Why and how librarians should engage with Wikipedia

Wikipedia is a free online encyclopedia that anyone can edit, with over 3 million English articles as of July 2010. It has a simple interface and covers topics from multiple perspectives globally. While some criticize its open editing model, it has processes to ensure information is verifiable and from a neutral point of view, with over 1500 administrators monitoring content. Educators and librarians are increasingly using Wikipedia for assignments and instruction to teach information and digital literacy skills.

This document discusses creating online learning spaces using wikis. It provides context about wikis and their uses in education by describing wikis, comparing them to blogs, and giving examples of how wikis can be used. Potential uses of wikis discussed include classroom or unit learning spaces, subject-specific wikis, individual student digital portfolios, and project or inquiry learning. The document also notes that wiki content can relate to standards across the whole curriculum, specifically personal and interpersonal learning standards.

Open Education Resources (OERs) are becoming more common throughout educational institutions, however, there is still a need for conversation and to promote the free resources that are available. OERs can be used as an outreach tool for patrons to gain access to works and materials that may only be available through a paid educational institution, school or for profit entities.

This document discusses making Wikipedia more diverse by addressing biases. It provides an overview of Wikipedia, noting its size but also biases like gender, racial, and cultural representation gaps in coverage and the editor base. It discusses initiatives like WikiProjects, AfroCROWD and Whose Knowledge that aim to broaden representation. The document encourages non-profits to use and contribute to Wikipedia to share knowledge, but notes challenges like biases that organizations could help address by editing, contributing content about underrepresented groups, and collaborating with Wikimedia through outreach.

Wikipedia is a free online encyclopedia that allows anyone to edit its articles. It contains over 270 language editions and was founded in 2001 as an offshoot of Nupedia. Wikipedia appeals to students and others as a starting point for research due to its wide range of general and detailed information on various topics. While free editing allows factual errors to be quickly corrected, it also opens the possibility of non-factual information being posted. Wikipedia utilizes various applications and features like discussion pages and tabs to facilitate collaborative editing and improve the user experience.

The document is a slide presentation about open education. It discusses acknowledging the traditional lands where the presentation is taking place. It then discusses making open the default practice in education and defines open education as resources, tools and practices that are free of barriers and can be fully used, shared and adapted digitally. It provides examples of open education initiatives like open textbooks and MOOCs. It emphasizes benefits like increasing access, improving learning, and enabling collaboration. It suggests rethinking learning resources, experiences and recognition to further open education goals.

The document provides an overview of wikis including: 1. Wikis allow for collaborative editing and knowledge sharing in real-time. Jimmy Wales envisioned wikis providing free access to all human knowledge. 2. Wikis have various types including wikitextbooks, wikirecipes, and wikis focused on specific topics. They allow anyone to add, fix, or erase content. 3. Wikis can be used in classrooms to motivate students and encourage participation. Students can work collaboratively on group projects and manage documents. Challenges include potential for vandalism and unreliable information from anonymous authors.

This document summarizes a Wikipedia editing workshop given at the SpotOn 2013 conference. The workshop provided an introduction to editing Wikipedia, including how to create a user account and profile page, identify pages to improve, and create stub articles. Attendees were encouraged to edit Wikipedia pages during the session. The facilitators explained basic Wikipedia syntax for formatting text and inserting links. They also discussed strategies for creating new articles and key principles like relying on published sources and maintaining a neutral point of view. An overview was given of the Wikimedia Foundation and various Wikipedia and Wikimedia projects.

Slides for a talk on "Open Practices for the Connected Researcher" given by Brian Kelly, UKOLN at the University of Exeter on 23 October 2012, as part of a series of Open Access Week events held at the university. See http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/seminars/exeter-open-access-week-2012/

Presentation for Small Museum Association 2014 Conference, #SMA_14, on Wikipedia for GLAMS (Galleries, Libraries, Archives & Museums). By Tracy Jentzsch of the University of Delaware's Museum Studies Program and Mary Mark Okerbloom, Wikipedian in Residence at the Chemical Heritage Foundation.

This document provides an overview of wikis and Wikipedia. It discusses how wikis allow collaborative editing of web pages through simplified markup languages. Key points include: - Wikis are websites that allow users to easily create and edit pages through a web browser. - Wikipedia was formally launched in 2001 and allows anyone to contribute or modify content. - Wikis promote open editing but also provide version histories and oversight to catch mistakes or vandalism.

