AHA Session 88
Saturday, January 4, 2025: 10:30 AM-12:00 PM
Beekman Room (New York Hilton, Second Floor)
Chair:
Helaine Blumenthal, Wiki Education Foundation
Panel:
David-James Gonzales, Brigham Young University
Katherine Holt, College of Wooster
David A. Sartorius, University of Maryland, College Park
Katherine Holt, College of Wooster
David A. Sartorius, University of Maryland, College Park
Session Abstract
As digital humanities and other public-facing projects evolve, it’s critical that they not just
consider, but directly address the ever-intensifying crisis of information access and
integrity confronting the world. Pedagogical praxis can play a critical role in meeting the
challenges of this rapidly changing information landscape. The historical profession is
well-poised to play a leading role in shaping pedagogical strategies that both equip
students and inform the public at large. In 2010, the Wikipedia Student Program
launched, and in doing so, merged the rapidly developing movements of open
knowledge with open pedagogy. The program was designed to help students at
institutions of higher education develop a range of critical skills all while improving
Wikipedia content. In the program (facilitated by Wiki Education), students from
postsecondary institutions contribute to Wikipedia as a course assignment. Since its
inception, the program has only become more relevant as the looming information crisis
has intensified.
In this panel, you will hear from three faculty who have incorporated Wikipedia
assignments into their History courses. Their research and teaching interests include:
Latin American, Caribbean, and U.S. History. We will explore the power dynamics
embedded within the production and dissemination of knowledge, collaborative
knowledge production and authorship, developing a public voice, Wikipedia’s limitations
and bias, issues around access to knowledge and equity, as well as what it means to
produce knowledge responsibly. We will tackle the impact that students can have in
ensuring historical content on Wikipedia is accurate, equitable and representative. We’ll
discuss how this project allows students to critically engage with and differentiate
between different types of historical sources as well as gain authentic understandings of
historiography and historical narratives. Session attendees will learn how to integrate the
Wikipedia assignment into their own History curricula, as well as gain a more in depth
understanding of the role open knowledge can play in the field of History.
consider, but directly address the ever-intensifying crisis of information access and
integrity confronting the world. Pedagogical praxis can play a critical role in meeting the
challenges of this rapidly changing information landscape. The historical profession is
well-poised to play a leading role in shaping pedagogical strategies that both equip
students and inform the public at large. In 2010, the Wikipedia Student Program
launched, and in doing so, merged the rapidly developing movements of open
knowledge with open pedagogy. The program was designed to help students at
institutions of higher education develop a range of critical skills all while improving
Wikipedia content. In the program (facilitated by Wiki Education), students from
postsecondary institutions contribute to Wikipedia as a course assignment. Since its
inception, the program has only become more relevant as the looming information crisis
has intensified.
In this panel, you will hear from three faculty who have incorporated Wikipedia
assignments into their History courses. Their research and teaching interests include:
Latin American, Caribbean, and U.S. History. We will explore the power dynamics
embedded within the production and dissemination of knowledge, collaborative
knowledge production and authorship, developing a public voice, Wikipedia’s limitations
and bias, issues around access to knowledge and equity, as well as what it means to
produce knowledge responsibly. We will tackle the impact that students can have in
ensuring historical content on Wikipedia is accurate, equitable and representative. We’ll
discuss how this project allows students to critically engage with and differentiate
between different types of historical sources as well as gain authentic understandings of
historiography and historical narratives. Session attendees will learn how to integrate the
Wikipedia assignment into their own History curricula, as well as gain a more in depth
understanding of the role open knowledge can play in the field of History.
See more of: AHA Sessions