Christy R.’s blog

Evaluation

Against my own design specifications:

Design Specifications:

1.      Accurate, detailed, and grammatically correct texts.

2.      Correct MLA citations and correct wikipedia format.

3.      At least 2 other people’s reviews. +1 more when Ms. Wilson checks :).  

My achievement:

1. Pretty accurate, detailed and grammatically correct description, but not totally. For example, I spotted another mistake (oooonly after I posted it already……………………….!!) saying, ‘They are also known to improve soil quality in degraded and eroded areas of land due to its rapid spread in large areas,’ when it should be ‘their’ instead of ‘its’. I moved texts around a lot to try and make the paragraphs more smooth for the readers but that example sounded really awkward. I think that next time, I could take this even to the next level – and use my yahoo answers account as an advantage. I could simply ask the community’s contributors to review my article before posting. Yahoo answers has many knowledgeable users that I know of, so I think I could personally trust the site to help me out. Besides, I’ve asked and answered many questions on yahoo answers before and it’s been one of the best informative sites I’ve used. (Yes it can get addicting too with scoring points - and you do that by answering questions, 10 points for being the best answer, and voting for the best answers.) 

2. I used citationmachine.net for the MLA citations and I researched wikipedia about its format (for ages), so I think this step was pretty fair.

3. Tselmuun, Udval, and Namuun read my article although only Tselmuun and Udval commented. Then I also gave the article once to Mrs. Wilson. ^^I would say I did pretty good on following my own design specifications (because I made it to suit me heheh). Hopefully the other criterions would be good too?

Against each stage of the project(using the rubric as a guide): 

Originals:

A: Self-grading for investigation: 5 – Because I didn’t complete the whole task on time (finished step 3 + self grading Wednesday morning). 

B: Self-grade: 4-6 (but leaning onto the higher side :P), since I know what I did and how long it took for me to finally reach this stage, I know that I had a bit(juuust a bit…) of a time-management issue. Because it took me so long to find a topic to write about or edit on criterion A, the time pressure incurred with B, and because the article I wanted to edit was already edited by someone else, I had to find another article I was interested in/familiar with to edit (I usually feel more motivated=), which, in turn - meant I had less time to complete criterion B. However, a few hours spent at home paid off, and I feel as though this was one of the assignments that I worked harder on yet, since I actually brought it home and spent time on it, actual time – not just 10-20 minutes.

C:Self grade: 5-6 just because! Edit: BECAUSE … it took me forever to learn the wikipedia format! But I learnt! =) 

D: (aww it’s a sad face.) Self grade: 5-6, hopefully, because I somehow lost bits and pieces of my sanity doing this last - or almost last part of the project even though I am still motivated about it. All the reading up on the wikipedia format, what the system accepted, what it didn’t, etc. - wasn’t so fun for someone like me that doesn’t like to read long descriptions. Didn’t help that I am a slow reader also heheh. 

What I think of it now: as an overall I think I could’ve gotten a pretty good 5 or even 6 because I for once actually tried harder on this project than I did on the last, and I felt it also because I had to do more work at home. I enjoyed it more as well and the negative parts usually hanged around my head but I actually overlooked the fact that I got it in late for A(memory issues had a little bit involvement =/).  

Checking over my wikipedia article again: 

My wikipedia page – had not been changed much. I looked at its history, and on the history, it says 2 users, Soxred93 and Addbot edited my article – but there is also an m next to their edits, m standing for minor edits. As I compared the histories, I realized that Soxred93 added a ‘uncategorized tag’, but I wasn’t sure what Addbot did. I think he/she simply edited a row of space.  

Either way, it doesn’t seem like that much of an issue to me. Something I could overlook, too. I could try and categorize my article though. Should ask for permission first. ^^ 

Improvements I could make:

-         I could improve - yes, grammatically and informatively on my descriptions even more next time by asking contributors of Y!A to check it over for me.

-         Even though I’m careful, most of the time I’m just not as careful as I want to be. I could always try brushing up my reading skills over the summer, because when I tried to learn about the wikipedia formats and its dos and don’ts, I lost a lot of patience. The texts were long, and I sometimes got impatient because of them. Most of the time I didn’t even want to read. I thought it was too boring to start:P so I tried skipping a lot. But I realized that most of it was relative to each other. That was when it became… annoying!!!!!!!

-         Get more sleep. As my usual need-to improve – that’s been on the list for over 3 years. Teenage hormones mess it up. The internet messes it up. Homework messes it up too. I guess I’d just have to experiment on and on until I find the better ways to handle them. And theeen. My beauty sleep. ^^ (Lucid dreams have its part in there too!!!!!! Stop those lucid dreams….)

Evaluation for my evaluation: I think I did fine with E. I hope for a 5 or 6 because I’ve also added what and why, and how I could improve. ^^ And I also tried to follow the rubric. Effort counts too…. D: *:D

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bamboo_clothing =) This is THE link.