An encyclopedia is a set of books or online resource that provides information on many topics in alphabetical order. Encyclopedias have evolved from printed books to include online and multimedia versions. While Wikipedia allows open collaboration, traditional encyclopedias ensure accuracy through expert editing of contributed content. The purpose of an encyclopedia continues to be debated, between providing quick facts versus authoritative in-depth information.

A wiki is an editable web page that allows for collaboration, with each page containing a discussion board, page history, and feed. It provides a collaborative workspace where pages can be edited and modified by users, and includes features like discussion boards and page histories to track changes over time. Users can get help with wikis from Geoff Cain in the Distance Learning & Multimedia Services department if needed.

This document provides guidance for contributing to Wikipedia, the world's largest online encyclopedia. It outlines that anyone can edit Wikipedia by creating a user account or editing anonymously. When editing, contributors should follow Wikipedia policies on notability, no original research, reliable sources, and avoiding conflicts of interest. The document encourages finding a topic to improve, asking questions, and participating in edit-a-thon events to learn how to contribute constructively to Wikipedia.

This document provides an overview of wikis and Wikipedia. It discusses how wikis allow collaborative editing of web pages through simplified markup languages. Key points include: - Wikis were created to be the simplest online databases that could work and allow easy correcting of mistakes. - Wikipedia was formally launched in 2001 and anyone can edit pages, though recent changes are monitored for quality. - An example collaborative novel project called "A Million Penguins" that allowed open editing is discussed. - Basic wiki markup for formatting text is demonstrated. - An assignment is outlined where students will expand a stub article on Wikipedia.

Document published at Wikimedia UK AGM in Bristol April 2011 - bringing the work of the Chapter up to date

The British Columbia Open Textbook Project aims to increase access to post-secondary education by reducing student costs. It has created 40 open textbooks for the highest enrolled first and second year courses. The project has expanded to include open educational resources and professional development for faculty. A group of BC librarians called BCOER collaborates on projects like an OER assessment rubric and subject guides to support faculty adoption of open educational resources.

Slides for a workshop session on "Open Knowledge: Wikipedia and Beyond" facilitated by Brian Kelly and Simon Grant, Cetis at the Cetis 2014 conference at the University of Bolton on 17-18 June 2014. See http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/events/cetis-2014-open-knowledge-wikipedia-and-beyond/

This document is a presentation by Brian Kelly from Cetis on editing Wikipedia and supporting users. The presentation provides 11 top tips for librarians on Wikipedia, including understanding why it is important, being willing to update articles, creating an account and profile, understanding principles, and supporting others. It also discusses case studies on Wikipedia use in education and outlines the structure of a workshop to train others on editing Wikipedia.

Slides for a talk on "Wikipedia, Wikimedia UK and Higher Education: Developments in the UK" given by Brian Kelly, Cetis at the Eduwiki 2014 conference in Belgrade, Serbia on 24 March 2014. Note that due to the talk being limited to 15 minutes rather than the 45 minutes originally expected only a summary version of these slides was presented, For further information see http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/events/eduwiki-serbia-2014/

Can you imagine a world in which every single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge? Every day Wikipedia’s audacious vision comes closer to reality, as humans (and other information services) exploit this top-ranking information source. Here is an opportunity for educators to learn about how Wikipedia works to realise its position as a ‘neutral compilation of verifiable, established facts.’ and consider what information literacy education looks like in 2015, and how Wikipedia projects provide a way to move from a consumer to creator culture of learning.

Slides for a talk on "Developing an Ethical Approach to Using Wikipedia as the Front Matter to all Research" given by Brian Kelly, UK Web Focus Ltd. at the Wikipedia Science 2015 conference at The Wellcome Trust, London on 3 September 2015. See http://ukwebfocus.com/events/an-ethical-approach-to-using-wikipedia-as-the-front-matter-to-research/

Since Wikipedia launched in 2001, librarians have maintained a cautious and, at times, hostile relationship with the online, crowd-sourced encyclopedia. Librarians have largely ignored Wikipedia, citing it as an unreliable and non-authoritative resource, and steering information seekers toward traditional reference materials. While librarians waged this quiet war, Wikipedia has gained increasing dominance as an information resource, and is now the indisputable starting point for most quick research. In this presentation, attendees will learn how to wield the power of Wikipedia in their libraries and embrace Wikipedia as an information resource. Presenters will discuss how to use Wikipedia for reference and instruction, linking online resources, increasing search engine optimization, and creating linked data for the semantic web. Presenters will also discuss the great need for librarians to delve into the world of Wikipedia as researchers and contributors; including the ethics of contributing to Wikipedia. Presenters: Dustin Fife, Rebekah Cummings, Jessica Breiman

Slides from presentation at the Open Educational Resources Conference 2017 held at Resource for London on 5-6 April 2017. The innovation remit of the Wikimedia residency at the University of Edinburgh has been to raise awareness of Wikimedia and its sister projects, design and deliver digital skills engagement events such as editathons (groups of staff & student editors coming together to edit Wikipedia pages on a focused theme – both inside and outside the curriculum) and to work with colleagues all across the institution to find ways in which the University – as a knowledge creation organisation – can most benefit and contribute to the development of this huge open knowledge resource.

