Gretchen Sneegas is an assistant teaching professor of geography at the University of Washington.
I first taught with Wikipedia in Winter 2024 as part of my Geographies of Energy and Sustainability class. Perhaps this was a teensy bit ambitious, given that it was both my first time teaching this course, and my first year teaching at University of Washington with four other new class preps. (Seriously, what was I thinking?)
I was immediately drawn to the idea of a Wikipedia project as a form of authentic assessment, where students engage real-world tasks that require and inherently embed content knowledge, research and writing skills, and analytical thinking. Rather than writing a paper that will never again see the light of day after I grade it, students publish their work on the world’s foremost online encyclopedia. It’s hard to think of a more real-world task than that!
Since it was my first time teaching with Wikipedia, I wanted to keep my finger on the pulse of the class so I would know what questions were emerging in real time. I decided to implement a weekly project diary. Each week, students wrote an entry with suggested prompts calibrated to that week’s assigned Wiki Education trainings and exercises. I didn’t have to create these prompts out of whole cloth. Optional modules such as the Assignment blog, Journal, and Reflective essay assignments all had significant overlap with my project diary idea. These modules – as well as Discussion modules such as Thinking about sources and plagiarism, What’s a content gap?, and Thinking about Wikipedia – also include suggested topics and discussion questions.
I ended up with ten weekly diary assignments, averaging 4-6 suggested prompts per entry. Students wrote 300-400 words per entry, using the diary as a space to reflect on the process of developing their Wikipedia article. The prompts were optional – students could write about whatever was interesting or bothering them, using the prompts if desired. (In my one exception, I required students to answer specific prompts relating to the Wikipedia article they chose for the project.)
Project Diary Outcomes
Functionally, the diaries served my intended purpose: students used them to let me know when they were having problems, if they were unsure about something, or if there was anything they wanted me to know. I was able to address these concerns either in a written comment, or – if many students had similar questions – in class. However, the project diary had a number of additional benefits.
Embedding Low-Stakes Writing
I am a big fan of low-stakes writing, or as Peter Elbow defines it, “frequent, informal assignments that make students spend time regularly reflecting in written language on what they are learning from discussions, readings, lectures, and their own thinking” (p. 7). Low-stakes writing is an evidence-based practice that, when thoughtfully designed and implemented, promotes student engagement, critical thinking, and metacognition; improves student writing, final grades, exam performance, and learning goals; and reduces student anxiety.
College students can feel intimidated by writing, particularly when it is limited to high-stakes, formal writing assignments. Given that the Wikipedia project already felt more high stakes than even a regular paper (it will be published! On Wikipedia! Where people will see it!), I wanted the diary entries to function as a safe, non-judgmental writing space for students. To alleviate grade-related anxiety, I graded diary entries based on completion and thoughtful engagement with the prompts, rather than categories typically graded in formal writing like content, grammar, or punctuation.
Formative Feedback
The diaries also served as an excellent source of formative feedback, for both students and myself. In contrast to high-stakes summative evaluation, formative assessment provide ongoing, low-stakes feedback that students use to identify and address gaps in their knowledge. I encouraged students to use the diaries as a safe place to ask questions and explore their own knowledge gaps, knowing it wouldn’t negatively impact their grade (e.g. “Reflect on the process of writing in a ‘neutral voice’. Are you finding this aspect of writing for Wikipedia difficult?”).
The diaries were also an excellent source of formative feedback for myself. This happened in real time for the current class. For instance, if many students were expressing concern about a particular topic, I knew they needed more time devoted to that subject. The diaries also provided useful data for improving future versions of the project, particularly when I included prompts directly soliciting feedback (e.g. “What suggestions do you have for how the Wikipedia project could be improved in the future?”).
Metacognition Skill-building
Some prompts functioned well as an informal space where students could practice their metacognitive skills by critically reflecting on their own learning process, a key aspect of significant, long-term learning. I encouraged this process through prompts that asked students to reflect on how certain activities contributed to their learning (e.g. “Did the peer review process help you think about your own draft/edits in any way?”).
An important consideration is that reflective writing does not inevitably result in high-quality student metacognition. It’s important to thoughtfully draft journal prompts and make sure they are well-integrated with the purpose of the assignment, the course learning goals, and the instructor’s own teaching style and philosophy.
Student-Teacher Interaction
Diary entries became a significant site of back-and-forth conversation between the students and myself outside of the classroom. This was particularly helpful for keeping in touch with students who weren’t in class, as well as better communicating with more introverted students. (This approach also aligns with the Universal Design for Learning principles of incorporating multiple modalities for student participation and engagement.)
Some students began asking more directed questions in their diary entries, knowing I would answer them in the comments or our next class. Students asked questions ranging from the technical (e.g. “None of the citations or images carried over”) to the broader and more conceptual (“For my final draft, I wonder what kind of sources I should concentrate on?”). This information also guided my feedback on their article drafts.
Some students also used the diaries as a way to update me on other things going on in their lives, even though I didn’t include any prompts on those subjects. In some cases, students let me know about circumstances that they worried would impact their performance. I learned that my students had care-taking responsibilities, medical issues, full or part-time jobs, and concerns about other classes. I deeply valued the trust that these students showed in sharing such information with me, and provided additional support for them where possible.
A key choice that made the assignments work in this way was keeping students’ diary entries private. A different choice could be having students post to a discussion board or class blog, where entries are available to all students. While students would be less likely to open up about personal topics, they can see where other students might be struggling with similar issues as them, and can respond to one another. While each approach has different strengths, either method can yield excellent benefits.
Future Considerations
Based on my experiences, reflections, and student feedback, I have some considerations for anyone interested in including a similar assignment while teaching with Wikipedia.
First, to achieve the full potential of low-stakes writing and formative feedback, it is important to actually read and respond to student work in a timely way. Even if you lack time to individually respond to every diary entry, leave time in class or send a message summarizing major themes and answering questions that come up.
Relatedly, project diaries shouldn’t replace in-class time for project-related work. This was a major area of formative feedback from my students: they wanted more in-class time to support the Wikipedia project.
Finally, make sure to consider what you want the primary function of your diaries to be! If metacognition is your goal, incorporate prompts that specifically ask students to critically reflect on their learning process. If you just want a space for students to check in with you, you probably don’t need to bother with prompts that don’t relate to that week’s trainings and tasks.
Not only did the Wikipedia project provide a meaningful and authentic assignment with real-world impact, but the project diary yielded important insights into my students’ processes and thinking throughout the class. The utility and value of this assignment were highly evident for both me and my students. It is an addition to the project that I will keep using and refining as I continue to teach with Wikipedia.
Interested in incorporating a Wikipedia assignment into your course? Visit teach.wikiedu.org to learn more about the free resources, digital tools, and staff support that Wiki Education offers to postsecondary instructors in the United States and Canada. Apply by September 8 for the fall 2024 term!
