Wikipedia: Unfair Bad Rap

Wikipedia is often banned on school and college campuses as an unreliable source of information.  The problem isn't so much that it is unreliable, but rather the problem is that Wikipedia is ever changing and therefore cannot really be cited!

Credible Source of Information

Data shows that, on average, Wikipedia entries had similar validity & error percentages as did more traditional encyclopedia such as Britannica.  This is actually a commendable statistic given that Britannica hires professional editors while Wikipedia are unpaid professional enthusiasts on given topic.

Addressing issues of accuracy and neutrality and with concerns about quality of content, Larry Sanger, Wikipdia cofounder, started "Citizendium" to "improve on the Wikipedia model by adding 'gentle expert oversight' and requiring contributors to use their real names."  Some university professors are even assigning their students Wikipedia editing projects as both a learning tool for the students and a public service to free online content.  "Some learning theorists contend that content creation and analysis is a necessary component of learning. Wikipedia can encourage students to analyze what they read, ask questions, and engage in reflective, creative learning.  Furthermore, some articles prone to high vandalism are protected and you can be assured that their content will remain credible.

Problem with Citation

Citation problem:  "Although Wikipedia's ability to evolve as information changes is beneficial on one level, it also means that even if an article is deemed reliable, citing it a source is problematic because it could change at any time." This can be problematic because a key principle of citation is that your reader can access the original content which you are referencing.  If Wikipedia is ever changing, a reader may or may not find the source information that you mentioned.  Although an issue, I don't feel this is enough of a case to not use Wikipedia.

With over 4 million web pages written in the English language and consistently ranked in top 10 most visited websites worldwide, educators cannot ignore the ease of accessibility, use, and influence of Wikipedia.  Harvard College  Writing Program even mentions Wikipedia as a 'low bets' resource but discourages students from using it for scholarly research.  Educators will be well advised to teach their students how to use Wikipedia only as a starting point in research but students must also dig deeper and read the original source materials.  Here are two good videos explaining this concept.*

*This paragraph, written by me, has previously appeared in class wiki assignment.