Pedagogy of the Digitally Oppressed: Reprogramming Wikipedia to Decolonize Classroom Learning

The purposes and uses of Wikipedia in the classroom are multiple and emerging. From the integral role it can play in the design of classroom assignments to the ways in which the platform enables students to address gaps in the histories of Black, Indigenous, Dalit, women, disabled, and queer and trans people of colour, Wikipedia is being used to redefine both classroom and community-based learning. Adding relevant content to Wikipedia and addressing Wikipedia’s limitations, however, are not straightforward tasks. Many people, places, and political struggles have been ignored by history, and not all such individuals and events have “notable” digital footprints for inline citations, a requirement for creating a Wikipedia post. On the one hand, adding underrepresented stories to Wikipedia is a way to write them into history. On the other hand, Wikipedia’s structure and core criteria of “notability” and “neutrality” can make such processes both difficult and difficult to “stick” for ongoing pedagogy work. In addressing these concerns, we will go past the conventional use of Wikipedia in the classroom; reflect on its limits and possibilities with and through our institutional experiences; and collaboratively draft guidelines for critical Wikipedia pedagogy