[Foundation-l] Wikiversity - courses

Sat Dec 17 01:44:14 UTC 2005

Cormac Lawler wrote:
> The 'safe' proposal until now has been to make wikiversity a
> repository of learning materials. This, I presume, would include
> lesson plans/curricula as well as actual resources like
> reading/listening comprehension exercises, flash cards, discursive
> questions on particular advertisements, etc.
> ...
> * http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikiversity_%28overview%29
> * 
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Wikiversity/Modified_project_proposal

This proposal is not 'safe'. Look at the Wikiversity (overview) page 
linked here, then follow any of the six links from "Cell Biology" to 
"Media literacy". They all read like textbooks or introductions to 
textbooks. The C programming course contains "lectures" and "quizzes", 
which together function as a textbook. The pages also contain lists of 
students (instead of authors), but in short, most of the current 
Wikiversity consists of textbooks which must stay at Wikibooks, and not 
become a separate wiki.

A 'safe' version of the proposal would include all learning materials 
EXCEPT any that could be found in a textbook, encyclopedia, dictionary 
(or other Wikimedia project).

> * 
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Wikiversity/Modified_project_proposal

What is interesting about the "modified project proposal" is that it is 
an opportunity to define Wikiversity (or whatever we call this project) 
in a way that does not overlap with Wikibooks, but supports the other 
Wikimedia projects including Wikibooks, Wiktionary, and Wikipedia. I 
like the proposal for "reading groups" where multiple users meet on a 
wiki and agree to read the same (free or non-free) material and discuss 
it; then if they want, they use their knowledge to improve Wikibooks or 
Wiktionary or add citations to Wikipedia. The users learn and 
(optionally) the other Wikimedia projects including Wikibooks gain 
benefits.

Another proposal that I have read about is to have an "index of 
sources". This would not be a collection of free source texts, like 
Wikisource is. This would be a database potentially listing every (free 
or non-free) source that was ever cited in any Wikipedia article or 
Wikibook, and some new sources. What if whenever I wanted more 
information while writing a Wikibook, I could go to "Wikiversity" to 
find interesting books or web sites on my topic?

The problem with both of these proposals is that with the current 
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Wikiversity they share not much. Its as if 
someone just made some random proposals and attached the "Wikiversity" 
name.

In fact, there is currently no consensus for what Wikiversity means.

http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Moving_Wikiversity_forward wrote:
> Wikiversity currently means different things to different people.

See for example 
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Moving_Wikiversity_forward#living_boo
ks where a user actually proposes that Wikiversity should develop 
textbooks!

-- [[Wikibooks:User:Kernigh]]
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