Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/California State University Sacramento/ENVS 135 (Spring 2018)

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Course name
ENVS 135
Institution
California State University Sacramento
Instructor
Julian Fulton
Wikipedia Expert
Ian (Wiki Ed)
Subject
California Water and Society
Course dates
2018-01-23 00:00:00 UTC – 2018-05-18 23:59:59 UTC
Approximate number of student editors
30


This course provides the historical, scientific, legal, institutional, and economic background needed to understand the social and ecological challenges of providing water for California’s growing population, agricultural economy, and other uses - all of which are made more complex by climate change. We will look at past and current debates around cases ranging from local issues on the American River to statewide issues that converge in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Both physical and social science research skills will be developed.

In this Wikipedia assignment, you will contribute a new article or substantially to an existing article on a topic of your choice related to California water. Your topic could be a something physical, such as part of California's vast water infrastructure, or something societal, such as a policy topic related to California water governance. Your topic can be historical, contemporary, or something proposed.

Learning Objectives include: - gaining a deep understanding of a particular topic in California water, similar to a research paper assignment. - gaining media literacy and proficiency in an online platform that manages the world's largest public knowledge base. - gaining transferable research skills -- publication, peer review, citation, attribution, etc. -- in a unique website environment.

Student Assigned Reviewing
Luciaarreola Rollins Dam User:Laurasurges/sandbox
Whatanerd1993 Arcade Creek User:Nimesha94/sandbox
Leidelar78 American River Hodge Decision User:Harrisonr916/sandbox
Kelliearl Crissy Marsh User:Odyssey 3001/sandbox
Laurasurges Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment Program User:Luciaarreola/sandbox
Cbay95 Phoenix Park Vernal Pools User:SSMcCall/sandbox
Slucy236 Robert W. Goldsworthy Groundwater Desalter User:Aspease/sandbox
Thatspiderguy The Orland Project User:Mairacampos3/sandbox
Odyssey 3001 Redinger Dam User:Kelliearl/sandbox
Kelseaelizabeth New Hogan Lake User:Somtimesrusty/sandbox
Phiafornature Borrego Valley Groundwater Basin User:Riklonc02/sandbox
Harrisonr916 Water Pollution from Animal Agriculture User:Leidelar78/sandbox
Vickie.vang Lake Natoma User:PaulaMC/sandbox
Riklonc02 Saltwater Intrusion in California User:Phiafornature/sandbox
Mairacampos3 City of Lodi Water Pollution Control Facility User:Thatspiderguy/sandbox
Aspease Sacramento Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant User:Slucy236/sandbox
PaulaMC User:Vickie.vang/sandbox
Somtimesrusty Salinas Dam User:Kelseaelizabeth/sandbox
MackennaS Central Valley Groundwater Pollution User:Alex.0221/sandbox
Nimesha94 E.A Fairbairn Water Treatment Plant User:Whatanerd1993/sandbox
SSMcCall Bushy Lake User:Cbay95/sandbox
Alex.0221 Lost Man Creek Dam, Coast Contamination: Southern California User:MackennaS/sandbox

Timeline

Week 1

Course meetings
Tuesday, 23 January 2018   |   Thursday, 25 January 2018

Week 2

Course meetings
Tuesday, 30 January 2018   |   Thursday, 1 February 2018
In class - Introduction to the Wikipedia project

Welcome to your Wikipedia project's course timeline. This page will guide you through the Wikipedia project for your course. Be sure to check with your instructor to see if there are other pages you should be following as well.

This page breaks down writing a Wikipedia article into a series of steps, or milestones. These steps include online trainings to help you get started on Wikipedia.

Your course has also been assigned a Wikipedia Content Expert. Check your Talk page for notes from them. You can also reach them through the "Get Help" button on this page.



Week 3

Course meetings
Tuesday, 6 February 2018   |   Thursday, 8 February 2018
Assignment - Get started on Wikipedia
  • Create an account and join this course page, using the enrollment link your instructor sent you.
  • It's time to dive into Wikipedia. Below, you'll find the first set of online trainings you'll need to take. New modules will appear on this timeline as you get to new milestones. Be sure to check back and complete them! Incomplete trainings will be reflected in your grade.
  • Once you've completed the trainings, review the following handouts:
  • Practice by introducing yourself to a classmate on that classmate’s Talk page.
Milestones

All students have Wikipedia user accounts and are listed on the course page.

Week 4

Course meetings
Tuesday, 13 February 2018   |   Thursday, 15 February 2018
Assignment - Evaluating Wikipedia

It's time to think critically about Wikipedia articles. You'll evaluate a Wikipedia article related to the course and leave suggestions for improving it on the article's Talk page.