 Here was what I put into the wikipedia edit panel body:

”’Bamboo clothing”’ is a modern invention that originated as a desire for a greener planet. It is considered the ‘most sustainable natural fiber on earth with many extraordinary qualities’, along with being comfortable, durable, and stylish. <ref>Naturally Bamboo LLC, “Do You Bamboo? .” Naturally Bamboo. 2007. Naturally Bamboo LLC. 26 Apr 2008 <http://naturallybambooclothing.com/>.</ref><ref>Breckenridge , Jenn. “To Bamboo Or Not To Bamboo.” In The Loop; eco fashion news and reviews brought to you by Greeloop. 13 Mar 2008. Greenloop. 26 Apr 2008 <http://thegreenloopblog.com/2008/03/to-bamboo-or-not-to-bamboo/>. </ref> 

==Organic== Unlike cotton, bamboos do not require a huge amount of water, fertilizer, or pesticide. They are the fastest growing plant of the whole world, taking a time span of approx. (approximately) 3 months to reach full height and 3-4 years for maturity. They are also known to improve soil quality in degraded and eroded areas of land due to its rapid spread in large areas, and they absorb carbon dioxide approx. 5 times faster than normal trees. In addition, bamboo clothing is 100% biodegradable, which means it can be recycled more easily. <ref>Bamboo Clothing Ltd., “About bamboo clothing: Why is it better?.” Bam. 2008. Bamboo Clothing Ltd.. 23 Apr 2008 <http://www.bambooclothing.co.uk/why_is_bamboo_better.html>.</ref> 

Because bamboo clothing is organic, its popularity can increase photosynthesis and reduce the greenhouse gas that adds to global warming. <ref>Fashion Organic Clothes, “Why Organic.” FOCS; Fashion Organic Clothes. 2007. Fashion Organic Clothes. 25 Apr 2008 <http://www.fashionorganic.cn/whyOrganic.asp>.</ref> 

==Fine quality==Along with being extremely soft and ‘luxuriously comfortable, it absorbs and evaporates sweat quicker(3-4 times better than cotton), it has a thermo-control system that allows your body to breathe easier in hot weather(2-3 degrees cooler) and keeps you warmer in cold(2-3 degrees warmer). It is an antistatic material, and it also cuts down 98% of harmful UV rays that attack your skin. Bamboo clothing is antibacterial and antifungal, naturally. Because it acts against bacteria, wearing bamboo keeps you feeling fresher, cleaner, healthier, and smelling better for longer. (Less cloth washing needed, more free time, more water saving!)  

Besides these advantages, bamboo clothing has a smooth and round texture, with little harsh chemical treatments that can irritate skin. Since it is also antibacterial, it resists the spread of bacteria on the skin. This makes it perfect for sensitive or allergy prone skin. <ref>Bamboo Clothing Ltd., “Frequently Asked Questions.” Bam. 2008. Bamboo Clothing Ltd.. 25 Apr 2008 <http://www.bambooclothing.co.uk/why_is_bamboo_better.html>.</ref><ref>Fashion Organic Clothes, “Why Organic.” FOCS; Fashion Organic Clothes. 2007. Fashion Organic Clothes. 25 Apr 2008 <http://www.fashionorganic.cn/whyOrganic.asp>. </ref> 

==Debates== 

Although bamboo fabric is considered eco-friendly and ‘the new silk’, there is a debate over whether it is truly as eco-friendly as many claim it to be.  As a production step, harsh chemicals, possibly toxic - are used to break down the bamboo pulp from the plant. Despite the fact that bamboo clothing is still considered an improvement from synthetic clothes and unnaturally achieved clothes, many of its manufacturing companies are criticized and questioned for the way they produce these fantastic fabrics. <ref> Breckenridge , Jenn. “To Bamboo Or Not To Bamboo.” In The Loop; eco fashion news and reviews brought to you by Greeloop. 13 Mar 2008. Greenloop. 26 Apr 2008 http://thegreenloopblog.com/2008/03/to-bamboo-or-not-to-bamboo/. </ref>

==References==

{{reflist}}

It took a lot of research, and it took a lot of patience (thank you :PP!), and finally it’s done. Notice that I took out the part that says ‘Why is bamboo clothing better for you?’ on this final article because as I went through the wiki rules, it would’ve been considered advertisement, which is discouraged. I learnt a lot by opening the edit panel of random articles and comparing their scripts to each other; the fuller the better, and although it took a little time, I found what I needed; like how to make the references look a little more professional, a little more wikipedia, for example. ^^

Self grade: 5-6, hopefully, because I somehow lost bits and pieces of my sanity doing this last - or almost last part of the project even though I am still motivated about it. All the reading up on the wikipedia format, what the system accepted, what it didn’t, etc. - wasn’t so fun for someone like me that doesn’t like to read long descriptions. Didn’t help that I am a slow reader also heheh.

My Plan for D

 The final article. 

