Question everything: Teaching students how to better use Wikipedia

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Oregon State University instruction and outreach librarian Laurie Bridges wants to teach university students not just how to use the popular online encyclopedia Wikipedia with a more informed eye, but to create and edit Wikipedia pages themselves. She argues that the experience will improve their research skills, and that casting a wider net of editors will increase diversity on the site.

“There are huge gaps in representations in Wikipedia, so working to fill those gaps is important for access to information and equity,” Bridges said. “Nobody knows exactly how many editors are white males on English Wikipedia, but it’s estimated to be between 80 and 90 percent. People write about what interests them, it’s only natural. So, there need to be more voices in Wikipedia.”

On Feb. 8, Bridges and two other librarians joined with the organization AfroCROWD to coordinate a Wikipedia editathon, “Writing African American History into Wikipedia.” Oregon State students participated in the event at the Valley Library. Oregon State’s sister library in Abeokuta, Nigeria also hosted an editathon the same day with a focus on Nigerian history. The OSU group added more than 6,000 words to 41 Wikipedia articles in a span of three hours. Other editathons are planned.

Bridges, an associate professor, will also be teaching an Honors College course on Wikipedia during spring term.

“The editathon and the class I’m teaching are both designed to bring more voices to the creation and editing process of Wikipedia,” Bridges said.

Bridges and Carroll University librarian Meghan Dowell have recently published a column in The Journal of Academic Librarianship about why Wikipedia is an important pedagogical tool. They argue that Wikipedia is a great tool for librarians to teach information literacy.

“The transparency of the Wikipedia article allows the student to see attribution in action,” Bridges and Dowell wrote. “Wikipedia allows for clear delineation of attribution, as opposed to traditional textbooks and scholarly works, where it can be unclear which of multiple authors wrote a particular section or chapter.”

The fifth-most visited website in the world, Wikipedia is often viewed by academics with deep skepticism. After all, Wikipedia’s model is one of using volunteers to create and edit its entries, rather than a team of academic researchers. The information found on Wikipedia can be dubious, but it remains a starting place for many college students doing research online. Bridges argues that instead of being dismissive of Wikipedia or trying to keep students from using the site, that students should be encouraged to become editors and article creators themselves, and use the experience to hone their research skills.

“Is Wikipedia perfect? No. But, it’s time for teachers and instructors to stop dismissing Wikipedia out-of-hand,” Bridges said. “We all know everyone is using Wikipedia including doctors, scientists, and students. We should examine and question our own assumptions about Wikipedia and talk with students, in-depth, about what it is, what it isn’t, and how it can be used as a source for information.”

The process of information creation has value and scholarship can be a conversation, Bridges said. Putting together Wikipedia articles can teach students lessons about how authority is constructed and contextual, and how to become a more discerning consumer of online information.

“If we want a more informed citizenry, where people aren’t so easily manipulated by fake news, we need to teach students about the information sources they use,” Bridges said. “Saying, ‘Don’t use Wikipedia,’ is not helpful, and in fact may be detrimental. We are seeing all around us what happens when people don’t dig below the surface about the information they are consuming – Who created it? Who paid for it? What sources are cited? Whose viewpoint is this?”