I always had a positive opinion of Wikipedia as a sort of starting point for research and ideas. I agree that Wiki shouldn't be used as a source for research papers because anyone can edit the information so there is no way to be absolutely positive that the information is reliable and unbiased. I understand why some teachers feel the need to remove Wiki from the classroom entirely, because some students will take advantage and only get their information from Wiki, but I still think that those issues can be dealt with and that Wiki has a place in the classroom. In society, the only thing I think is negative about Wikipedia is that some people don't realize that they should not believe what they read on Wiki to be true. It's a good source of information but the reader needs to be responsible and do extra research before forming their opinions.
In my class, I would encourage students to start researching their ideas with Wiki. I think it is a good way for students to get an overview of what they think they want to research and decide if they think they can write a good paper on their topic. Also, I think it is a good place to find other, more academic sources that they would actually be able to cite in their papers.
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