Bamboo Clothing
Bamboo clothing is a modern invention that originated as a desire for a greener planet. It is considered the ‘most sustainable natural fiber on earth with many extraordinary qualities’, along with being comfortable, durable, and stylish. (“Do You Bamboo?.)ⁱⁱⁱ

Contents:

• Organic
• Fine quality
• Debates

Organic

Unlike cotton, bamboos do not require a huge amount of water, fertilizer, or pesticide. They are the fastest growing plant of the whole world, taking a time span of approx. (approximately) 3 months to reach full height and 3-4 years for maturity. They are also known to improve soil quality in degraded and eroded areas of land due to its rapid spread in large areas, and they absorb carbon dioxide approx. 5 times faster than normal trees. In addition, bamboo clothing is 100% biodegradable, which means it can be recycled more easily. Because bamboo clothing is organic, its popularity can increase photosynthesis and reduce the greenhouse gas that adds to global warming. ⁱⁱⁱ

Fine quality

Why is bamboo clothing better for you? Along with being extremely soft and ‘luxuriously comfortable, it absorbs and evaporates sweat quicker(3-4 times better than cotton), it has a thermo-control system that allows your body to breathe easier in hot weather(2-3 degrees cooler) and keeps you warmer in cold(2-3 degrees warmer). (“About bamboo clothing: Why is it better?”.)It is an antistatic material, and it also cuts down 98% of harmful UV rays that attack your skin.Bamboo clothing is antibacterial and antifungal, naturally. Because it acts against bacteria, wearing bamboo keeps you feeling fresher, cleaner, healthier, and smelling better for longer. (Less cloth washing needed, more free time, more water saving!) Besides these advantages, bamboo clothing has a smooth and round texture, with little harsh chemical treatments that can irritate skin. Since it is also antibacterial, it resists the spread of bacteria on the skin. This makes it perfect for sensitive or allergy prone skin. ^ivv

Debates

Although bamboo fabric is considered eco-friendly and ‘the new silk’, there is a debate over whether it is truly as eco-friendly as many claim it to be. (“Bamboo Eco-Fashion”.) As a production step, harsh chemicals, possibly toxic - are used to break down the bamboo pulp from the plant. Despite the fact that bamboo clothing is still an improvement from synthetic clothes and inorganic clothes, many of its manufacturing companies are criticized and questioned for the way they produce these fantastic fabrics. ^vi

iNaturally Bamboo LLC, “Do You Bamboo? .” Naturally Bamboo. 2007. Naturally Bamboo LLC. 26 Apr 2008 <http://naturallybambooclothing.com/>.

iiBreckenridge , Jenn. “To Bamboo Or Not To Bamboo.” In The Loop; eco fashion news and reviews brought to you by Greeloop. 13 Mar 2008. Greenloop. 26 Apr 2008 <http://thegreenloopblog.com/2008/03/to-bamboo-or-not-to-bamboo/>.

iiiBamboo Clothing Ltd., “About bamboo clothing: Why is it better?.” Bam. 2008. Bamboo Clothing Ltd.. 23 Apr 2008 <http://www.bambooclothing.co.uk/why_is_bamboo_better.html>.

ivBamboo Clothing Ltd., “Frequently Asked Questions.” Bam. 2008. Bamboo Clothing Ltd.. 25 Apr 2008 <http://www.bambooclothing.co.uk/why_is_bamboo_better.html>.

vFashion Organic Clothes, “Why Organic.” FOCS; Fashion Organic Clothes. 2007. Fashion Organic Clothes. 25 Apr 2008 <http://www.fashionorganic.cn/whyOrganic.asp>.

viManning, Johneen. “Bamboo Eco-Fashion.” Suit101. 12 Apr 2008. Suit101. 29 Apr 2008 <http://womensfashion.suite101.com/article.cfm/bamboo_eco_fashion>.

Design:

As a closer look into the numismatics article, I realized how it was already fixed. The descriptions were neat, relevant, and grammatically correct. I would have to find another article.

After browsing around several topics and fix-up categories for a bit, I found quite a strange but rather interesting request for an article. It was on bamboo clothing, one of the ‘most wanted’ requests in the arts portal. I will be finding more about bamboo clothing. This is what I will make: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bamboo_clothing. The page is empty. It was a request from one of wikipedia’s contributors!  

Title: Bamboo Clothing

Introduction: Bamboo clothing is a modern invention that originated as a desire for a greener planet. It is considered the ‘most sustainable natural fiber on earth with many extraordinary qualities’ (Mrs. Wilson I tried to find out how to do in-text citation for wikipedia but I couldn’t find out how? This quotation was from the 4^th reference. Help me out on this one please J), along with being comfortable, durable, and stylish.  

Contents:

·         Organic

·         Fine quality

·         Debates

·         Production (I’m not so sure about this one. I can’t find too much information on yet, might add it in later.  

