The following guest post is from Alex Stinson, Campus Ambassador at Oxford University for Wikipedia
The London Wikipedia Academy is a mini-conference aimed at starting a conversation between academics and Wikipedians in London, moving from ethereal opinions to organised, evidence based, informed discussions. There will be a number of exciting speakers all engaging in a vital conversation for modern higher education.
Students, librarians and academics from across London have been invited by the first official student Wikipedia society in the UK, Wikipedians at Imperial College, to meet at their South Kensington campus April 13th, 5.45-8pm. This unique and original event promises to allow those pro- and anti-Wikipedia to discuss the key issues around its inevitable use by staff and academics, on every topic that is taught at higher education institutions in the capital.
The issue with Wikipedia is that in terms of time spent reading, it is possibly the most widely used resource at many universities. Yet how many people actually understand it well enough to ensure they get the most out of it? Hence, there is a tangible need for discussion amongst educationalists, those interested in media literacy, and students (particularly those interested in a teaching career), to allow all these groups to discuss the evidence on pertinent Wikipedia-related issues. Furthermore, academics can discuss how they can be a part of contributing Wikipedia, and making high-quality, well-referenced knowledge more accessible.
Interest can be registered by adding your name or emailing the address at the bottom of the Wikimedia UK webpage: http://uk.wikimedia.org/wiki/London_Wikipedia_Academy.
Hope to see you there!
This post is by a guest poster. If you would like to write something for the Open Knowledge Foundation blog, please see the submissions page.
