Wikipedia Public Policy Initiative: Writing and Editing for Wikipedia
I am so enthusiastic and excited that during this semester, we will have the opportunity to research, write, and edit for Wikipedia with the guidance of Wikipedia Ambassadors here at JMU. According to the requirements for this project, “Editing Wikipedia is an opportunity for students to write for a real-world audience of thousands of readers and to gain quick feedback from the large community of Wikipedia editors. Students also learn to follow editorial policies and how to collaborate with other editors. Wikipedia-editing, furthermore, has been found to improve students’ media literacy as well as their understanding of scholarly citations.” What this means is that this opportunity more than meets the objectives for my technical writing class.
Assignment overview
Following are some of the assignment design mandates that we will follow throughout the semester:
Your contributions to Wikipedia must be substantive, substantial, and must be articles directly related to U.S. public policy (we have numerous articles to choose from). You can expect to contribute to at least 10–20 paragraphs, or approximately 1,500 words.
You will be paired with Online Wikipedia Ambassadors who will guide us throughout the semester. In addition, you will create and add your unique Wikipedia user name to selected articles onto the course page.
Finally, we will participate in Public Policy Initiative pre- and post-term project evaluations so the Wikimedia Foundation can assess the effectiveness of various elements within the Public Policy Initiative.
Following is Wikipedia’s proposed schedule of Public Policy activities. Because this is a new project, I am reluctant to change much about Wikipedia’s recommended schedule; however, we will change this schedule during the semester if it makes sense, but we must work within the guidelines of this initiative. In addition, we will work together to figure out the best way to grade these assignments. As first-time Wikipedia contributors and editors, I am going to rely heavily on your input about every aspect of this assignment, including a fair grading schedule.
Anatomy of Wikipedia articles, what makes a good article, how to distinguish between good and bad articles
Assignments (due week 3)
Create a Wikipedia user account, create a user page, and add your name to the course page’s list of students (on the WikiProject)
Contact an Online Ambassador (using your Wikipedia user talk page) as a mentor. Mentors are available to offer advice and assistance as you start editing
To practice the editing features of Wikipedia, leave a message for a few classmates on their user talk pages
By now, all students should have Wikipedia user accounts and should be listed on the course page.
Week 3
In class, Campus Ambassador (CA) introduces students to the online chat system (IRC) where students can get live support; CA shows students how to contact Online Ambassador mentors
Assignments (due week 4)
Critically evaluate an existing Wikipedia article related to the class, and leave suggestions for improving it on the article’s discussion page
Research and list 3–5 articles on your Wikipedia user page that you will consider working on as your main project. Ask your Online Ambassador (OA) mentor for comments
Week 4
Instructor evaluates student’s article selections (by week 5). I may do one-on-one or group (if we do this project in groups) meetings
Week 5
In class handout: “Referencing on Wikipedia” how-to
Assignments (due week 6)
Decide which article you will work on and list it on the course page. Compile a bibliography of relevant sources, and begin researching the topic
Research and list 3–5 articles on your Wikipedia user page that you will consider working on as your main project. Ask your OA mentor for comments
Week 6
In class, CA talk about Wikipedia sandboxes and Wikipedia culture/etiquette; CA hold question-and-answer session with class
Assignments (due week 7)
Write a 3–4 paragraph summary version of your article (with citations) in your Wikipedia sandbox
Begin working with OA mentor to polish your short starter article and fix any major transgressions of Wikipedia norms
Continue research in preparation for expanding your article
By now, all students have started editing articles or drafts on Wikipedia.
Week 7
In class handout: “Moving article from sandbox into main space” how to; handout: “Did you know nominations
Assignments (due week 8)
Move your sandbox article into Wikipedia’s main space (live articles)
Nominate your article for “Did you know” status, and monitor the nomination for any issues identified by other editors
Begin expanding your article into a comprehensive treatment of the topic
Week 8
In class or outside of class, CA leads Wikipedia lab/workshop: article ratings on Wikipedia and how to get there; and, adding images to Wikipedia articles
Assignments (due week 9)
Expand your article into an initial draft of a comprehensive treatment of the topic
Week 9
Assignments (due week 10)
Peer review two classmate’s articles—leave suggestions and comments on their article discussion pages; and, copyedit peers’ articles
By now, all students have peer-reviewed their classmates’ articles.
Week 10
In class, conduct an open discussion around the concepts of neutrality, media literacy, and the impact and limits of Wikipedia
Assignments (due week 11)
Revise your article based on peers’ feedback
Nominate your article for “Good Article” status
Prepare for in-class presentation about your Wikipedia-editing experiences
Week 11
In class, in-class experience presentations continue
Assignments (due week 12)
Add final touches to your Wikipedia article
Write a reflective essay on your Wikipedia contributions and editing experiences
Week 12
Final version of article due
By now, all students have submitted a reflective essay on their Wikipedia contributions and experiences.
Students
This is a list of the students in your class (or rather their Wikipedia usernames), along with their Wikipedia articles (which students will select at the appropriate time). Please wiklink the articles where possible.
"Welcome to Wikipedia" gives you a basic introduction into contributing to Wikipedia. You will learn how to create a Wikipedia user account, how to start editing, and how to communicate with other contributors. You will also learn how articles evolve on Wikipedia and how to rate the quality of an existing article. The "Welcome to Wikipedia" brochure contains 17 pages and an additional quick reference that helps you to remember the most frequently used wiki markup commands.
"
Ten Simple Rules for Editing Wikipedia" is an editorial published in PLoS Computational Biology that gives advice for scientists (also relevant to other scholars and experts) on how to effectively contribute to Wikipedia.
Evaluating Wikipedia article quality is a reference guide with specific steps you can take to get the most out of Wikipedia, as well as a look at how its quality system works.
Introduction to free licenses helps you understand the basic concepts of free licenses. It explains the idea of free licenses, as well as terms like "CC-by-SA" and "public domain".
This one-page handout explains the recommended way to get help and feedback for classes supported by Wikipedia Ambassadors: by posting on their course talk page and notifying their mentor. It also includes a glossary of additional help resources students might use.