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February 01, 2007, 12:34 PM ET
A History Department Limits Use of Wikipedia
“Wikipedia is very seductive: We all are sort of enamored of the convenience and speed of the Web,” says Don J. Wyatt, the chairman of Middlebury College’s history department. “From the standpoint of access, it’s a marvelous thing. But from the standpoint of maintaining quality, it’s much less so.”
This spring every professor in Mr. Wyatt’s department will put disclaimers on their syllabi warning students that, while Wikipedia is fine for some background research, it is not to be used as a primary source. Many professors across the country have already taken it upon themselves to post similar caveats on their syllabi or course Web sites. But few academic departments have managed to agree on all-purpose policy statements like Middlebury’s.
The Chronicle spoke with Mr. Wyatt about what the new policy means for students and what it augurs for Wikipedia.
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