Within academic circles, Wikipedia is often looked down upon, and is not considered a credible source of information. Yet, it is one of the most widely visited websites in the world and is often the first link to pop up when you conduct a typical Google search of a topic. With much of scientific information … Continued
Jake Kubrin is Metadata Librarian at the Stanford Law School Robert Crown Library who recently completed our intermediate-level Wikidata training course. Here he shares what linked open data makes possible for his work. The American Bar Association (ABA) began conducting a series of oral history interviews of leading women lawyers, judges, and legal professionals in … Continued
Daniel Puentes is a Graduate Research Assistant at Michigan State University and recently completed our Wikipedia training course sponsored by the National Science Policy Network. Wikipedia is one of the most popular online resources for anyone to get information that they’re interested in learning. During election years, voters will use Wikipedia to read about different … Continued
We’ve all been told—or been the one telling people—to not use Wikipedia as a source. There’s a variety of reasons, of course, with the main one being the credibility of the information. The Wikipedia community is aware of this and has made a series of changes aimed at rectifying this. Wiki Education’s programs are also … Continued
When Wikipedia is a first stop for individuals interested in developmental disability-related healthcare, isn’t it important that the information they find there be complete and accurate? Wikipedia is one of the places many individuals who lack knowledge about developmental disability issues turn to. Some healthcare practitioners consult the site and/or use it as a resource. … Continued
Jackie Shieh, a Descriptive Data Management Librarian at Smithsonian Libraries, recently completed our Wikidata how-to course for beginners. Here, Jackie provides a detailed account of what that experience was like. Learning the way of triple statements is something very new to librarians, especially metadata professionals who are no strangers to rules and the interpretation for … Continued
Rachel Tamar Van is an Assistant Professor of early American history at California State Polytechnic University at Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona). Here she reflects on what a Wikipedia assignment meant for her history classroom. For many writing assignments, the exercise is in the writing. Students cherish every word of feedback. They thoughtfully apply comments to … Continued
Wiki Education has been awarded a Spark Grant for their Wikipedia Student Program. This program supports Wikipedia writing assignments in higher education, giving students the rare and powerful opportunity to write for a real audience as part of their course work. The assignments go from guided critical thinking about Wikipedia pages — how they are … Continued
“You’re not always able to make a huge impact, but at least you can make a dent.” Kai Medina learned how to add content to Wikipedia pages as a student in Dr. Randi Rotjan’s marine biology course this Spring. Since then, he has remained an active editor on Wikipedia, adding content, photos, and field recordings … Continued
