Wikipedia:School and university projects/Towson University American Editors Project 2012

Towson University editing students worked on a Wikipedia editing project during the Spring 2012 semester. They expanded stubs with an eye toward Featured Article criteria.

Overview

The "Wikipedia Editing Project" is a collaborative effort between the undergraduate Editing class (Engl 417) and the graduate Editing class (PRWR 617) in an attempt to further the understanding of electronic editing and the Wikipedia learning community in general. Undergraduate students selected several topics of interest and provided content editing and copy editing to existing Wikipedia stubs or created new stubs based on their chosen topic. The graduate students serve as resource staff and project managers, helping the undergraduates as necessary. The project was overseen by User:Mportolano.

Goal

The "Wikipedia Editing Project" serves as an action learning experience focusing on the difference between electronic editing and traditional hard copy editing. Wikipedia's unique platform provides a dynamic community for which this editing can take place, and allow students to interact with experienced editors. Students are able to integrate skills learned within their editing class into this real editing experience.

Development

The project initiated with the graduate students creating several worksheets and assignments for the undergraduate students to complete in order to familiarize themselves with Wikipedia and the editing process. After the undergraduate students practiced using the site, they were charged with picking a few articles of interest for which they wanted to provide copy and content edits. The graduate students divided the undergraduate students between them and served as resources for the undergraduates. Over the course of the semester, students worked on developing their editing skills on Wikipedia.

Graduate Student Duties

The three graduate students had a responsibility of managing seven undergraduate students each. Graduate students were required to oversee the development of stubs chosen by the undergrads and assist them with copy editing and content editing. The graduate students were given a list of tasks to complete which included:

Create a practice task list for the undergraduate students that will familiarize them with formatting and allow them to experiment with ideas for a Wikipedia article.

Create an assignment sheet on content editing, which include links on how to find and edit a stub (any subject), and how to start an article.

Create an assignment providing copy editing guidelines on usage, grammar, language, mechanics, references, sources, permissions, copyright and other legal aspects of Wiki editing.

Create a Wikipedia Project Page that describes the project and its development and provides links to the newly edited American editor pages.

Group Communication

To better facilitate the project, both undergraduate and graduate students were required to create a Wikipedia account. Through their Wikipedia pages, students had the opportunity to post comments on each other's talk pages and make necessary edits. Any contribution made by a participant could be tracked by adding a preferred user to their watchlist. Students could also discuss their progress via group discussion boards. Each student was encouraged to provide constructive feedback to their peers through talk pages.

Wikipedia Instructional Guidelines and Other Helpful Advice

Each student was expected to follow the guidelines of Wikipedia:Five Pillars, which highlights five of Wikipedia's fundamental principles. It was important that each participant reviewed http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Stub before beginning their work for information on Wikipedia's citation policies and a Wikipedia:stub. To ensure a thorough edit of stubs, students were encouraged to seek assistance in editing and basic layout format via http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_to_edit_a_page and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Layout.

Value of Student Contributions

With the ability to view other student articles, students will be able to uphold a sense of involvement beyond the articles that were their primary content editing projects. Students were also encouraged to participate in Wikipedia's discussion forums to enhance stubs and add secondary research to the whole for others to access freely. Many students felt that they contributed to a larger Wikipedia university project that spans over several schools and has a positive effect on the Wikipedia community.

Articles Edited in the Project

Each student was charged with the task to pick a “preferred” article to expand or to create a new article based on their academic or personal interests. A few of the standout articles are listed below.

Blue Stars Drum and Bugle Corps

Marion True

Rock Climbing

Year round schooling

Mastering the Art of French Cooking

New Town High School (Maryland)

Skills Learned

The undergraduates involved in this project gained hands on practice with editing outside the confines of the classroom. They also gained valuable practical skills that can be used in other academic settings with respects to writing. They learned how to navigate Wikipedia as a medium that can be used both for editing practice and for information that can be used academically and/or non-academically.

The graduate students also gained necessary editing skills by navigating Wikipedia. They also learned how to better collaborate with each other, undergraduate students, and professional clients.