(If you're not an Office fan, this whole scene is making fun of how Michael blindly trusts everything he reads on the internet)
I've always been a little wary of a public encyclopedia, because ANYONE can post ANYTHING they want on a site for people who are looking for "accurate" information. If anyone has been on a social media site lately, they'll see it's not hard to find the interesting things that people have to show and tell. If these are the people who are going to contribute to academia through an online encyclopedia... good luck to us all.
However!! Today, I was challenged. Did you know that Wikipedia has a grading rubric for each page posted to the site? Or did you know that a group of approximately 10 professors assign a grade to each page? Because I didn't.
When I was able to see the "grade" given for a page on Wikipedia, I had a more accurate understanding of how to interpret the information provided. I'm not going to suggest that you can trust everything you read on Wikipedia now, but at least you have the ability to decide how credible the source is when you look at the grade assigned to it. This will be helpful in allowing students to use Wikipedia in their research and teaching them how to find and use credible and accurate sources.
So next time someone tells you that Wikipedia can't be trusted, see if the know about the grading feature and the fact that each page is approved and graded by professors. It may change their perspective. #GiveWikiAChance
Shannon, first off, this is a great meme. Michael Scott is always on point with articulating ridiculous ideas. I had a similar experience with my teachers as well, wikipedia was a no-go! I like that you discuss the importance of having the ability to decide how credible the source on wikipedia is, instead of reading everything with skepticism. I had no idea of the grading criteria for wikipedia articles either and it was very helpful for me to see that first, there is one, and second, it is quite extensive! I am definitely going to #givewikiachance from here on out! Great post!
ReplyDeleteShannon this was my experience in college exactly with Wikipedia. It wasn't acceptable and definitively some professors hated it. I wonder if they knew that it was monitored and corrected? Or if maybe to start it wasn't monitored, since that way of thinking seems so prevalent. I am excited we both gained some knowledge and another way to teach credibility to our students!
ReplyDeleteShannon, amazing meme I love it! You definitey captured what I have been told my whole life about Wikipedia in that meme. Like you I did not realize how creditable a source Wikipedia can be.
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