Saturday, June 8, 2013

Hot Topic Debates--Wikipedia

I remember hearing my high school teachers tell me over and over that Wikipedia is not a reliable source and could not be used and cited for any research projects.  Even though so many teachers do not like Wikipedia, its still remains as a very common source of information on the computer.  The question comes, should Wikipedia be forbidden in Social Studies Research?

Pros:  Students need a way to access their schema, or current understanding about a topic, before the can focus their research.  Wikipedia is a convenient location that has a lot of basic information that students can use.  Students can use Wikipedia as a starting point to begin a project as they activate their prior knowledge about a topic before they begin their actual research.

Cons:  Students need to use reliable websites when finding information and develop research skills that teach them to search for information in other places besides Wikipedia.  The skills that students learn in their Social Studies classes will carry them throughout their lives.  It is important to that teachers teach students what information is credible when there is so much information at a student's fingertips.

Wikipedia should not be entirely banned because it is a great source that students can use to activate their schema and prior knowledge before they begin a research project.  However, the information and data that is used within the actual project should come from another source.

1 comment:

  1. I totally agree. Even though the information from Wikipedia may not be 100% accurate, it is a starting point which allows students to access prior knowledge. They can document the information then research other more reliable web sites for evidence of validity.

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