Education/Program plans/United States and Canada

Scope edit

design Wikipedia assignment to fit within the curriculum of the class
recruit relevant academic professionals to participate with students (e.g. university librarians, writing center staff, etc.)
introduce students to assignment and help materials (e.g. online student training)
if interested in collaboration, instructors should incorporate peer review into their assignment
monitor student contributions and provide feedback, preferably on-wiki
- the instructor may not be experienced as a Wikipedia editor and should not necessarily focus on formatting for Wikipedia or making the article perfect. However, the instructor, as the expert in the subject area, should review for accuracy, neutrality, comprehension, and to make suggestions for more research/references.
grading the assignment according to university policies, including policies related to plagiarism

help students learn how to use Wikipedia and other sources of information
teach students how to research a topic in-depth and reproduce the most important information
help students improve their writing skills
improve coverage on Wikipedia in their discipline

focus on under-represented topics on Wikipedia and target those disciplines at universities where local Wikipedians are interested in supporting instructors and students
train faculty members to support instructors and set goals with them to recruit at their university
attend workshops and conferences to recruit instructors in-person and begin training them
work with volunteers and instructors who are already involved to recruit via word-of-mouth

assign instructor to complete the online instructor training
when possible, train in-person with as many instructors who are interested in hearing more
cover the basic introductory information about Wikipedia and Wikipedia-editing to make sure they fully understand how a Wikipedia assignment will differ from a traditional assignment
walk through necessary steps for designing an assignment that fits in the scope of the classroom and on Wikipedia
review integral steps for working with Ambassadors and for reviewing student contributions throughout the assignment
- very helpful to have a checklist of suggestions, especially for first-time instructors who have never taught with a Wikipedia assignment or edited Wikipedia before

be available to instructors to answer questions that will come up from them and from their students
- though they may be working with a volunteer, remember that volunteers have limited time to offer support and may need some back-up when an instructor needs a quick turnaround with a problem
advise through conflict they encounter on-wiki, especially if editors discredit their assignment or if editors are offering good advice that the instructor seems hesitant to take from someone they don't know
provide useful materials and links as early in the semester (or before) as possible so the instructor can familiarize her/himself with the available resources for instructors and students

aim to have 3 new instructors in each area where you've hosted a recruitment workshop and trained faculty members