[Foundation-l] Wikiversity

Tue Aug 15 21:43:24 UTC 2006

Well-Roundedness.

Fairness.

WV:NOT operated by a greedy corporation with an agenda

That's just a start.

HAPPY WIKIVERSITY DAY!

On 8/15/06, Cormac Lawler <cormaggio at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> On 8/15/06, Birgitte SB <birgitte_sb at yahoo.com> wrote:
> >
> >
> > --- Jimmy Wales <jwales at wikia.com> wrote:
> >
> > > NPOV does apply to Wikiversity, but of course
> > > context matters in how we
> > > understand and apply it.
> > >
> > > For example, a course which is highly biased and
> > > pushing some POV should
> > > be fixed, as we would quite
> > > properly consider it to be broken.
> > >
> > > But of course, as Cormac points out, some of what
> > > Wikiversity is going
> > > to be about is explorations of
> > > research, etc.  As Amgine put it, even here NPOV
> > > applies, but it applies
> > > in a way that makes sense for this
> > > type of content.
> > >
> > > The danger of saying too quickly "NPOV does not
> > > apply" is that we would
> > > thereby open the door to lunatics
> > > (and there are lunatics!) trying to push extremely
> > > biased courses.  We
> > > can do better than that.
> > >
> > > --Jimbo
> > >
> >
> >
> > I think everyone is not quite on the same page here.
> > Although neutrality is going to be an important aspect
> > of Wikiversity.  WP:NPOV is not going to be the policy
> > in use there.  Mainly this is becuse Wikiversity is
> > not writiing encyclopedia articles.  Bias will take a
> > subtley different form on that project.  Just like
> > bias rears its' head on Wikisource in the form of
> > altered texts.  I do not believe it was something
> > people thought of early on at Wikisource, but it is
> > certainly what has transpired.  I am just trying to
> > guess as to how bias will try and work its way into
> > Wikiversity.  It may not be possible, we might have to
> > wait and find out when it happens.  WP:NPOV is about
> > how to counteract bias on WP.  I do not believe anyone
> > is suggesting counteracting bias at WV is not of the
> > utmost importance, just that WV will have approach it
> > in a unique way.
> >
> > Birgitte SB
> >
> >
>
>
> Yes, I think you've got me, Birgitte :-). I just think that NPOV (as I
> conceptualise it) is not a useful concept to apply to Wikiversity.
> Don't get me wrong - I wince just as much as anyone if someone will
> try to teach people that the world began 10,000 years ago ;-), but
> surely the point of education is to try to get people to think for
> themselves? I see no problem with provocative, even biased,
> educational materials - so long as people are given the wherewithal to
> critically evaluate them. I think we need an analogy to NPOV -
> "completeness" sounds better, but just not catchy enough :-)
>
> Cormac
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