Organic

Unlike cotton, bamboos do not require a huge amount of water, fertilizer, or pesticide. They are the fastest growing plant of the whole world, taking a time span of approx. 3 months to reach full height and 3-4 years for maturity. They are also known to improve soil quality in degraded and eroded areas of land due to its rapid spread in large areas.In addition, bamboo clothing is 100% biodegradable, which means it can be recycled more easily. Because bamboo clothing is organic, its popularity can increase photosynthesis and reduce the greenhouse gas that adds to global warming.  Fine qualityWhy is bamboo clothing better for you? Along with being extremely soft and ‘luxuriously comfortable’(I need in-text citation right here also. This was from the first source), it absorbs and evaporates sweat quicker(3-4 times better than cotton), it has a thermo-control system that allows your body to breathe easier in hot weather(2-3 degrees cooler) and keeps you warmer in cold(2-3 degrees warmer).It is an antistatic material, and it also cuts down 98% of harmful UV rays that attack your skin.Bamboo clothing is antibacterial and antifungal, naturally. Because it acts against bacteria, wearing bamboo keeps you feeling fresher, cleaner, healthier, and smelling better for longer. (Less cloth washing needed, more free time, more water saving!) Besides these advantages, bamboo clothing has a smooth and round texture, with little harsh chemical treatments that can irritate skin. Since it is also antibacterial, it resists the spread of bacteria on the skin. This makes it perfect for sensitive or allergy prone skin. 

Debates

Although bamboo fabric is considered eco-friendly and ‘the new silk’, there is a debate over whether it is truly as eco-friendly as it supposedly is. As a production step, harsh chemicals are used to break down the plant.  Production (Might add this to my article later when I have more time:).) 

Design Specifications

1.      Accurate, detailed, and grammatically correct texts.

2.      Correct MLA citations and correct wikipedia format.

3.      At least 2 other people’s reviews. +1 more when Ms. Wilson checks :).  

Self-grade: 4-6 (but leaning onto the higher side :P), since I know what I did and how long it took for me to finally reach this stage, I know that I had a bit(juuust a bit…) of a time-management issue. Because it took me so long to find a topic to write about or edit on criterion A, the time pressure incurred with B, and because the article I wanted to edit was already edited by someone else, I had to find another article I was interested in/familiar with to edit (I usually feel more motivated=), which, in turn - meant I had less time to complete criterion B. However, a few hours spent at home paid off, and I feel as though this was one of the assignments that I worked harder on yet, since I actually brought it home and spent time on it, actual time – not just 10-20 minutes.

[i]

---

[i] Bamboo Clothing Ltd., “About bamboo clothing: Why is it better?.” Bam. 2008. Bamboo Clothing Ltd.. 23 Apr 2008 <http://www.bambooclothing.co.uk/why_is_bamboo_better.html>.Fashion Organic Clothes, “Why Organic.” FOCS; Fashion Organic Clothes. 2007. Fashion Organic Clothes. 25 Apr 2008 <http://www.fashionorganic.cn/whyOrganic.asp>.Bamboo Clothing Ltd., “Frequently Asked Questions.” Bam. 2008. Bamboo Clothing Ltd.. 25 Apr 2008 <http://www.bambooclothing.co.uk/why_is_bamboo_better.html>.

Naturally Bamboo LLC, “Do You Bamboo? .” Naturally Bamboo. 2007. Naturally Bamboo LLC. 26 Apr 2008 <http://naturallybambooclothing.com/>. 

Breckenridge , Jenn. “To Bamboo Or Not To Bamboo.” In The Loop; eco fashion news and reviews brought to you by Greeloop. 13 Mar 2008. Greenloop. 26 Apr 2008 <http://thegreenloopblog.com/2008/03/to-bamboo-or-not-to-bamboo/>. 

What is the wikiality individual project?

Our last project was a group project. We edited an article on wikipedia altogether and it was formative. The differences here really, is only the fact that we’re going to do it independently, it’s summative, and we could also create our own article if we really want to.

This project relates to me because I get to edit articles that I want, and get to know how one of the most used informative site on my list functions.

This project would benefit me in research, grammar, and knowledge because in order for the information I add/edit to remain on the site, it would have to be of good quality.

My method:
Step 1: Find an inadequate/wanted(but not yet created) article under the ‘Fix-up projects’ tab on the ‘Community Portal’ page.
Or, on the main wikipedia page, go to a category I may want to edit(’art’, for example), on the upper right side and go under ‘Things You Can Do – Open Tasks’ in the category to find an article, or, go to the category’s subtopic and find an article/requested article there.

Either way, I should find a category I’m well informed in so I could easier, better judge inaccuracies when I see them or create a wanted article on, otherwise I’d have to read up before, and gather completely new knowledge… which takes more time… !

Step 2: Check the suspected inaccuracy with at least 2 other sources. Make sure the other sources are reliable.
Step 3: Edit the article, have at least two other people review my corrections. (And, if Ms. Wilson was to be an additional review to it, then that would be +1 review, meaning a total of 3 reviews either way! =)

My original method:
Step 1: Find an inaccurate article through the ‘Community Portal’ page. Find a category we’re well informed in so we could better judge inaccuracies when we see them, otherwise we’d have to gather completely new knowledge… which takes time… :P.
Step 2: Check the suspected inaccuracy with at least 2 other sources.
Step 3: Before editting, have each group member check it over once again; that’d be + 3 reviews.
Step 4: Edit the article, but before doing so, ask for teacher’s permission.

