Wikipedia.com Reviews

All I could say was "Good grief!" when my son gave me a paper that started off, "According to Wikipedia . . ."

"Do you want to fail this class," I asked him.

"Well, no," he said.

I had to explain why Wikipedia is not considered a solid source in academic circles.

It's not that you can't find great information on Wikipedia. A lot of experts and fans do pop on and add to the knowledge base. I think that's great. So, I'm not knocking Wikipedia. It can be quite useful.

I often will click on Wikipedia as I begin to research a topic. Wikipedia often has good overviews as well as nice reference clicks. I...

I work in a college, and trying to show students that Wikipedia is NOT the answer to their research needs is very frustrating.  I feel it is a losing battle to get students to use real, peer reviewed resources that have been accepted in academic circles.  If you want to use Wikipedia for a fast and dirty look-up, that is fine. In fact I think that is the only way it should be used.  Most libraries have subscriptions to online databases, like the Encyclopedia Britannica, and EbscoHost and others that are the sources teachers want to see cited in the students research papers.

  Of course if you...

Wikipedia is great as a starting point for research or for quick answers.  In the same spirit as traditional encyclopedias, it isn't meant to be an in-depth authoritative reference on its topics, but sort of an overview.  If you're looking for really in-depth information on something specific or if your answer absolutely positively must be true without dispute, wikipedia should not be the only reference you check.  But if you're like me, most of what you look up on an average day isn't the kind of life or death situation where you need an iron-clad guarantee your answer is right or the kind...

Suggestions for using Wikipedia Intelligently

• 1. Don't believe everything you read.
• 2. Use the Ben Bradlee (Washington Post editor - Watergate era)...If you want me to print it get another source. Ironically, you can read what Bradlee thinks about Wikipedia at Wikipedia.
• 3. Wikipedia is to research like a newspaper is to a library.
• 4. Use the Sergeant Joe Friday approach (Dragnet) - Just the facts mam.
• 5. Take small children to BIG libraries (college, university, The New York Public Library, The Library of Congress) before they can read. Experiencing a BIG library will install awe and perhaps confidence...

Limited Purpose Web Site
If you're trying to remember the name of Bon Jovi's biggest hit in 1991....or whatever happened to American Idol contestant Elliott Yamin.....or what year Hurricane Charlie hit.......FINE.  Go to Wikipedia.  Relieve yourself of the burden of not remembering little trivia that is driving you crazy.   Someone like yourself will have posted that information, and you can jog your memory. 

But don't get in the habit of going to Wikipedia as a serious reference web site.  Each listing is compiled and edited by a conglomeration of people whose qualifications are not known...

How many times have you been having a conversation with a friend when all of a sudden you are trying to remember a specific date of something or who sang your favorite song?  Well Wikipedia is a great site for a quick glance of research and a good place to start on your topic.  You can find the answers to almost anything on the site, but I have to warn you that anyone can post to the site so the facts are not always true.  For those students writing a research paper it is really tough for them not to rely solely on the information provided on this site because it is accessed so easy.  I like...

Wikipedia, the bane of college professors and the darling of the cut-n-paste club.  My personal favorite outlet for idle page surfing.

Personally, I like Oberlin College's approach.   Some of their professors integrated Wikipedia into some of the curriculum by having students take an article from Wikipedia and research it.   As they do that, the students develop discernment as they struggle to separate fact from fiction.     It doesn't take long before the students learn to question what they read or hear instead of blindly accepting everything as factual.  The faculty learned...

Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia:  I was only familiar with this site through vague, overheard academic references to it.  Then came the assignments to provide as much quality information on particular subjects as possible within a short period of time.  Long live the public libraries - they'll always be invaluable and I personally endorse any renewable source of paper - I like looking into books, holding the actual printed document in my hands, traveling to libraries and hunting through the shelves - you never know what you'll find while you're looking for something else... Wikipedia can't...