  • Complete the "Evaluating Articles and Sources" training (linked below).
  • Create a section in your sandbox titled "Article evaluation" where you'll leave notes about your observations and learnings.
  • Review the Wikipedia article about Water in California. As you read, consider the following questions (but don't feel limited to these):
    • Is everything in the article relevant to the article topic? Is there anything that distracted you?
    • Is the article neutral? Are there any claims, or frames, that appear heavily biased toward a particular position?
    • Are there viewpoints that are overrepresented, or underrepresented?
    • Check a few citations. Do the links work? Does the source support the claims in the article?
    • Is each fact referenced with an appropriate, reliable reference? Where does the information come from? Are these neutral sources? If biased, is that bias noted?
    • Is any information out of date? Is anything missing that could be added?
    • Check out the Talk page of the article. What kinds of conversations, if any, are going on behind the scenes about how to represent this topic?
    • How is the article rated? Is it a part of any WikiProjects?
    • How does the way Wikipedia discusses this topic differ from the way we've talked about it in class?
  • Choose a different article related to the class and respond to one or two of the above questions, leaving your evaluation on the article's Talk page. Be sure to sign your feedback with four tildes — Ian (Wiki Ed) (talk) 14:22, 14 May 2018 (UTC).[reply]

Week 5

Course meetings
Tuesday, 20 February 2018   |   Thursday, 22 February 2018
Assignment - Add to an article

Familiarize yourself with editing Wikipedia by adding a citation to an article. 


  • Add 1-2 sentences to a course-related article, and cite that statement to a reliable source, as you learned in the online training. You can review the list of articles related to Water in California to get started. 


Assignment - Choosing your article
  • Review page 6 of your Editing Wikipedia guidebook and the "Finding your article" training, linked below. 
  • Then, research 3–5 potential topics or articles that you can tackle, and post links to them on your Wikipedia user page. For articles that already exist, check the Talk page to see what other Wikipedians might be doing. (Hint: The list of articles about Water in California might be a good place to start.)
  • Finally, present your choices to your instructor for feedback. 

Week 6

Course meetings
Tuesday, 27 February 2018   |   Thursday, 1 March 2018
In class - Discussion
content gaps and article topics

What's a content gap?
Now that you're thinking about what makes a "good" Wikipedia article, consider some additional questions.


  • Wikipedians often talk about "content gaps." What do you think a content gap is, and what are some possible ways to identify them?
  • What are some reasons a content gap might arise? What are some ways to remedy them?
  • Does it matter who writes Wikipedia?
  • What does it mean to be "unbiased" on Wikipedia? How is that different, or similar, to your own definition of "bias"?

Article topics

  • What knowledge content gap is your article topic helping fill? 
  • Discuss the topics you will be working on, and determine strategies for researching and writing about them.


Assignment - Finalize your topic / Find your sources
  • On the Students tab, assign your chosen topic to yourself.
  • In your sandbox, write a few sentences about what you plan to contribute to the selected article.
    • Think back to when you did an article critique. What can you add? Post some of your ideas to the article's talk page, too.
    • Compile a list of relevant, reliable books, journal articles, or other sources. Post that bibliography to the talk page of the article you'll be working on, and in your sandbox. Make sure to check in on the Talk page to see if anyone has advice on your bibliography.

Week 7

Course meetings
Tuesday, 6 March 2018   |   Thursday, 8 March 2018
In class - Discussion
Thinking about sources and plagiarism
  • Blog posts and press releases are considered poor sources of reliable information. Why?
  • What are some reasons you might not want to use a company's website as the main source of information about that company?
  • What is the difference between a copyright violation and plagiarism?
  • What are some good techniques to avoid close paraphrasing and plagiarism?


Assignment - Draft your article

You've picked a topic and found your sources. Now it's time to start writing. 


Creating a new article?


  • Write an outline of that topic in the form of a standard Wikipedia article's "lead section." Write it in your sandbox.
    • A "lead" section is not a traditional introduction. It should summarize, very briefly, what the rest of the article will say in detail. The first paragraph should include important, broad facts about the subject. A good example is Ada Lovelace. See Editing Wikipedia page 9 for more ideas.

Improving an existing article?


  • Identify what's missing from the current form of the article. Think back to the skills you learned while critiquing an article. Make notes for improvement in your sandbox.

General tips


  • Keep reading your sources, too, as you prepare to write the body of the article.
  • Resources: Editing Wikipedia pages 7–9
Milestones

All students have started editing articles or drafts on Wikipedia.