What I did was shorten my method to 3 steps, with an easier, more achievable goal of having two other people review it because what I had been interested in may not click with others, and backing it down to 2 people would make it easier for me to complete my method. I barely changed my first step but rather added more information to it because I think it’s the easiest way to find an inaccurate article or a most wanted article; going to the website itself, and check for the articles it wants me to edit/create.

Testing out the method:

1: What am I good at? What do I know a lot about? What do I like/what am I interested in? I love dancing, I love sports, I love animals, and I am definitely interested in becoming a vet. Some things I’ve always wanted to do was to get back to normal sleep (since 3 years ago) and learn how to be able to pick up a book, a long story book – and read. My sleep pattern has been messed up a lot lately(and late late before …!!!), and I’ve never truly liked reading a book – or at least, sticking through with it without taking a long long break in between. My reading is like this: pick up a book, read 15 pages, put it down, 95% of never picking it up again(most of the 5% is dominated by school assignments). Another thing I’ve always wanted to do was travel. I’m often blown away by all the details of different cultures. On the surface they all seem so similar but as you find out more and more you often find details that differ people’s ways of lives and their traditions. (And when you can experience it for yourself, it’s even more fascinating! :)) However, I admit to kind of feeling bad too because as a Vietnamese girl adopted to a Norwegian father and Chilean mother, I know very little about Vietnam itself, or Norway, or Chile. Even most of the countries I lived in – I know very little about their true cultures and history. I usually only know the basics – where the country is on the map, what the flag looks like, a main history, percentage of religion, percentage of different nationalities in the country, main languages spoken in the country. Then, I know the prices of things such as chocolate (not that truly important, but I know it very well!!), I know the criminality rate, I absorb in the culture that’s around(I don’t often dig deeper because I usually keep myself preoccupied!), and, well, I know things that are considered ‘taboo’.

2: When I saw the categories, my first instincts was art. Now that I’ve brainstormed, I’m also thinking about biology, or culture, or history too. For sleep, perhaps that goes under science? And for reading, maybe it goes under society? I’m not sure – but now that I’ve viewed all the portals, and there is the ‘General reference’, ‘History and events’, ‘Philosophy and thinking’, ‘Culture and the arts’, ‘Mathematics and logic’, ‘Religion and belief systems’, ‘Geography and places’, ‘Natural and physical sciences’, ‘Society and social sciences’, ‘Health and fitness’, ‘People and self’, and the ‘Technology and applied sciences’ category, I’m thinking of either doing something along the category of ‘Culture and the arts’, ‘People and self’, or ‘Natural and physical sciences’. I realized how it would probably be easier to write in ‘People and self’, and ‘Natural and physical sciences’ because it deals with more facts than interpretations, less research than the usual. Then I realized the number of people that are probably already at it because wikipedia not only attracts random people – but it also attracts highly educated teachers, students, business women, business men, etc. I gathered learning about the cultures that were supposedly a part of me would be fairly important and rather interesting, and that would leave the ‘culture and arts’ category. Besides, there are so many other things there. And I could still change my mind… heheh. (I’m very extremely tremendously highly amazingly greatly weirdly strangely funnily indecisive afterall >.<…!!!!!!)

3 Browsing ‘cultures and arts’. First off – Vietnam. I could not find a thing about Vietnam. Or Norway. Or Chile. Then, I went on the numismatics wikiproject page and I found out that an article on the South Vietnam dong of Vietnam needed expanding. I realized that my task was fixed … for now. I’ll have to print out the article and brainstorm on things to add or edit.

Self-grading for investigation: 5 – Because I didn’t complete the whole task on time (finished step 3 + self grading Wednesday morning).

Self Evaluation of Wikiality Group Project

 I. Against our own design specifications: The first step of my design specification was to look for mistakes and outdated information and then correct them, or update them. The second stage was to research information from at least two (reliable) sources. This we did – we found an outdated article on Wikipedia about ISU and we used both the school’s official website and had personal interviews with some of the very knowledgeable staff of the school and gathered information. That’s two ticks right there. =)

My last step was to review the information from accuracy of information to grammar. This we did altogether – and all by ourselves too. Three/three checks. ^^

II. On each stage of the project:

A – Investigation – everyone in our group described the project and answered questions on it, and everyone described a method in finding inaccuracies on wikipedia. We found a wikipedia article on the school and that was our proof that our method worked! All of these things are also posted on our blog, 6/6 :))

B – Design – In our group we may not’ve achieved as much teamwork as there could’ve been, but we did make the corrections on the article, first in writing, then on the pc, and then posted it onto our blog. We also corrected it all using the strikethrough feature. We also found accurate sources because we used sources that came from our school itself, and our article was on ISU. 6/6

C – Create – We all had our responsibility agreements in (since we were able to go on wikipedia with the ISU username + password) and we had Mrs. Wilson to check our corrections together with the citations before that, on paper. We’ve spent time researching and we’ve spent time correcting the article as well as tried to keep our grammar as professional as possible, so hopefully not everything will get deleted from Wikipedia! 6/6

III.Whether or not our edits had been changed, why? I used the ‘history’ tab on the article to look for any changes they(other users) may’ve possibly made. Yes, some of our edits had been changed/deleted. Our citations edit had been removed and one spelling mistake (MINI!) was changed too.

