Love it or hate it, block it or allow it, Wikipedia isn't going away. Many schools have blocked it because its reliability and validity are in question. Many students rely on it as their first (and perhaps only?) source of information.
I have used Wikipedia many times to find information and links that I have used in several presentations. But as an adult, I know the importance of questioning my sources of information. Many of our students are gullible and would accept any information as fact without bothering to check its accuracy.
Today I came across an
excellent lesson plan about Wikipedia on the FactCheckEd website. There are student handouts, suggested activities, background information, and correlations to national standards-- AND this video from the Colbert Report entitled Wikiality:
I think this is an important lesson and an important topic we need to address with our students.
