Professor receives teaching award for having students write Wikipedia
Dr. Kathleen Sheppard has been teaching her students how to edit Wikipedia as an assignment since 2017, with the support of our Wikipedia Student Program technology and staff. She has found that the “real-world” implications of the assignment inspire her students to work harder and better. “Students, and in my experience especially the non-humanities engineering majors, think that … Continued
Honoring the first Americans
When someone mentions “the first Americans,” you might think of the Mayflower, pilgrims, Puritans, and Plymouth Rock, or other European colonists. More than 10,000 years before the arrival of the pilgrims, however, the “New World” was home to hundreds of tribes, speaking dozens of languages. The identity and culture of these first Americans has been … Continued
Wikipedia Day: a year in review
Every year on January 15, we celebrate Wikipedia’s birthday. It takes thousands all around the world to make Wikipedia the resource that it is; Wikipedia Day is a great time to recognize all that hard work and successful collaboration. It’s also a day to speak to the importance of freely available knowledge and to continue conversations about … Continued
Why a student wrote “oat milk” into Wikipedia
The current cultural buzz around oat milk weaves together conversations around food sustainability, plant science, health, pop culture, and new industry growth. But before December 10, 2018, you couldn’t find anything about oat milk on Wikipedia. Now, thanks to a student in Yin-long Qiu’s Plants and Human Health course at the University of Michigan, the … Continued
Learn about Mesoamerican deities on Wikipedia thanks to students
No creature as horrible as Tlaltecuhtli – the “embodiment of the chaos that raged before Earth’s creation” – should be allowed to roam the world, decided Mesoamerican gods Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca. So, the two powerful deities tore the great sea monster in half in a terrific battle. But Tlaltecuhtli survived (although in pieces) and demanded human sacrifice evermore … Continued
Campus visit to Wayne State kicks off Wikidata collaboration
Earlier this month, I visited Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, to delve into planning a collaboration with their School of Information Sciences around integrating Wikidata assignments into the curriculum. Wikidata is a Wikimedia project that is an open structured data repository; Wiki Education is eager to get started on improving the quality, quantity, and … Continued
Practical solutions for supporting open science
At the American Geophysical Union’s fall meeting this year, scientists gathering from all around the world were asked to ponder one question. What does science stand for? AGU proposed their own answer to be discussed over the course of the meeting: science stands for inclusion, creativity, and thinking bigger. Director of Partnerships Jami Mathewson and … Continued
To bridge all the gaps
As a classroom project, we hear time and again that the Wikipedia assignment is a huge motivator for students. In our Fall 2016 research study into student learning outcomes, for example, we found that “in addition to their value in learning digital/information literacy, critical research, teamwork, and technology skills, Wikipedia-based assignments also help increase students’ motivation … Continued
A November to remember
We hear time and again that people understand the importance of having well referenced information on Wikipedia. But most simply don’t know how to do something about it. “I did this at an edit-a-thon recently,” one conference attendee said, “and I loved it! How can I do more?” In November, I traveled to three academic … Continued
Three Wiki Education values worth supporting on Giving Tuesday
At Wiki Education, we believe education is a fundamental right, that knowledge should be freely available for all, and that diverse voices must be involved in the creation and curation of that knowledge. These values are at the basis of our strategy and guide all the work that we do. If they are values that … Continued