>RHS Should Join Forces with Wikipedia
Peter Coti
RHS Student
Wikipedia Editor
As we all know, Ridgewood High school is a top national school but it still lacks in many areas. One area it lacks in is the ability to integrate computers into classrooms. Some of the issues that have been raised is the cost of programs that could be integrated and the benefits it would have. I feel that in order for Ridgewood High School to remain progressive and prestigious it requires integration of the Wikipedia Ambassador program.
The Ambassador program has been used in schools such as Yale, NYU, and Columbia. If RHS were to partake in this program it would become the first high school in the world to join in and it would be on the same field as Ivy league colleges.
The program would also allow for new ways for students to learn. Wikipedia can help teach neutral point of view writing which is something that is not often taught to students even though it can be quite useful in certain professions. This neutral point of view aspect will also encourage critical thinking as they will need to boil a topic down to its bare basics to contribute to Wikipedia. The implementation of Wikipedia would also justify effort into a project as they will not simply have the satisfaction of a grade, their hard work will be visible to the millions of unique visitors of Wikipedia monthly.
The costs of running this program at RHS would be minimal. Already 140 “Welcome to Wikipedia” brochures are on standby nearby and already there are class materials published online for educations (https://outreach.wikimedia.org/wiki/Education/Materials_for_Teaching ). The only cost will be the hours it takes to orient teachers to the project and the basics of Wikipedia that they can then pass on to their students.
The combination of the low cost, and potentially high benefits leads me to believe that if we were to have an Ambassador program run from RHS it would be successful and a benefit to the school.
