Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/University at Albany/Information Literacy in the Humanities and Arts (Fall 2020)

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Course name
Information Literacy in the Humanities and Arts
Institution
University at Albany
Instructor
Trudi Jacobson
Wikipedia Expert
Ian (Wiki Ed)
Subject
Course dates
2020-08-25 00:00:00 UTC – 2020-10-14 23:59:59 UTC
Approximate number of student editors
23


Information literacy is often considered to be synonymous with the ability to do research, but it encompasses a great deal more. This course will address information literacy through the lens of metaliteracy, a wider conception that emphasizes your role as both information consumer and information creator in a collaborative, open environment. Expect to examine and expand your conception of how you interact with information. Metacognition, or thinking about one’s own thinking, is a critical component of being metaliterate, and will be emphasized throughout the course.

Student Assigned Reviewing
CJMcKenna98 Alfred the Great Distinction (sociology)
Stewartjordan625 Objectivity (philosophy) Alfred the Great
Ghorsefield Phonological Rule Experience machine
Bekah01 Alfred Kantor Objectivity (philosophy)
Ccarson2 Distinction (sociology) Political Ethics
AnwarAfnan Space Açaí na tigela
APG2000 Libertarian perspectives on immigration Phonological Rule
Corrinfish Political Ethics Violence against prostitutes
17lpratt Violence against prostitutes Libertarian perspectives on immigration
Rpowers2 Experience machine Alfred Kantor
Bellanapodano Açaí na tigela Distinction (sociology)

Timeline

Week 1

Course meetings
Tuesday, 1 September 2020
Assignment - Introduction to the Wikipedia assignment

Welcome to your Wikipedia assignment's course timeline. This page guides you through the steps you'll need to complete for your Wikipedia assignment, with links to training modules and your classmates' work spaces.

Your course has been assigned a Wikipedia Expert. You can reach them through the Get Help button at the top of this page.

Please note that although the week dates at the top left of each week's box don't align with our course weeks, the due dates on the right top side are accurate.

Resources:

Assignment - Get started on Wikipedia

Create an account and join this course page, using the enrollment link your instructor sent you. (Because of Wikipedia's technical restraints, you may receive a message that you cannot create an account. To resolve this, please try again off campus or the next day.)

Milestones

This week, everyone should have a Wikipedia account.

If you have yours set up, you will be awarded 20 points.

Week 2

Course meetings
Tuesday, 8 September 2020
Assignment - Evaluate Wikipedia

Clarification: You will be publishing your Sandbox Article Evaluation so I can see it. You will also be adding one well-considered question from your article evaluation to the Talk page of the article you evaluated, making sure to sign it with 4 tildes (this is the easy way to sign it). See Blackboard for what you need to submit there.

Another clarification: The article evaluation activity above has a link on page 2 to a form. In the form, there are a number of guiding questions for each section, but above the questions in each section is a spot to write your answer (mouse over it if it doesn't appear initially). Please write your response in this space, using the questions to guide you. Please don't just answer each question. And absolutely don't answer each question with a simple "yes" or "no."

Assignment - Review the rules for health topics

If you are considering a topic connected to psychology or medicine or health more generally, you will need to read this item first. I will check to see that you have if you suggest such a topic.

Week 3

Course meetings
Tuesday, 15 September 2020
Assignment - Choose possible topics

Resource: Editing Wikipedia, page 6

Week 4

Course meetings
Tuesday, 22 September 2020
Assignment - Exercise

I will be checking that you found 3 quality sources.

Assignment - Add to an article

You will be adding the citation to the Wikipedia article you will be editing, as per the topic selection assignment of last week. You will most likely need to write text that you will place within the Wikipedia article based on your reputable source, and then you will cite the source. If you plan to create a new article, you will place the text and citation in a new section in your Sandbox.

Assignment - Start drafting your contributions

Reach out to your Wikipedia Expert if you have questions using the Get Help button at the top of this page.

Resources: Editing Wikipedia, pages 7–9 and How Plagiarism is Different on Wikipedia

You might find this page on writing your first article helpful.

Guide(s) for writing articles in your topic area

Cultural Anthropology

History

Political Science

Psychology

Women's Studies

Milestones

Everyone has begun writing their article drafts.

Week 5

Course meetings
Tuesday, 29 September 2020
Assignment - Continue improving your article

Now's the time to revisit your text and refine your work. You may do more research and find missing information; rewrite the lead section to represent all major points; reorganize the text to communicate the information better; or add images and other media.

PLEASE NOTE: Although you will be polishing your work until its final submission on 10/13, you want to have done a substantial amount by 9/26, so that your peer reviewers will have the opportunity to give you meaningful feedback. If there is insufficient content for them to review as of the morning of 9/27,  you will lose 30 points from your course grade.

In class - Do not request a review of your draft article

If you get a message about having your draft article reviewed by Wikipedians, do not say yes.

In class - Provide access to your draft in your Sandbox DUE at 9
00pm on Friday 9/25
Assignment - Peer review an article

Guiding framework

Milestones

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

Week 6

Course meetings
Tuesday, 6 October 2020
Assignment - Respond to your peer review

You probably have some feedback from other students and possibly other Wikipedians. Consider their suggestions, decide whether it makes your work more accurate and complete, and edit your draft to make those changes.

Resources:

  • Editing Wikipedia, pages 12 and 14
  • Reach out to your Wikipedia Expert if you have any questions.
Assignment - Polish your work

Continue to expand and improve your work, and format your article to match Wikipedia's tone and standards. You can, of course, do this all the way up to the last day of class, and I encourage you to do exactly that!

Check your work against the rubric I've provided in Blackboard.

Read page 12 of Editing Wikipediato 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. 

Remember to contact your Wikipedia Expert at any time if you need further help!

Assignment - Move your work to Wikipedia

Now that you've improved your draft based on others' feedback, it's time to move your work live - to the "mainspace."

Resource: Editing Wikipedia, page 13

Week 7

Course meetings
Tuesday, 13 October 2020
Assignment - Final article

It's the final few days to develop your article.

  • Read Editing Wikipedia page 15 to review a final check-list before completing your assignment.
  • Review the grading rubric I've provided in Blackboard.
  • Don't forget that you can ask for help from your Wikipedia Expert at any time!
Milestones

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