Wikipedia:Wiki Ed/Rush University Medical Center/RMC Summer Research Fellowship 2017 (Summer 2017)
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- Course name
- RMC Summer Research Fellowship 2017
- Institution
- Rush University Medical Center
- Instructor
- Maureen Richards
- Wikipedia Expert
- Ian (Wiki Ed)
- Subject
- Research Fellowship
- Course dates
- 2017-05-29 00:00:00 UTC – 2017-07-26 23:59:59 UTC
- Approximate number of student editors
- 50
Timeline
Week 1
- Course meetings
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- Wednesday, 31 May 2017
- In class - Introduction to the Wikipedia project
Welcome to our Wikipedia project's course timeline. This page will guide you through the Wikipedia project for our course.
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.
Our 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.
Tips for group work
For this project you will be working in groups to update or create a Wikipedia article. Please make sure you follow these guidelines throughout the rest of the project.
- When the time comes, make sure everyone in the group is assigned to the same Wikipedia article on the Students tab of this course page.
- Select one group member whose Sandbox space you'll all share to draft your article. Each person should link to that shared Sandbox from their own Sandbox page. A sandbox is like any other page on Wikipedia, and anyone can edit it.
- Wikipedia doesn't allow multiple people to edit from different devices at the same time. If you're working together in person, one person should add the work to the Sandbox. If you are all working independently, make small edits and save often to avoid "editing conflicts" with classmates. Make sure that you're logged in under your own Wikipedia account while editing in your classmate's sandbox to ensure your edits are recorded.
- Don't create a group account for your project. Group accounts are prohibited.
- Assignment - Get started on Wikipedia
Individually (due before class next Wednesday, 6/7)
- Create an account and join this course page, using the enrollment link your instructor sent you. (To avoid hitting Wikipedia's account creation limits, this is best done outside of class. Only 6 new accounts may be created per day from the same IP address.)
- To get started, please review the following handouts:
- 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! These trainings are required for your course.
- When you finish the trainings, practice by introducing yourself to a classmate on that classmate's Talk page.
With your group (due before class next Wednesday, 6/7)
- Review page 6 of your Editing Wikipedia guidebook.
- Look up 3-5 potential topics related to your groups theme that you might want to update on Wikipedia. Review the content of the articles and check the Talk pages to see what other Wikipedians are already contributing. Identify one or two areas from each that you could improve.
- Choose 2-3 potential articles from that list that you can tackle, and post links to the articles and your notes about what you might improve in your group sandbox.
- Finally, in class next Wednesday you should be prepared to present your choices to your instructor for feedback.
- Milestones
- Before arriving in class on 6/7 everyone should have activated their Wikipedia accounts.
- Identify your group members and what you have in common regarding your summer research.
- Identify several potential topics/articles you could contribute to.
Week 2
- Course meetings
-
- Wednesday, 7 June 2017
- In class - Wednesday in class
In class today we will narrow down each groups Wikipedia article and formally identify one or two to move forward with.
Now that you're thinking about what articles already exist in your area and what might make a "good" Wikipedia article, let's 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?
- What does it mean to write in an "unbiased" voice? How is that different, or similar, to your own definition of "bias"?
- Assignment - Finalize your topic / Find your sources
Due Wednesday, 6/14 before class.
- On the Students tab, each member of your groups should assign your chosen topic to themselves.
Part 1: Article Evaluation
It's time to think critically about your Wikipedia article. You'll evaluate your Wikipedia article and leave suggestions for improving it on the article's Talk page.
- Individually, complete the "Evaluating Articles and Sources" training (linked below).
- Create a section in your group sandbox titled "Article evaluation" where you'll leave notes about your observations and learnings.
- As you read your article, 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?
- Optional: Choose at least 1 question relevant to the article you're evaluating and leave your evaluation on the article's Talk page. Be sure to sign your feedback with four tildes — Helaine (Wiki Ed) (talk) 23:04, 5 October 2018 (UTC).
Part 2: Bibliography
- Individually, complete the "Sources and Citations" training (linked below).
- Working with your group, in your group sandbox create a new section titled "Bibliography" and 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 3
- Course meetings
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- Wednesday, 14 June 2017
- In class - Wednesday in class
- Thinking about sources and plagiarism
Discussion prompts:
- 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
Due Wednesday, 6/21 before class
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.
Keep reading your sources, too, as you prepare to write the body of the article.
Resources: Editing Wikipedia pages 7–9
- Milestones
Everyone has begun writing their article drafts.
Week 4
- Course meetings
-
- Wednesday, 21 June 2017
- In class - Wednesday in class
- Thinking about Wikipedia
Discussion prompts:
- 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?
- Assignment - Expand your draft
Due Wednesday, 6/28 before class
- 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.
- Individually, take the "Peer Review" online training in preparation for our work next week in class.
Week 5
- Course meetings
-
- Wednesday, 28 June 2017
- In class - Wednesday in class
- Peer review and copy edit
- Each group will be given another groups draft to peer review.
- On the Articles tab, each member of your group should find the article that you have been assigned to review, and then assign it to yourself in the Review column.
- Together with your group, peer review your classmate's draft. Leave suggestions on the Talk page of the article, or sandbox, that your fellow students are 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?
- Milestones
Every student has finished reviewing their assigned articles, making sure that every article has been reviewed.
- Assignment - Respond to your peer review
Due Wednesday, 7/12 before class
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.
- With your group, 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.
Week 6
- Course meetings
-
- Wednesday, 12 July 2017
- In class - Wednesday in class
Discuss peer review process. Prepare to move your drafts live!
- Assignment - Begin moving your work to Wikipedia
Due Wednesday, 7/19 before class
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!
- Be sure to copy text from your sandbox while the sandbox page is in 'Edit' or 'Edit source' mode. This ensures that the formatting is transferred correctly.
Creating a new article?
- Read Editing Wikipedia page 13, and follow those steps to move your article from your Sandbox to Mainspace.
- You can also review the Sandboxes and Mainspace online training.
Week 7
- Course meetings
-
- Wednesday, 19 July 2017
- Assignment - Wednesday in class
- 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 Content Expert at any time if you need further help!
If you'd like to check in on what your contributions look like so far you can do so in one of the following ways:
- Head to the Articles tab of this course page and drop down the row related to the article you've working on. Select the "Current Version with Authorship Highlighting" button. Wait a moment for the content to load. Once the content has loaded you'll be able to see a color-coded version of your article with the specific bits each member of your group added highlighted. Try and make it so that each member of your group has worked live at some point and has some work highlighted in their name!
- Assignment - Finalize your article
Due Wednesday, 7/26 before class
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.
- 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!
Week 8
- Course meetings
-
- Wednesday, 26 July 2017
- In class - In class optional project
- Did You Know
- Optional: For new articles or qualifying expansions of stubs, compose a one-sentence “hook,” nominate it for “Did you know,” (see the DYK instructions handout) and monitor the nomination for any issues identified by other editors. Wiki Education Foundation staff can provide support for this process
Handout: "Did You Know" submissions
- Milestones
Everyone should have finished all of the work they'll do on Wikipedia, and be ready for grading.