This course page is an automatically-updated version of the main course page at dashboard.wikiedu.org. Please do not edit this page directly; any changes will be overwritten the next time the main course page gets updated.
Why do people do things that they know are wrong? Why do we like some people and dislike others? Why do we believe some things and disbelieve others? How do we make sense of our unbelievably complex world? Some of the most pressing issues of our times revolve around these questions, and social psychology is the one discipline that addresses them scientifically. This course provides a broad overview of the field of social psychology, emphasizing major themes, historical trends, and current directions.
This is a course designed for graduate students. The content leans toward students pursuing a career in social psychology, although the course is open to students from outside of the discipline as well.
The primary method of instruction is reading, writing about, and discussing classic and contemporary articles in social psychology. Each class session will consist of a lecture that explores that day’s topic, offering context and background. Discussion will be woven through each lecture. Through reading, writing about, and discussing original work, the goal is to finish the course with a deeper understanding of the broad themes and issues that inform social psychology.
Complete the introductory training modules. During this training, you will make edits in a sandbox and learn the basic rules of Wikipedia.
Create a User page.
To practice editing and communicating on Wikipedia, introduce yourself to another student on their user talk page.
Explore topics related to your topic area to get a feel for how Wikipedia is organized. What areas seem to be missing? As you explore, make a mental note of articles that seem like good candidates for improvement.
In class - Intertwine
get started on Wikipedia with your peers!
Intertwine is a platform where you you will be chatting with student editors enrolled in other Wiki Education courses. This week, the featured activities include:
Creating your own User page
Learning about user talk page, and writing on others' Talk pages
Getting to know more Wikipedia editors and learning from each other's experiences
Sign up for a session here. If you haven’t logged in using your Wikipedia account, you will first be redirected to Wikipedia logging page. After logging in using your Wikipedia credentials, you will be able to sign up for our activity.
Milestones
All students have Wikipedia user accounts and are listed on the course page.
Week 2
Course meetings
Monday, 9 October 2017 | Wednesday, 11 October 2017
In class - Exploring the topic area
Be prepared to discuss some of your observations about Wikipedia articles in your topic area that are missing or could use improvement.
Supplementary training: [[../../../training/students/sources|Sources and Citations]]
Assignment -
Review Wikipedia's rules for topics related to medicine, human health, and psychology.
Assignment - Choosing your article
Research and list 3–5 articles on your Wikipedia user page that you will consider working on as your main project. Look at the talk page for existing topics for a sense of who else is working on it and what they're doing. Describe your choices to your instructor for feedback.
Week 4
Course meetings
Monday, 23 October 2017 | Wednesday, 25 October 2017
In class - Discuss the article topics
Discuss the topics students will be working on, and determine strategies for researching and writing about them.
Supplementary training: [[../../../training/students/sandboxes|Sandboxes and Mainspace]]
Assignment - Finalize your topic and start researching
Finalize your topic selection and assign it to yourself on the course page.
Create a one-paragraph to one-page description of what you plan to contribute to the topic. You may wish to post that to the article's talk page.
Compile a bibliography of relevant, reliable sources and post it to the talk page of the article you are working on. Begin reading the sources. Make sure to check in on the talk page (or watchlist) to see if anyone has advice on your bibliography.
Assignment - Drafting starter articles
If you are starting a new article, write a 3–4 paragraph summary version of your article—with citations—in your Wikipedia sandbox. If you are improving an existing article, create a detailed outline reflecting your proposed changes, and post this for community feedback, along with a brief description of your plans, on the article’s talk page. Make sure to check back on the talk page often and engage with any responses.
Begin working with classmates and other editors to polish your short starter article and fix any major issues.
Continue research in preparation for expanding your article.
Week 5
Course meetings
Monday, 30 October 2017 | Wednesday, 1 November 2017
In class - Wikipedia culture and etiquette
Talk about Wikipedia culture and etiquette, and (optionally) revisit the concept of sandboxes and how to use them.
Q&A session with instructor about interacting on Wikipedia and getting started with writing.
In class - Intertwine
evaluate a Wikipedia article with your peers!
Intertwine is a platform where you you will be chatting with student editors enrolled in other Wiki Education courses. This week, the featured activities include:
Learning Wikipedia’s five pillars as evaluation criteria
Evaluating an existing Wikipedia article with your peers
Getting to know more Wikipedia editors and learning from each other's experiences
Sign up for a session here. If you haven’t logged in using your Wikipedia account, you will first be redirected to Wikipedia logging page. After logging in using your Wikipedia credentials, you will be able to sign up for our activity.
Milestones
All students have started editing articles or drafts on Wikipedia.
Week 6
Course meetings
Monday, 6 November 2017 | Wednesday, 8 November 2017
In class - Moving articles to mainspace
We'll discuss moving your article out of your sandboxes and into Wikipedia's main space.
A general reminder: Don't panic if your contribution disappears, and don't try to force it back in.
Check to see if there is an explanation of the edit on the article's talk page. If not, (politely) ask why it was removed.
Contact your instructor or Wikipedia Content Expert and let them know.
If you are expanding an existing article, copy your edit into the article. If you are making many small edits, save after each edit before you make the next one. Do NOT paste over the entire existing article, or large sections of the existing article.
If you are creating a new article, do NOT copy and paste your text, or there will be no record of your work history. Follow the instructions in the "Moving out of your sandbox" handout.
Begin expanding your article into a comprehensive treatment of the topic.
Week 7
Course meetings
Monday, 13 November 2017 | Wednesday, 15 November 2017
In class - Building articles
Demo uploading images and adding images to articles.
review your Wikipedia article draft with your peers!
Intertwine is a platform where you you will be chatting with student editors enrolled in other Wiki Education courses. This week, the featured activities include:
Sharing the Wikipedia article your drafted with your peers.
Getting feedbacks from your peers on how to make your Wikipedia article even better
Providing feedbacks to your peers and help them improve their article
Sign up for a session here. If you haven’t logged in using your Wikipedia account, you will first be redirected to Wikipedia logging page. After logging in using your Wikipedia credentials, you will be able to sign up for our activity.
Milestones
Every student has finished reviewing their assigned articles, making sure that every article has been reviewed.
In class - Media literacy discussion
Open discussion of the concepts of neutrality, media literacy, and the impact and limits of Wikipedia.
Assignment - Address peer review suggestions
Make edits to your article based on peers’ feedback. If you disagree with a suggestion, use talk pages to politely discuss and come to a consensus on your edit.
Week 9
Course meetings
Monday, 27 November 2017 | Wednesday, 29 November 2017
In class - Discuss further article improvements
Continue discussing how the articles can be further improved. Come up with improvement goals for each article for next week.
Assignment - Continue improving articles
Return to your classmates' articles you previously reviewed, and provide more suggestions for further improvement. If there is a disagreement, suggest a compromise.
Do additional research and writing to make further improvements to your article, based on your classmates' suggestions and any additional areas for improvement you can identify.
Week 10
Course meetings
Monday, 4 December 2017 | Wednesday, 6 December 2017