I propose to lead a session on editing Wikipedia and wikis of a similar type. I can present briefly on how the Wikipedia system works — notably that Wikipedia editors and articles have “histories” and therefore something like “reputations”. We can edit articles, like the English article on THATCamp, or create an analogue in other languages, or edit related topics, or edit anything else.
One goal is to create accounts and develop the confidence and competence to edit again later. Another goal is to take a look at wikisource.org, a closely related site which invites us to create and edit transcriptions of historic texts. This is a safe way to practice a non-native language, and to learn a historic topic.
Wikipedia and Wikisource editing can be a formal educational activity for students. They get the satisfaction of writing or editing in a “published” format, where their work might be read and useful for years to come. So a third goal is to develop the knowledge and confidence that this really can be done for a class. I’m not an expert on this but the Wiki Educational Foundation can help set up materials and grading standards for a class. They have done it many times. Hopefully someone among us will have experience with wikis as classwork, and if not I can present what I know and introduce interested parties to the people and materials from Wiki Ed.
I’d welcome comments to pre-shape this potential session to be useful. Topics to edit? Have you used Wikipedia for class work?
