Each term, I’m charged with reviewing and assessing the Wikipedia Student Program. It’s a time intensive process which is why these posts often appear several months after the completion of a term. It would be easy for us at Wiki Education to simply say that one term is like another. Thousands of students from hundreds … Continued
Last month, I had the great pleasure of presenting alongside three of our Student Program faculty at the 2022 Open Education Conference. With its goals of opening up and increasing access to knowledge, the Wikipedia assignment is, at its heart, an open education resource and open pedagogical tool. The session really brought to life how … Continued
I’d like to officially welcome Brianda (She/They) to our staff! Brianda is joining us in the role of Wikipedia Expert, where she will support student editors while they make high-quality content contributions to Wikipedia. She will spend most of her time monitoring and tracking student contributions on-wiki, answering questions, providing feedback, and explaining Wikipedia rules … Continued
Term after term, the Wikipedia Student Program produces remarkable results. Thousands of students from hundreds of institutions in the U.S. and Canada contribute millions of words to Wikipedia, and the response from the faculty and students we support is overwhelmingly positive. It would be easy to take this continued success for granted, but reflection and … Continued
Wikipedia is not just a place where the world goes for quick and reliable information. It’s a place where stories can be reframed, where the record can be corrected, where longstanding inequities can be addressed. This is exactly what Professor Nicole Lugosi-Schimpf’s students at the University of Alberta attempted to do in her Fall 2020 … Continued
With the Spring 2022 term underway, we’ve finally had the chance to take a deep breath and reflect on Fall 2021. At this point, it seems like an overused refrain, but we know that the pandemic has continued to pose unique challenges to higher education. It hasn’t been easy for students and faculty alike, and we … Continued
Teaching with Wikipedia can be an exciting prospect. An assignment with real-world impact that also helps students to develop critical media and digital literacy skills? Sounds great! As exhilarating as the idea might be, it’s also a daunting one. The very thing that makes the Wikipedia assignment so appealing — its public facing nature — is … Continued
I’ve been managing the Wikipedia Student Program since 2014, and I can say with confidence that one of its greatest strengths is its continuity of purpose and positive outcomes for students and instructors alike. To be sure, each term brings its own set of challenges and learning opportunities, but during the turmoil of the pandemic, it was … Continued
Ask 10 people what they think about Wikipedia, and you’re likely to get 11 opinions. Few websites evoke the same type of strong reactions as does Wikipedia, and this is especially true within academia. From praise to disparagement and from open and full embracement to grudging acceptance to outright rejection, Wikipedia is a constant source … Continued
