Archaeology on Wikipedia

Archaeology on Wikipedia
	archaeology in Edgewater, Iowa
When and Where
Date	Thursday, November 17, 2016
Time	3:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Address	MIT, 3.986 The Human Past: Introduction to Archaeology
City, State	Cambridge, MA

Overview

A one-hour learning session, focused on archaeological articles and Wikiprojects.

We will learn the governing principles of Wikipedia, how to assess article quality, and how to make useful contributions.

We will also discuss the value of improving archaeological article quality, both in terms of enhancing our own research skills and sharing knowledge with the public.

Our slide deck

Register

Note that you are not required to register or sign this event page.

You have the option to use This Link to sign up for a Wikipedia account (or sign in with your existing one), and join our Event Dashboard.

Participant list

Please add your Wikipedia username below

Click "edit source." Add the # sign (to continue numbering.)

Then, create your signature by typing four tildes [~] in a row and hitting "Save changes."

FAQ

What should I have?

A laptop and charger
An interest in the state of public knowledge about archaeology

How reliable is Wikipedia?

Check out Accuracy of content

Who edits Wikipedia?

Check out Wikipedia#Community

Also worth knowing about

Thinking like a Wikipedian

Basic guidelines, communication customs, editing customs

The focus here is on developing your "Wikipedia hat," so you can read and evaluate Wikipedia articles based on Wikipedia's standards, not those from your own areas of expertise.

Read over the following Wikipedia policy/guideline pages, and then use what you've learned to evaluate one of the articles listed.

(Hint: Read "nutshells" and intros most carefully, then skim the rest of each policy/guideline page. That will give you the sense you need.)

Articles to evaluate: pick one, and use your new "Wikipedia hat" to evaluate them. How might they be improved?

Modified from an exercise created by Amanda Rust

Rating and Communicating on Wikipedia

What Class Labels mean (Featured Article, C-Class, Start-Class, etc.): Wikipedia:Version 1.0 Editorial Team/Assessment
Wikipedia:The perfect article
Wikipedia:Talk page guidelines

Now look up any site or topic from any of your research, from Paper 1 or 2. Explore, Analyze, even Edit!

Excavations at the site of Gran Dolina, in Atapuerca (Spain), during 2008.

Training to edit Wikipedia

Going forward: some resources to help you determine what and how to contribute

WikiProject
What Class Labels mean (Featured Article, C-Class, Start-Class, etc.): Wikipedia:Version 1.0 Editorial Team/Assessment
Portals on wikipedia
Missing articles
Wikipedia:Stubs
Wikipedia:Most-wanted articles
Wikipedia:Translating
Wikipedia:Red links
Wikipedia:Women in Red

Good Digital Citizenship and Activism in Wikipedia: Working with Underrepresented Groups and Topics

written by Amanda Rust, February 2016

Problem: Wikipedia is a globally distributed network where judgement of quality is not based around contributor expertise, but rather work according to the standards of the project itself -- the most legible unit of work is a good citation. As one of the oldest communities on the Internet, Wikipedia gives students to a chance to practice good digital citizenship: use their critical thinking skills to discover community values, norms and styles of communication, and contribute in a way that will make sense to other community members. However, Wikipedia can, like many other communities, have a bias towards the status quo. Therefore, those working on issues related to underrepresented groups can expect to be accused of activism, bias, an agenda, as if those things do not already exist on Wikipedia.

Digital citizenship is doubly important to those working on issues related to underrepresented groups: one must know how to communicate effectively using community standards to convince the Wikipedian community that changes in the status quo does not automatically equal violating policy, and that you are still partners in the same goal of wanting to improve the encyclopedia.