Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/University of Michigan/Chem 455 505 Special Topics in Biochemistry Nucleic Acids Biochemistry (Fall 2015)
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- Course name
- Chem 455_505 Special Topics in Biochemistry Nucleic Acids Biochemistry
- Institution
- University of Michigan
- Instructor
- Ngwalter
- Subject
- Biochemistry
- Course dates
- 2015-09-08 – 2015-12-23
- Approximate number of student editors
- 40
We now realize that the human genome contains at least 80,000 non-redundant non-coding RNA genes, outnumbering protein-coding genes by at least 4-fold, a revolutionary insight that has led some researchers to dub the eukaryotic cell an “RNA machine”. How exactly these ncRNAs guide every cellular function – from the maintenance and processing to the regulated expression of all genetic information – lies at the leading edge of the modern biosciences, from stem cell to cancer research. This course will provide both a broad and deep overview of the structure, function and biology of both DNA and RNA. We will explore important examples from the current literature and the course content will evolve accordingly*. The class will be taught from a chemical/molecular perspective and will bring modern interdisciplinary concepts from biochemistry, biophysics and molecular biology to the fore.
Timeline
Week 1: Wikipedia essentials and editing basics
- In class - Wikipedia essentials
- Overview of the course
- Introduction to how Wikipedia will be used in the course
- Understanding Wikipedia as a community, we'll discuss its expectations and etiquette.
Handout: Editing Wikipedia
- In class - Editing basics
- 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, Evaluating Wikipedia
- In class - Exploring the topic area
- Be prepared to discuss some of your observations about Wikipedia articles in your topic area that are missing or could use improvement.
Handouts: Choosing an article
- In class - Using sources
- Be prepared to explain close paraphrasing, plagiarism, and copyright violations on Wikipedia.
Handouts: Citing Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism
- In class - Using images
- Demo uploading images and adding images to articles.
- Share experiences and discuss problems.
Resources: Illustrating Wikipedia and Evaluating Wikipedia
- In class - Media literacy discussion
- Open discussion of the concepts of neutrality, media literacy, and the impact and limits of Wikipedia.
- Milestones
All students have Wikipedia user accounts and are listed on the course page.
- In class - Wikipedia culture and etiquette
- Talk about Wikipedia culture and etiquette, and (optionally) visit the concept of sandboxes and how to use them.
- Q&A session with instructor about interacting on Wikipedia and getting started with writing.
- Assignment - Practicing the basics
- 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.
- 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.
Resources: Online Training for Students
- Assignment - Choosing your article
- Please work in groups of four (4) and choose three (3) potential topics to edit; for each potential topic write one paragraph to explain the changes you plan to make to an existing entry and why, or why this new topic should be included in Wikipedia. Your topic and explanation should be sent to Nils in a Word document by class time on Tue Sep 22. Selected topics for each group will be assigned within a few days.
Week 2
- Assignment - Drafting starter articles
- Each group will post their draft in the Sandbox on Wikipedia under their account and post a link to their Sandbox in the Article table on the Wikipedia Course Page. The explanation of changes you plan to make should also be posted to the Talk page of the Sandbox. This draft needs to be completed by class time on Thu Oct 15.
- 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.
Week 3
- Milestones
All students have started editing articles or drafts on Wikipedia.
Week 4
- Assignment - Complete first draft
- Expand your article into a complete first draft.
Week 5
- Assignment - Peer review and copyedit
- On the table at the bottom of this course page, add your username next to the article you are assigned to peer review.
- Peer review the article assigned to you. Leave suggestions on the Sandbox talk pages according to the Peer Review Criteria listed in the assignment.
- Copy-edit the reviewed articles.
Week 6
- Milestones
Every student has finished reviewing their assigned articles, making sure that every article has been reviewed.
- Assignment - Address peer review suggestions
- 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.
- Assignment - Prepare for in-class presentation
- Prepare for an in-class presentation about your Wikipedia editing experience.
Week 7
- Assignment - Continue improving articles
- Return to your classmates' articles you previously reviewed, and provide more suggestions for further improvement. If there is a disagreement, suggest a compromise.
- Do additional research and writing to make further improvements to your article, based on your classmates' suggestions and any additional areas for improvement you can identify.
Week 8
- In class - In-class presentation
- Students give in-class presentations about their articles and their experiences editing Wikipedia.
- In class - Discuss further article improvements
- Continue discussing how the articles can be further improved. Come up with improvement goals for each article for next week.
- In class - Moving articles to mainspace
- We'll discuss moving your article out of your sandboxes and into Wikipedia's main space.
- 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.
Handout: Moving out of your Sandbox
- Assignment - Moving articles to mainspace
- Move your 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 the instructions in the "Moving out of your sandbox" handout.
- Begin expanding your article into a comprehensive treatment of the topic.
Week 9
- Assignment - Final article
- Add final touches to your Wikipedia article.
- Respond to other editors' suggestions or edits on your formal Wikipedia article.
Handout: Polishing your article
Week 10
- Milestones
Students have finished all their work on Wikipedia that will be considered for grading.