Submissions/College Students' Perceptions of the Wikipedia-Assignment Experience

From Wikimania 2012 • Washington, D.C., USA

This is an accepted submission for Wikimania 2012.

Submission no.

104

Title of the submission
College Students' Perceptions of the Wikipedia-Assignment Experience
Type of submission (workshop, tutorial, panel, presentation)
Presentation
Author of the submission
Mona Ibrahim, Ph.D.
E-mail address
ibrahim@cord.edu
Username
IbrahimPsy111
Country of origin
USA
Affiliation, if any (organization, company etc.)
Concordia College
Personal homepage or blog
www.cord.edu/faculty/ibrahim
Abstract (at least 300 words to describe your proposal)
The internet plays a major role in society today. Students first learn about many topics that they are curious about through online resources such as Wikipedia. Learning in today's internet-dependent world necessitates the use of new pedagogies that appeal to the new generations of students and that allow them to be responsibly engaged in the world by contribute meaningfully to the existing online resources. Many college psychology instructors have recently joined the Association for Psychological Science’s Wikipedia Initiative by having their students expand Wikipedia articles in order to offer students assignments that fit their interests and to ensure that Wikipedia represents their disciplines more fully and accurately. While anecdotal evidence seems to suggest that the Wikipedia assignment has positive outcomes, few studies have been conducted to formally assess its impact and its effectiveness. This presentation will describe how a Wikipedia assignment was integrated into a psychology course to replace the traditional major paper typically assigned in such courses in order to, on the one hand, improve coverage of psychological topics on Wikipedia and have students contribute meaningfully to this important online resource, and, on the other hand, to help students appreciate the ongoing nature of learning and the value of the peer review process. Thirty seven students worked on significantly expanding and improving nine different Wikipedia articles over a period 15 weeks. A survey was administered at the end of the academic semester in order to capture and quantify students’ perceptions of the experience. The survey yielded both qualitative and quantitative data on the perceived benefits of the Wikipedia assignment across multiple domains and on ways the Wikipedia assignments could be improved. The findings from the survey will be summarized and discussed in the presentation. These findings suggest ways for educators to more effectively plan Wikipedia assignments in their courses. The findings also suggest ways for the Wikipedia community to attract and support more new Wikipedians and to ensure that they become life-long contributors to this ever-expanding online encyclopedia.
Track (Wikis and the Public Sector; GLAM (Galleries, Libraries, Archives, and Museums); WikiCulture and Community; Research, Analysis, and Education; Technology and Infrastructure)
Research, Analysis, and Education
Length of presentation/talk (if other than 25 minutes, specify how long)
25 Minutes
Will you attend Wikimania if your submission is not accepted?
Yes
Slides or further information (optional)
Powerpoints will be used
Special request as to time of presentations (for example - can not present on Saturday)
none


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  1. CT Cooper · talk 20:38, 14 February 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  2. MikeLynch
  3. --Frank Schulenburg (talk) 15:48, 24 February 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  4. Alin (WMF) (talk) 21:36, 5 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  5. This talk sounds like a huge help for the campus ambassador program. Blue Rasberry (talk) 15:32, 6 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  6. --Guerillero | My Talk 06:29, 11 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  7. --Lpagola (talk) 14:54, 17 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  8. GastelEtzwane (talk) 22:51, 18 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  9. Ldavis (WMF) (talk) 23:08, 21 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  10. --Brest (talk) 00:16, 22 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  11. Struckwicked (talk) 08:25, 24 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  12. --Rangilo Gujarati (talk) 14:21, 24 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  13. Psychology (talk) 14:32, 28 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  14. Graham87 (talk) 10:33, 31 March 2012 (UTC)--Ctrala (talk) 17:05, 12 July 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  15. Georgiasouthernlynn (talk) 15:52, 7 April 2012 (UTC)I have to agree. This seems like one of the most exciting and relevant presentation proposals.[reply]
  16. MyNameWasTaken (talk) 20:51, 16 April 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  17. MichChemGSI (talk) 20:47, 5 July 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  18. Srikeit (talk) 16:01, 9 July 2012 (UTC)[reply]
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