Very nice – bravo! I don’t teach the kind of courses that lend themselves to editing Wikipedia, but I once did come up with a brief syllabus for a Wikipedia course. Its focus was the idea of collaborative writing/editing. After a theoretical introduction to argumentation and debate, it would have made the students create, and then critique and edit each others’ articles, providing valid Wikipedia-based reasons for actions taken (e.g. the extensive documentation under “Wikipedia is not…”). Then it encouraged students to enter into existing controversies (e.g. articles on nearly any current political figure), as a means of understanding the communities that built up around such articles.
An active Wikipedian myself, I’ve occasionally tried to interest others in getting involved, but I find that academics tend to be the most resistant. I feel Wikipedia is still misunderstood in much of the academic community. Nevertheless, editors can learn some great skills: the need/importance of sourcing virtually every statement, being able to evaluate the quality of sources, understanding how documentation relates to the finished product, and particularly how to collaborate and debate with others, particularly those with whom you may disagree, and how you navigate such controversies.