This document discusses Wikipedia and its role in medicine. It notes that Wikipedia is one of the most popular websites globally, containing over 4 million English articles. Though editor numbers have declined since 2007, automated processes and experienced editors help ensure accuracy. Medical articles receive around 200 million monthly views. While anyone can edit, safeguards like required citations and experienced editors help ensure quality. The goal is to provide free access to health information for all in their preferred language.

An overview of Wikipedia, followed by a discussion of the relationship between libraries and Wikipedia. Wikipedia is a really important resource but a lot of people don’t fully understand how it works, and I think it’s particularly important for educators and librarians to do so. This presentation is about what WIkipedia is, how to edit it, and why we can use it as not only a useful source of information but a great information literacy teaching tool.

Brief introduction to Wikimedia, and overview of classroom Wikipedia assignments -- benefits, best practices, pitfalls and gains. (Updated May 2014). Thanks to LiAnna Davis and Jami Mathewson at WMF for their help and content (quotes, education project slides).

This document introduces wikis and their educational uses. It discusses the differences between read-only and read/write web environments. Wikis allow collaborative writing and editing. The document then guides participants through activities to evaluate educational wikis, edit a wiki page, create their own wiki, and share their wiki with others. Benefits of wikis include engagement, collaboration and 21st century skills, while concerns include information literacy and inappropriate content.

Presentation on Wikipedi and Higher Education given at University of Sydney Writing Hub during symposium on teaching with Wikipedia.

This document discusses opportunities for cultural heritage institutions like museums, libraries, and archives to partner with Wikipedia. It outlines Wikipedia's uniqueness as the 5th most visited site worldwide that is volunteer-driven and non-profit. Reasons for institutions to partner include meeting information demands, attracting new audiences, and reviewing publicly available information. Challenges include losing control and prestige as well as rights management issues. The document then provides examples of successful partnerships between institutions and Wikipedia through programs like Wikipedians in Residence. It concludes by discussing challenges and the importance of Wikipedia in furthering the open access movement.

Presented at "Access Techniques and Systems for Archives" LIS course (Kenneth Heger) at University of Maryland iSchool 4/16/2014. This presentation covers an introduction to the principles and practices of using Wikipedia for archives and other cultural institutions. I focus especially on profession's conception of access and Wikipedia's place within an archival framework, with some discussion of the history of archives, NARA, and the GLAM-Wiki movement.

A presentation to the 2015 Virginia Humanities Conference about the relationship between museums and Wikipedia.

This document introduces Clicklaw Wikibooks, a wiki platform for collaboratively creating legal information books. It allows numerous legal experts and organizations to jointly edit and publish materials that can be accessed online or in multiple formats like PDF and EPUB. Clicklaw Wikibooks aims to make plain language legal information more findable, up-to-date and accessible for British Columbians. Over 30 legal professionals currently use it to maintain publications, with the most popular receiving over 14,000 monthly views. The platform continues expanding to include more titles, languages and customization options to serve the public.

Slides for "Getting to Grips with Wikipedia: a Practical Session" to be facilitated by Brian Kelly, Cetis and Nancy Graham, University of Roehampton at the LILAC 2014 conference on 23 April 2014. See http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/events/lilac-2014-getting-to-grips-with-wikipedia/

Wikipedia and Healthcare: effective uses, future directions. Introduction to Wikipedia and Wikimedia Foundation projects, focusing on medical articles and projects.

1. The document introduces wikis and their educational uses. Wikis allow for collaborative writing and sharing of resources online. 2. Examples of educational uses of wikis include collaboratively writing class texts, group projects, sharing teaching resources, and professional learning communities. 3. Attendees participated in activities like evaluating educational wikis, editing a wiki page, and creating their own wiki to use in their teaching.

