In chapter 3 of the Wilbur we all had to read for this week in class, he talks about how many educators don't recommend Wikipedia as a valid source, even though some research may suggest that it is actually more accurate than many other sources students may be using on the Internet, because absolutely anyone and everyone can add and edit information on any page on the entire website. I've had teachers even freak out about using Wikipedia and I personally don't trust it all that much myself. He talks about how "collective wisdom" is something marvelous.
He brings this point up again in chapter 4 when he talks about how a blog is a "multiauthored texts whose meaning changes through the interplay of the main posts and comments."
Collaboration is wonderful in perspective, as long as it is kept in check, and the people who are writing aren't just throwing things onto the screen of the depths of nowhere. Collaboration between people can lead to great things if done well, and not just in writing or posting information. This is a skill the human race could truly evolve if we grew it to a level where we utilized it well, but, sadly, we don't have that ability right now.
As an ending note: this post and topic makes me think of this song.
I read that, and went, "Hmmm.." I think Wikipedia could be used as a starter for content and then better sources could be used. I know that Wikipedia has tried really hard to cite their information, but perhaps checking their works cited on the subject material would be more creditable and reliable than a Wikipedia summary of subject matter. So in a way, using a lazy resource like Wikipedia could end up generating better sources from the Works Cited section. :P
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