Should+You+Use+Wikipedia+for+Research?

= **Fact or Fiction:Should you Use Wikipedia for Research?** =

Author [|Michael Miller]lays out the Wikipedia basics. He discusses using Wikipedia for research and how users should go about it. The following is the article abstract.

"It might seem that Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, is a researcher's best friend. But Wikipedia is a user-written and user-edited encyclopedia, which casts some doubt on the accuracy of the information contained in its articles. Should you use Wikipedia for research? In this article, [|Sams Teach Yourself Wikipedia in 10 Minute] author Michael Miller examines the issue and offers some advice."

Miller's thesis statement:

[|"Wikipedia] is a great source of free information. Unfortunately, that information is provided by the site's users, not by any academic or editorial staff. Does that mean that the information on the Wikipedia site is less accurate than you'd find in a traditional encyclopedia? Or is Wikipedia a good source when you're assembling research for a report or project?"

Some schools are even taking preventative actions to discourage students from using Wikipedia in their research. In January 2007, the history department at Middlebury College voted to bar students from citing the Web site as a source in papers or other academic work. All faculty members will be telling students about the policy and explaining why material on Wikipedia -- while convenient -- may not be trustworthy after professors were seeing students citing incorrect information from Wikipedia in papers and on tests. In one instance a professor noticed several students offering the same incorrect information from Wikipedia.

Wikipedia itself is distancing themselves from the academic arena. Sandra Ordonez, a spokeswoman for Wikipedia, said "Wikipedia is the ideal place to start your research and get a global picture of a topic, however, it is not an authoritative source. In fact, we recommend that students check the facts they find in Wikipedia against other sources. Additionally, it is generally good research practice to cite an original source when writing a paper, or completing an exam. It's usually not advisable, particularly at the university level, to cite an encyclopedia."

Click on the following links for brief but balanced 1-page explanations.

[|How to Use Wikipedia for Research]
Although there is some discussion over educational value of using Wikipedia, it has become quite successful. In the article //An MIT Researcher Explains Why Wikipedia Succeeded Over Other Online Encyclopedias// written by Megan Garber, MIT researcher Benjamin Mako Hill discusses two main reasons why Wikipedia has become successful. One of the reasons is because it is based on encyclopedias. Encyclopedias are a well accepted way to organize a great deal of information. The other reason is because Wikipedia focuses on content building. The development and structure of the site is not the number one priority. The site is built for ease of use and allows contributors to focus on adding information and building pages.

References: //Garber, M. An MIT Researcher Explains Why Wikipedia Succeeded Over Other Online Encyclopedias. (Oct 2011). Retrieved November 10, 2011 from// http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-10-13/tech/30274391_1_wikipedia-encyclopedias-yochai-benkler.

 Read more: [|http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-10-13/tech/30274391_1_wikipedia-encyclopedias-yochai-benkler#ixzz1dMRUmK2I]

Jaschik, Scott. [|A Stand Against Wikipedia.] Inside Higher Ed, 26 Jan 2007. Web. 6 Nov. 2011.