Editing Wikipedia articles is simple, as anyone can edit an article by clicking the 'edit' link. Wikipedia is self-correcting as more people contribute and entries improve over time. There is also an extensive infrastructure for people to comment or provide other viewpoints on editorial matters. The community is typically fast to react to questionable changes and either rollback or question them. Wikipedia contains the largest collection of knowledge in human history, with over 6 million entries in the English version alone, more than 20 times the size of the largest printed encyclopedia. The success of Wikipedia depends primarily on its users, or Wikipedians, who have unique traits like openness, computer knowledge, motivation, and neutrality that allow the collaborative creation and sharing

This document provides an introduction to cloud storage and summarizes a presentation on the topic. It discusses the history of storage systems and how cloud storage works. Popular cloud storage services like Google Drive, Dropbox, and iCloud are examined. The document outlines some risks of cloud storage like security and privacy issues. It also provides a framework for selecting cloud services and questions to consider regarding purposes, benefits, costs and risks.

This document provides the agenda and brief technical tips for Wyld Morris Zoom Meeting No. 7, which is a new members evening that will include welcoming new potential members, learning about morris dancing from the squire, understanding the basic moves, and perspectives from a new dancer on why they enjoy morris dancing. The technical tips explain how to switch between speaker and gallery view and how to pin a video to focus on one participant.

The document provides information about an online meeting of the Wyld Morris group who enjoy morris dancing and singing. It outlines that the group will continue enjoying their interests during lockdown, support each other, and be even better when they next meet in person. The meeting agenda includes introductions, warm-ups, demonstrations, group dancing and music, an open discussion, and tips for using Zoom including muting audio when not speaking and only having one musician unmuted at a time. Links to online dance instruction videos and resources are also provided.

The document summarizes Brian Kelly's presentation on predicting and preparing for emerging learning technologies. It discusses identifying technology trends, drivers, and challenges through the Delphi process used by the NMC Horizon Report. It also provides tools and methods for institutions to plan for future technologies, including scenario planning, acknowledging risks, and engaging with challenges. The presentation aims to help attendees understand limitations of future forecasting and apply similar methodologies to plan locally.

Slides for talk on "Web Preservation, or Managing your Organisation’s Online Presence After the Organisation Ceases to Exist" given by Brian Kelly, UK Web Focus at the IRMS 2016 conference in Brighton on 17 May 2016. See http://ukwebfocus.com/events/irms-2016-web-preservation

This document provides a summary and conclusions from a workshop on "Preparing for the Future: Technological Challenges and Beyond". It recaps the workshop which explored tools for thinking differently about the future, used a Delphi process to gather expert opinions, and developed an action brief planning template. It notes limitations in approaches and the importance of acknowledging risks while also learning from past examples. Contact details and additional resources are provided for those interested in further information.

This document discusses making a case to senior management for funding to explore innovative technologies. It provides guidance on identifying implications, risks, and risk management strategies for new technologies. It also presents an action brief statement template to convince management of a technology's potential benefits. The document concludes with an exercise where attendees in groups prepare a short presentation making a case for funding to investigate one technology.

This document discusses scenario planning as a strategic planning method. It describes the scenario planning process, which involves defining assumptions and drivers of change, developing initial scenarios, and identifying issues. The document then provides examples of scenarios for the library sector, including the effects of UK withdrawal from the EU or greater power for the European Court. Small groups are asked to develop scenarios focusing on alternative discovery sources, changed librarian roles, or other topics. Finally, the document summarizes scenarios developed in a previous workshop on commercialization of libraries, devolved ownership of services, universal skills, and niche librarians.

Slides "D1: The NMC Methodology" for a one-day workshop on "Preparing for the Future: Technological Challenges and Beyond" by Brian Kelly and Tony Hirst at the ILI 2015 conference. Held on Monday 19 October 2015 For further information see http://ukwebfocus.com/events/ili-2015-preparing-for-the-future

Slides "C1: Future Technology Detecting Tools & Techniques" for a one-day workshop on "Preparing for the Future: Technological Challenges and Beyond" by Brian Kelly and Tony Hirst at the ILI 2015 conference. Held on Monday 19 October 2015 See http://ukwebfocus.com/events/ili-2015-preparing-for-the-future

This document discusses exploring emerging technologies. It provides information on discovering new technologies through peers, publications, experts, and online sources. The document outlines the ILI 2015 conference program and highlights some topics that may be relevant or surprising. It also describes the NMC Horizon Report, which is produced by an international community of experts and identifies important emerging technologies for libraries through a refined expert panel process. The conclusion emphasizes the importance of exploring emerging technologies through various approaches, but also understanding the wider context for implications and planning.