How To Use Wikipedia

Wikipedia has been on the Internet for several years now and was founded on the idea that everyone had information and knowledge they could share with others, which is what the Internet is really all about. The problem with Wikipedia is that anybody can contribute information on any topic at anytime they like, regardless of what they know about it. Many teachers (like myself) won't allow students to cite Wikipedia when writing papers due to the (at times) unreliability of the information. Many students argue that every page on Wikipedia is checked for accuracy but due to the size and number of updates to the site every day, this simply is not true. If you have found information on Wiki that you really want to use, here are some tips to making sure you get the correct information.

1. Read the information. Yes, this may sound obvious, but you'd be surprised how many people do not take the time to actually fully read information that they are referencing. As the site can be edited by anybody, it may contain spelling or grammatical errors which suggest a lack of professionalism and reliability. If the information is well-written, easy to understand and makes sense, then you should move on to step 2.

    

2. Cross check the information. If you are writing a paper on a topic such as the French Revolution, you should already know a little about the topic. If you have a published piece of information (such as a library book), and the information on Wikipedia lines up with this, then you may have found a page written by someone who actually knows the topic rather well. You should be looking for consistency within the sources. This brings me to point 3.
3. Check the references. Many students have insisted that Wiki is fine because they don't publish information that isn't cross-referenced. This is simply not true. Many pages will be cross-referenced and contain links to the sites where the information has been gained from. Just because it is linked it doesn't mean that the source of the link is credible. Check the references, click the links and check just who the information has come from. It has come from a reputable source, then use this source rather than Wikipedia. If the information has come from a book or journal, check with your library and if you can't find it, just ask your librarian; that's what they are there for.
4. Check the author. Who wrote the information? Often the person who wrote the page contents will provide a link to information about themselves and sometimes a point of contact. If no author or member of Wikipedia is mentioned, then the information can not be considered to be fully reliable.

This all sounds like a lot of work for a simple reference, and really it is. Referencing your papers shouldn't have to be this difficult and take this much time, however if Wikipedia is the way you want to go, remember these 4 important steps and also remember to correctly reference the website and include the date that you accessed the information. Most importantly check with your teacher, tutor or lecturer and find out their feelings on using Wikipedia as a reference source.