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
In many ways, Fall 2020 was a typical term for us at Wiki Education. We supported 322 courses across a variety of subjects, course levels, and institutions. But Fall 2020 was by no means ordinary. The ongoing challenges of the pandemic and the tumultuous nature of the presidential election made it a term like no other. … Continued
Improving Wikipedia’s coverage of historically marginalized populations has long been a driving force behind our work, so we’re proud to highlight the incredible work of two classes from Fall 2020 that sought to advance Wikipedia’s content around Indigenous populations of Canada. Both courses tackled the systemic biases that continue to pervade Canadian institutions as they relate to Indigenous peoples … Continued
In 2014, I joined Wiki Education as Program Manager for the Wikipedia Student Program. Six years later, I can now proudly call myself a real Wikipedian! Though I had never edited Wikipedia myself before joining Wiki Education, I believed whole-heartedly in its mission of making knowledge free and accessible to all and was thrilled to be part of … Continued