Week 8

Course meetings
Tuesday, 13 March 2018   |   Thursday, 15 March 2018
In class - Discussion
Thinking about Wikipedia
  • What do you think of Wikipedia's definition of "neutrality"?
  • What are the impacts and limits of Wikipedia as a source of information?
  • On Wikipedia, all material must be attributable to reliable, published sources. What kinds of sources does this exclude? Can you think of any problems that might create?
  • If Wikipedia was written 100 years ago, how might its content (and contributors) be different? What about 100 years from now?


In class - Expand your draft
  • Keep working on transforming your article into a complete first draft. Get draft ready for peer-review.
  • If you'd like a Content Expert to review your draft, now is the time! Click the "Get Help" button in your sandbox to request notes.

Week 9

Course meetings
Tuesday, 27 March 2018   |   Thursday, 29 March 2018
Assignment - Peer review and copy edit
  • First, take the "Peer Review" online training.
  • Select a classmates’ article that you will peer review and copyedit. On the Articles tab, find the article that you want to review, and then assign it to yourself in the Review column.
  • Peer review your classmate's draft. Leave suggestions on the Talk page of the article, or sandbox, that your fellow student is working on. Other editors may be reviewing your work, so look for their comments! Be sure to acknowledge feedback from other Wikipedians.
  • As you review, make spelling, grammar, and other adjustments. Pay attention to the tone of the article. Is it encyclopedic?

Week 10

Course meetings
Tuesday, 3 April 2018   |   Thursday, 5 April 2018
Assignment - Respond to your peer review

You probably have some feedback from other students and possibly other Wikipedians. It's time to work with that feedback to improve your article!


  • Read Editing Wikipedia pages 12 and 14.
  • Return to your draft or article and think about the suggestions. Decide which ones to start implementing. Reach out to your instructor or your Content Expert if you have any questions.
Milestones

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

Week 11

Course meetings
Tuesday, 10 April 2018   |   Thursday, 12 April 2018
Assignment - Begin moving your work to Wikipedia

Once you've made improvements to your article based on peer review feedback, it's time to move your work to Wikipedia proper - the "mainspace."


Editing an existing article?


  • NEVER copy and paste your draft of an article over the entire article. Instead, edit small sections at a time.
  • Copy your edits into the article. Make many small edits, saving each time, and leaving an edit summary. Never replace more than one to two sentences without saving!

Creating a new article?


Week 12

Course meetings
Tuesday, 17 April 2018   |   Thursday, 19 April 2018
Assignment - Continue improving your article

Do additional research and writing to make further improvements to your article, based on suggestions and your own critique.


  • Read Editing Wikipedia page 12 to 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.
  • Consider adding an image to your article. Wikipedia has strict rules about what media can be added, so make sure to take the 'Contributing Images and Media Files' training before you upload an image.

Week 13

Course meetings
Tuesday, 24 April 2018   |   Thursday, 26 April 2018
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.


Assignment - Polish your work

Continue to expand and improve your work, and format your article to match Wikipedia's tone and standards. Remember to contact your Wikipedia Expert at any time if you need further help!

Week 14

Course meetings
Tuesday, 1 May 2018   |   Thursday, 3 May 2018
Assignment - Final article

It's the final week to develop your article.


  • Read Editing Wikipedia page 15 to review a final check-list before completing your assignment.
  • Don't forget that you can ask for help from your Content Expert at any time!


Assignment - Reflective essay

Consider the following questions as you reflect on your Wikipedia assignment (500-700 words):


  • Critiquing articles: What did you learn about Wikipedia during the article evaluation? How did you approach critiquing the article you selected for this assignment? How did you decide what to add to your chosen article?
  • Summarizing your contributions: include a summary of your edits and why you felt they were a valuable addition to the article. How does your article compare to earlier versions?
  • Peer Review: If your class did peer review, include information about the peer review process. What did you contribute in your review of your peers article? What did your peers recommend you change on your article?
  • Feedback: Did you receive feedback from other Wikipedia editors, and if so, how did you respond to and handle that feedback?
  • Wikipedia generally: What did you learn from contributing to Wikipedia? How does a Wikipedia assignment compare to other assignments you've done in the past? How can Wikipedia be used to improve public understanding of our field/your topic? Why is this important?
  • Turn in on SacCT by 5/14 11:59pm.

Week 15

Course meetings
Tuesday, 8 May 2018   |   Thursday, 10 May 2018
Milestones

Students have finished all their work on Wikipedia that will be considered for grading.