Wikipedia:Canada Education Program/Courses/Present/Test/Timeline
Timeline
Week 1: Wikipedia Essentials
- In class
- Overview of the course
- Introduction to how Wikipedia will be used in the course
- Handout: Welcome to Wikipedia (available in print or online from the Wikimedia Foundation)
- Assignment (due week 2)
- Read Five pillars, an explanation of Wikipedia's basic rules and principles
Week 2: Editing basics
- In class
- Campus Ambassadors introduce:
- Basics of editing
- Anatomy of Wikipedia articles, what makes a good article, how to distinguish between good & bad articles
- Tips on finding the best articles to work on for class assignments
- Handouts and videos: Video on creating an account, Talk pages tutorial video, Evaluating Wikipedia article quality brochure, Account and user page creation handout, Wikimarkup cheatsheet
- Create a Wikipedia account, create a user page, and sign up on the list of students on the course page.
- To practice editing and communicating on Wikipedia, introduce yourself to one of the class's Online Ambassadors (via talk page), and leave a message for a classmate on their user talk page.
- Milestone
- All students have Wikipedia user accounts and are listed on the course page.
Week 3: Exploring the topic area
- In class
- Handout: Advice for choosing articles
- 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 class's Online Ambassadors for comments.
Week 4: Using sources
- In class
- Handouts and videos: Referencing handout, Referencing: Wikicode handout, Plagiarism handout, Citing sources tutorial video, RefToolbar citation tool tutorial video
- Assignment (due week 5)
- Add 1–2 sentences of new information, backed up with a citation to an appropriate source, to a Wikipedia article related to the class.
- For next week
- Instructor evaluates student's article selections, by week 5.
Week 5: Choosing articles
- In class
- Discuss the range of topics students will be working on and strategies for researching and writing about them.
- Assignments (due week 6)
- Select an article to work on, removing the rest from the course page.
- Compile a bibliography of relevant research and post it to the talk page of the article you are working on. Begin reading the sources.
Week 6: Drafting starter articles
- In class
- Instructor and/or Campus Ambassadors talk about Wikipedia culture & etiquette, and [optionally] introduce the concept of sandboxes and how to use them.
- Q&A session with instructor and/or Campus Ambassadors about interacting on Wikipedia and getting started with writing
- Video resource: Sandbox tutorial
- Assignments (due week 7)
- If you are starting a new article, write a 3–4 paragraph summary version of your article (with citations) in your Wikipedia sandbox. If you are improving an existing article, write a summary version reflecting the content the article will have after it's been improved, and post this along with a brief description of your plans on the article's talk page.
- Begin working with classmates and Online Ambassadors to polish your short starter article and fix any major transgressions of Wikipedia norms.
- Continue research in preparation for expanding your article.
- Milestone
- All students have started editing articles or drafts on Wikipedia.
Week 7: Did you know
- In class
- Wiki assignments (due week 8)
- Move sandbox articles into main space.
- For new articles or qualifying expansions of stubs, compose a one-sentence "hook," nominate it for "Did you know," and monitor the nomination for any issues identified by other editors.
- Begin expanding your article into a comprehensive treatment of the topic.
Week 8: Building articles
- In class or outside of class
- Campus Ambassadors lead Wikipedia lab/workshop, covering:
- Article ratings on Wikipedia & how to get there
- Uploading images, and adding images to articles
- Handouts and videos: Uploading images handout, Uploading files to Wikimedia Commons video, Evaluating Wikipedia article quality brochure (handed out originally in week 2), Article assessments video, Evolution of an article video
- Wiki assignments (due week 9)
- Expand your article into an initial draft of a comprehensive treatment of the topic.
- Select two classmates' articles that you will peer review and copy-edit. (You don't need to start reviewing yet.)
Week 9: Getting and giving feedback
- In class
- As a group, have the students offer suggestions for improving one or two of the students' articles, setting the example for what is expected from a solid encyclopedia article.
- Wiki assignments (due week 10)
- Peer review two of your classmates' articles. Leave suggestions on the article talk pages.
- Copy-edit the two reviewed articles.
- Milestone
- All articles have been reviewed by others. All students have reviewed articles by their classmates.
Week 10: Responding to feedback
- In class
- Open discussion of the concepts of neutrality, media literacy, and the impact and limits of Wikipedia
- Wiki assignments (due week 11)
- Make edits to your article based on peers' feedback.
- Nominate your article for Good Article status.
- Prepare for an in-class presentation about your Wikipedia editing experience.
Week 11: Class presentations
- In class
- Students give in-class presentations about their experiences editing Wikipedia.
- Wiki assignments (due week 12)
- Add final touches to you Wikipedia article. Try to address issues from Good Article reviews.
- Write a reflective essay (2-5 pages) on your Wikipedia contributions.
Week 12: Due date
You made it!
- Milestone
- Students have finished all their work on Wikipedia that will be considered for grading, and have submitted reflective essays.