Project+Overview


 * Let’s Be Wikipedians! **

Is it good to use as a source in formal research? □ yes □ no Why? (See definition and root of “authority”) Good to get ideas for research? □ yes □ no Good for finding sources to use in formal research? □ yes □ no
 * Wikipedia. ** Is it a dirty word? □ yes □ no

Your challenge is to contribute article content to Wikipedia.* However, the only way Wikipedia will accept your content is if you cite your sources. And the only way Wikipedia will accept your sources is if they are authoritative.

What content will you contribute? You may choose to contribute content to the Cross Timbers article or to a stub/requested article of your choice.

First, we will take an online quiz to get to know the ins and outs of Wikipedia. (Quiz grade) Brainstorm at least two possible topic choices and compose a research plan on each using your class wiki page. Directions for your research plan will be on your class wiki. Rank your topic choices and talk to a teacher to determine your assigned topic. Daily grade: Research plan Use your research plan to find answers to your questions, writing everything down on your wiki page. Don’t forget sources! These are the key. Daily grade on progress. Draft your Wikipedia article content on your wiki page. If you’d like to explore the markup Wikipedia uses, that’s even better. If you’d like to create your own user account on Wikipedia to use as your “sandbox,” that’s even better. However, you’ll have to talk to Mrs. Brem about how to do that. Daily grade on first draft. You need at least two peer-edits on your draft, using the final grading rubric as the evaluation tool. That means you will need to peer-edit two of your classmates’ drafts. Daily grade on peer-edits.
 * Step 1: **
 * Step 2: **
 * Step 3: **
 * Step 4: **

Submit your final draft for grading. Final grade rubric will be used.
 * Step 5: **

** Daily Grade Rubric **
 * Also, I’d like to experiment with citizendium.com, an offshoot of Wikipedia which claims to be more reliable. There is more article content available, but I’m not sure if they’ll accept us as experts!




 * Final Rubric **
 * Score || 1 || 2 || 3 || 4 ||
 * Style || Draft is written in an unacceptable style. || Draft is not written in the formal, specified style of Wikipedia. || A few lapses in style here or there (too informal). || Conforms to the accepted writing style of Wikipedia. Polished and professional. ||
 * Content || Irrelevant content. || Relevant content, but some gaps in information. || Relevant content. || Relevant content explains topic in-depth. ||
 * Sources || Questionable or no sources. || Some sources are authoritative; some questionable. || Sources are authoritative, but could use a few more. || Sources are authoritative and varied. ||
 * Reference List || No reference list included. || Reference list is included but there are several errors. || Reference list is included but there are a few formatting errors. || Reference list is included and is correctly formatted. ||
 * Formatting || Three or more errors in formatting. || Two errors in formatting. || One error in formatting. || Formatting reflects acceptable Wikipedia style. ||
 * Conventions || Difficult to understand. || Several errors. || A few errors. || Little to no errors in grammar, spelling or punctuation. ||

24=100 23=96 22=92 21=88 20=84 19=80 18=76 17=72 16=68 15=64 14=60 13=56 <13=50 *Five points extra credit if you keep this rubric and give it back to Mrs. Cato when you submit your draft!*