's draft (one only) if they have started appearing. Otherwise, wait a few weeks till they start to appear.

Milestones

Every student has finished reviewing their assigned articles, making sure that every article has been reviewed.

Week 7

Course meetings

Sunday, 19 February 2017 | Monday, 20 February 2017 | Tuesday, 21 February 2017 | Wednesday, 22 February 2017 | Thursday, 23 February 2017

Assignment - Respond to your peer review

Similar to last week, this week's assignment should be done when applicable.

You probably have some feedback from other students and possibly other Wikipedians. It's time to work with that feedback to improve your article!

Read Editing Wikipedia pages 12 and 14.
Return to your draft or article and think about the suggestions. Decide which ones to start implementing. Reach out to your instructor or your Content Expert if you have any questions.

Week 8

Course meetings

Sunday, 26 February 2017 | Monday, 27 February 2017 | Tuesday, 28 February 2017 | Wednesday, 1 March 2017 | Thursday, 2 March 2017

Assignment - Begin moving your work to Wikipedia--when applicable

Once you've made improvements to your article based on peer review feedback, it's time to move your work to Wikipedia proper - the "mainspace."

Editing an existing article?

NEVER copy and paste your draft of an article over the entire article. Instead, edit small sections at a time.
Copy your edits into the article. Make many small edits, saving each time, and leaving an edit summary. Never replace more than one to two sentences without saving!

Creating a new article?

Read Editing Wikipedia page 13, and follow those steps to move your article from your Sandbox to Mainspace.
You can also review the [[../../../training/students/sandboxes|Sandboxes and Mainspace]] online training.

Week 9

Course meetings

Sunday, 5 March 2017 | Monday, 6 March 2017 | Tuesday, 7 March 2017 | Wednesday, 8 March 2017 | Thursday, 9 March 2017

Assignment - Continue improving your article

Do additional research and writing to make further improvements to your article, based on suggestions and your own critique.

Read Editing Wikipedia page 12 to see how to create links from your article to others, and from other articles to your own. Try to link to 3–5 articles, and link to your article from 2–3 other articles.

Week 10

Course meetings

Sunday, 12 March 2017 | Monday, 13 March 2017 | Tuesday, 14 March 2017 | Wednesday, 15 March 2017 | Thursday, 16 March 2017

In class - This is actually week 11. Week 10 is spring break

Assignment - Polish your work

Continue to expand and improve your work, and format your article to match Wikipedia's tone and standards. Remember to contact your Content Expert at any time if you need further help!

Week 11

Course meetings

Sunday, 19 March 2017 | Monday, 20 March 2017 | Tuesday, 21 March 2017 | Wednesday, 22 March 2017 | Thursday, 23 March 2017

Assignment - Final article

It's the final week to develop your article.

Read Editing Wikipedia page 15 to review a final check-list before completing your assignment.
Don't forget that you can ask for help from your Content Expert at any time!

Assignment - Original analytical paper

Write a paper going beyond your Wikipedia article to advance your own ideas, arguments, and original research about your topic.

Week 12

Course meetings

Sunday, 26 March 2017 | Monday, 27 March 2017 | Tuesday, 28 March 2017 | Wednesday, 29 March 2017 | Thursday, 30 March 2017

Milestones

Everyone should have finished all of the work they'll do on Wikipedia, and be ready for grading.