Our personal interview citations were taken off because it was an original source; we had to have independent published sources. Thanks to the user that explained this to us when he/she took it off.

The spelling mistake we made was writing ’semsester’ instead of semester. This got corrected by another user too. Pretty amazing.

As a conclusion, I think wikipedia is more accurate than most people think, but this is not the same as to say it is fully accurate. There are always people patrolling and checking, and changing edits. I was shocked to find that another user actually found a spelling mistake; especially when it was a mistake of only 2 letters needing to be switched around. It shows how much detail (most of) the community pays attention to. In this case it is most probably true that the users had no clue what the article was about; but many of them do know proper grammar. This is efficient because one person could come along with the right information but the wrong grammar. Another person could change this grammar and there you have it; a reliable source. If I were to rate the community which Wikipedia is built up on, it would be an 8/10, for the knowledgeable users that are often actually volunteering; not employed/forced to work.

Some changes we could do to have better use of our time and be more efficient next time: Our main weakness was not working together as a team all at once; but some people doing this and others doing that. Yet we only had only 3 people, not a team of 50. We should’ve listened to each other more closely and recommended jobs for one another, but we were basically all crowled up around the PC with someone listening to music, another socialising, and only 1 person working at once. We needed a person to take over and get in charge, but we didn’t really do that. Maybe that’s why we were doing different things; we didn’t have a person that would go, you do this, you do that, even though we’re in 10th grade. Since we were all assigned only 1 computer, we did quite a bad job in teamwork on it. Also, most of the time it was usually the same person typing and basically doing the work; Jemima. We didn’t really know what to do so we wandered off. This shouldn’t have happened, and we have no real reason to not be engaging into teamwork. Maybe next time, we could create a plan, where every one is involved and everyone has something to do.

For criterion D, all we really did was check over our edit to make sure it was ok, and then we gave it to Mrs. Wilson to confirm, and then edit wikipedia’s article. We got our edits right and our interview citations correct, but Mrs. Wilson told us to also add in the roles of our interviewees to make our chances of keeping our edits there longer. We all agreed so we made the change. When we were done, we took this information and editted Wikipedia’s article on ISU, under isutechnology. What the edit page looked like was scripting! Ahhhh. But luckily wasn’t html.

The link to the article is below.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_School_of_Ulaanbaatar

Ms. Wilson, I was supposed to upload this on Thursday but instead of pushing publish I accidentally pressed save >.<, so today, I found the draft. 

Correcting an Inaccurate Wikipedia Article: International School of Ulaanbaatar

We found that the article on the International School of Ulaanbaatar, our school, is very much outdated. Therefore, we strive to make it more updated.  

Note (may be quite very obvious already)

• When something has double brackets around it like (( )), this means that it shouldn’t be included as a part of our edit.

• [] should not  be included either.  

The article:

The International School of Ulaanbaatar in Ulan Bator, Mongolia, is a private, coeducational day school, which offers an educational program from preschool through grade 12 for students of all nationalities. Permission to run the School was granted by the Mongolian Ministry of Education in May 1992.

Contents 1 Organization 2 Curriculum 3 Faculty 4 Enrollment 5 Facilities 6 Finances 7 External links

Organization

The school is governed by a multi-national board which consists of individuals from the United Kingdom, the United States, Sweden, South Korea, and Mongolia, including representatives of parents and embassies.  [The Board for the SY 2007-2008 is made up of citizens of the following countries: The United States, Mongolia and Germany.]

Curriculum

The program of study used is based upon model U.S. curricula, extended for international use. The teaching methodology stresses activity-based learning, and the children are encouraged to enjoy and participate in the investigation of all areas of study. The School offers a full range of subjects, including English, mathematics, science, environmental studies [ no environmental studies now],  arts and crafts, music, physical education, French, Chinese, and Mongolian. Teaching materials are primarily from Britain and the United States and instruction is in English. Classes in English-as-a-Second-Language are provided for those children who require it. A community English program has also been established, teaching the basics of English language to local children on a part-time basis.

The school year is divided into 3 [2] terms that run from August/September to June.

Faculty

There are currently around 50 [60] staff members at International School of Ulaanbaatar.

Enrollment

At the beginning of the 2004-2005 school year, enrollment was 195 (N: 10, PS: 18, Kdg.-grade 5, 110, grades 6-8, 35, and grades 9-12: 22). In the school year 2007-2008, there are about 300 students (enrollees).

