Our topic this week is about whether it is advisable to allow students to use Wikipedia.org as a resource. As an English teacher, I have always stressed to my students the unreliability of using Wikipedia, especially when conducting research for a formal paper to be cited and handed in for a grade. This makes me something of a wiki-hypocrite, because any time I need to look up information on a topic, Wikipedia is my fist stop. Is this a case of "Do as I say, not as I do?" Will I allow my students to use Wikipedia in their research, even though I love the site for my own informal research purposes? Most likely, I will not. My reasoning for refusing this site as a source is twofold. First, Wikipedia is wonderfully informative, but, as we have all heard/read/been beaten in the face with a gazillion times, the site can be altered and information can be incomplete and/or incorrect. More importantly, many of my high school students lack the judgement and/or discretion to take their Wikipedia info with a grain of salt. I can read a Wikipedia article and glean insight from it without blindly accepting its thoroughness, correctness, and validity. Many high school students, however, find it hard to observe boundaries with the information provided. Second (and most importantly) I know that the vast majority of college professors frown upon the use of Wikipedia as a source, some so much so that many a paper citing Wikipedia is docked a high percentage of points or thrown out altogether. There is nothing constructive in introducing or condoning a behavior that will result in confusion or frustration for these students later on. That said, I have read several blogs that suggest using Wikipedia as a starting point for more in-depth research, and I agree that, when closely monitored, that can be a great idea. A problem I have run into, however, is that the occasional student will use Wikipedia for basically the entire assignment, then throw in some random citations to make the work look more legit. In these instances, I hate Wikipedia, just because it does make itself so tempting...but I suppose that sort of problem is bound to crop up from time to time, no matter how much you warn the students not to do it. Maybe we need a high school class that focuses on teaching children to use technology for good instead of evil.....
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