Wikipedia:All high schools can be notable
 | This is an essay on notability. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints. |
 | This page in a nutshell: Most high schools are notable, but articles discussing them that do not have reliable secondary sources warrant being merged with a compliant article. |
 | The examples and perspective in this essay may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this essay and discuss the issue on the talk page. |
Most high schools[note 1] can be notable; however, many articles about high schools are not written in a way that demonstrates notability. An article about a high school should only be kept if it can meet the general notability guidelines. An article about a high school should contain information which has been covered by reliable, third-party sources. Articles should be based mainly on secondary sources, but some non-controversial factual information may be taken from reliable primary sources such as the school itself or the local government. A good article on a high school generally includes information on its administration, sports, extra-curricular activities, notable historical events, notable alumni, and academic standards.
What to do when there are not enough sources
editIn cases where sources can almost certainly be found, but they cannot be found in a reasonable period of time, content of a full article should be created at a user subpage or a subpage of WikiProject Schools. Until sourced content is created, the school should be merged with a redirect to an article about the school district, town, or village of the school. An unsourced article on a school, or an article on a school without enough content for a rounded article, should not have its own page.
In English-speaking developed countries, many independent, reliable sources that detail notable information about high schools can be found on the Internet. Conversely, outside the English-speaking world, particularly for countries in Asia and Africa, Internet coverage may be very poor. [citation needed] In these instances, to avoid systemic bias, local sources should be sought. This may involve researching local media, for example at a neighboring library.
Elementary and middle schools
editElementary and middle schools do not merit their own article unless they have an exceptional claim to notability. Articles about these institutions should be examined on a case-by-case basis and otherwise merged with an article on the town or school district if they do not meet enumerated requirements.
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ High schools have many different names in different countries: college, secondary school, gymnasium, etc. For the purposes of this essay, a high school is roughly defined as a school that educates people between the ages of 14 and 19. A more specific explanation of what a "high school" is in each country can be found in the article "High school".