[((This is additional information which wikipedia would value too:)) In the school year 2007-2008, during the second semester of SY 2007-2008 the enrollment was 232.Class Enrollment Figures: Pre-K: 28 Kindergarten: 19 Grade 1: 19 Grade 2: 19 Grade 3: 21 Grade 4: 21 Grade 5: 10 Grade 6: 18 Grade 7: 19 Grade 8: 14 Grade 9: 14 Grade 10: 21 Grade 11: 19 Grade 12 : 7]

Facilities

The school facilities include 22 classrooms, 1 computer lab, 6 instructional computers, 1 auditorium, 2 covered play areas, 1 gymnasium, and 2 science labs. [ As of 2007, ISU moved into a purpose built campus at Four Seasons Garden. There are 21 classrooms, a computer lab equipped with 21 computers, 1 gymnasium, 1 cafeteria,and an outdoor play area. There are about 90 computers at the school.]

Finances

In the 2004-2005 school year, most of the School’s income derives from tuition. A number of scholarships have been provided to Mongolian students. [((Additional information))This was the only year since I.S.U’s discovery that the Mongolian students, including local students from different schools, were given scholarships. The US embassy were the supplier of these scholarships.]

 Citations:

Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., “International School of Ulaanbaatar.” Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia. 3 Feb 2008. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.. 11 Mar 2008 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_School_of_Ulaanbaatar>.

International School of Ulaanbaatar, “OUR VISION: TO PROVIDE EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION.” The International School of Ulaanbaatar. 2006. International School of Ulaanbaatar. 11 Mar 2008 http://www.isumongolia.edu.mn/index.php.

Fischer, Deidre. Director. Personal Interview 14 March, 2008

Alridii, Tuul. Deputy Director-Business. Personal Interview. 18 March, 2008

Jamsran, Khaliunaa. Receptionist. Personal Interview. 18 March, 2008

Rentsenkhorloo, Onon. Administrative Assistant. Personal Interview. 18 March, 2008

Luvsantsengel, Tugsjargal. Accounts Manager. Personal Interview. 18 and 21 March, 2008

Three design specifications for our final Wikipedia article entry correction.

1. Discover the mistakes/outdated information within the ISU wikipedia page.

2. Research and find information from at least two reliable and updated sources for ISU.

3. Correct the mistakes, do a few reviews, make sure that they are accurate to the information researched.

Today we were on a lookout for wikipedia pages that needed editting. We followed Zaya and Jemima’s method, which is to find pages with information that we’re familiar with because that would require less research. We used the search box. We went on some pages like Bangladesh and Christianity and read a few things but then we came up with the idea of doing it on ISU, because it is more familiar to all members of our group, to our class, to our school! We found a few mistakes such as ISU’s supporters, the enrollment number, the staff number, etc. But the easiest inaccuracy we spotted was that it was somewhat outdated. We set out to do a few researches afterwards on the inaccuracies we suspected. We went on both the school’s official website as well as the school itself to check for further information. However, we did not edit the inaccuries on the wikipedia because Mrs. Wilson (you! heheh) would have to verify it first. =)) The ISU article could be found below, and the school’s official website is right below that.

Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., “International School of Ulaanbaatar.” Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia. 3 Feb 2008. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.. 11 Mar 2008 . <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_School_of_Ulaanbaatar>.

International School of Ulaanbaatar, “OUR VISION: TO PROVIDE EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION.” The International School of Ulaanbaatar. 2006. International School of Ulaanbaatar. 11 Mar 2008 .  <http://www.isumongolia.edu.mn/index.php>.

I don’t know how to site a school? >.>

Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia

What is wiki?

“A collaborative website whose content can be edited by anyone who has access to it.” - dictionary.com 

Who creates them?

Anyone can create and edit articles on Wikipedia. They are the main source from which wikipedia gets its information, yes, just the common ordinary people that’s created one of the world’s most powerful information source.  

Why use them?

These articles, although it can be edited by anyone, is often quite a reliable source of information because the people whom create false information are often discovered within minutes as thousands of wikipedia ‘patrollers’ (people whom check for grammar mistakes, wrong formating, lack of information, inaccurate information and sources, etc.). You can basically find everything on wikipedia. It is also from the common people, people that’ve experienced things, and this could be helpful a lot of times because most of these people offer the information up on wikipedia for others. Most of these people whom contribute to wikipedia are simply, unconditionally generous. They don’t just spend minutes, most spend hours to days to even months to help out!

Who edits them?

Anyone can edit them! However, spamming or adding in inaccurate information as a hobby on wikipedia can get you banned! Watch out! There would always be patrollers online. And there is always at least 5 people whom will be checking your contributions or “contributions”, as you can call it.
 

What is your task? Our main assignment revolves around wikipedia. We’ll be researching on how accurate it actually is and we ourselves will be editing it as well. We’re supposed to do a little research about it first and for this part of the overall assignment, and so far we’ve been answering some of the more basic questions that specifically relate to wikipedia’s accuracy and where it gets its source.

Why is it important for you to learn about Wikipedia?

It is always important to know how your source of information … gets its source! Because once you put it down on paper for school and your teacher goes and searches it up and finds inaccuracy, your hours of effort could as well be a waste of time. You’d get a low grade. And that’d highly be unfair, but in a way it would be your own fault because you it would mean that you had not done enough research. Wikipedia is a site where many people can edit articles at once, and these people are basically anyone who has access to the internet. It could be inaccurate although it is an overall reliable source for a read-up. Always remember to check your sources! In this case, quantity can mean inaccuracy. Check information on wikipedia against other websites or informative sources to gaurantee a better accurate level.
These questions were answered together in a group and then individually. My group is with Zaya and Jemima.

1. Where does Wikipedia get its information?

Wikipedia gets its information from various sources. These sources are people of different knowledge that are willing to contribute to (or spam!) Wikipedia. They are average citizens from around the world of a wide age range that have access to internet and Wikipedia, more notably.

2. Who is in charge of deciding what goes into an article and what gets removed from an article?

Ordinary people, anonymous on Wikipedia or other places or not, are the ones that decide what will be kept in an article. There is a specific link called ‘Recent Changes’ on Wikipedia that a registered user (or not) may examine recent edits to an article or a creation of a new article on Wikipedia. The recent changes link include a specific character count to show whether someone had taken away a lot of information on the article, added a lot of information, and or deleted and added information. Users or non users that check the recent changes made on Wikipedia are often called ‘patrollers’ or the guardians of Wikipedia. They are given the new change with the comparison of the old one side by side. They may decide to keep this change by approving or disapproving. If they disapprove, they may edit the article themselves or simply reverse it to the previous changes made on the article.

3. If there is some debate about whether a particular bit of information should or should not be included in an article, what is the process for deciding?

When there is a debate on whether a particular bit of information shall be included or not, merged or not, or a whole article should be deleted, people could(should) contribute to the article’s discussion page. When a decision is made, the case is often an administrator/employee/very loyal, praised + recognized member whom will carry out the final task. A discussion usually comes into bloom when a notice(or somewhere along those lines) or so is made on an article. For example, someone can come along and read an article and thought it was inaccurate. This person could decide to edit the article himself or herself, or simply add in a sort of bannerish notice (that is already made by the website, people whom do this would often know exactly what its code was+/where the code is to add it) that says something like, ‘this article is inaccurate. Please edit it and remove this notice or refer to the discussion page’. These notices are often at the top of an article. In another case, one person could read two articles and thought they were too similar that they should be made into one article. This person could add a notice which says that they think the article should be merged with the other article (they have to give the specific article name + link too). Then people could discuss whether it should be merged or not and the reasons for it.

I used to spend a lot of time on wikihow.com, and the system there and on Wikipedia are very similar. This is what I learnt through my experiences on wikihow as a user ^^. (P.S. You are able to have your own personal information added to this site too, but only on your userpage. Administrators could ban you if you get inappropriate, however. Also, people who create a username are often those that want to be recognized for their efforts ! :P:P^^. They’re usually people whom uses these sources often or are able to contribute to them often. You get contribution counts! And even a little reward(compliment + encouragement, most of the time heheh) from the more recognized users too when they can see your efforts!

There is still 3 more questions that we have to answer. However, we would have to first watch a clip before we can answer it all.
I’m doing this on my own as my group have done it already when I was absent. I just don’t want to take information from others and not put efforts into it… that’s all.

How reliable do you think Wikipedia actually is?

I think Wikipedia could be very accurate most of the time if not all of the time. Wikipedia does not just let anyone do anything they want on the site. Wikipedia has specific guidelines for its contributers; how to write a wikipedia article, how to patrol, how to make an article interesting, etc. These people would also have to cite their sources and even when they do, they would have to follow a specific guideline for them as well. It is easy for patrollers to identify and point out inaccurate or lacking information. In addition, readers have an option to vote whether an article is ‘accurate’ or ‘inaccurate’. Although not every reader of the website does this, still a lot of people do it and this also helps for a better accuracy level on an article. Most contributers are able to use this information to better the article.

How would you know whether a particular article really is accurate?
You could look at how many sources used and how many edits the article had, and even look into those sources for more information too. Another way as well is to look at how old the article is and when it was last editted. Sometimes quantity and time can help a lot in determining this because the longer it has been on wikipedia means the more people have a chance to read it and the more people could also mean the more chance for someone to find a contradition. Always remember to check twice on ‘hot’ topic information such as politics and religion however, because they are often highly opinionated.
How would you go about discovering whether an article contains inaccurate information?

One of the easiest ways to do this is to go to one of the categories where patrollers have recommended articles needing upgrades. On wikipedia’s main page, there is a link that says ‘Community Portal’, on that page there’s a box titled ‘Fix-up projects’. There, there would be articles that need attention. This is where the contributors that are well informed on a speciic category or categories can come in and contribute.

Together create a method of finding inaccuracies on Wikipedia:

Step 1: Find an inaccurate article through the ‘Community Portal’ page. Find a category we’re well informed in so we could better judge inaccuracies when we see them, otherwise we’d have to gather completely new knowledge… which takes time… :P.
Step 2: Check the suspected inaccuracy with at least 2 other sources.

Step 3: Before editting, have each group member check it over once again; that’d be + 3 reviews.

Step 4: Edit the article, but before doing so, ask for teacher’s permission.