User:Rubytuesday2023/Evaluate an Article

Evaluate an article

Complete your article evaluation below. Here are the key aspects to consider:

Lead section

A good lead section defines the topic and provides a concise overview. A reader who just wants to identify the topic can read the first sentence. A reader who wants a very brief overview of the most important things about it can read the first paragraph. A reader who wants a quick overview can read the whole lead section.

Does the lead include an introductory sentence that concisely and clearly describes the article's topic?
Does the lead include a brief description of the article's major sections?
Does the lead include information that is not present in the article? (It shouldn't.)
Is the lead concise or is it overly detailed?

Content

A good Wikipedia article should cover all the important aspects of a topic, without putting too much weight on one part while neglecting another.

Is the article's content relevant to the topic?
Is the content up-to-date?
Is there content that is missing or content that does not belong?
Does the article deal with one of Wikipedia's equity gaps? Does it address topics related to historically underrepresented populations or topics?

Tone and Balance

Wikipedia articles should be written from a neutral point of view; if there are substantial differences of interpretation or controversies among published, reliable sources, those views should be described as fairly as possible.

Is the article neutral?
Are there any claims that appear heavily biased toward a particular position?
Are there viewpoints that are overrepresented, or underrepresented?
Are minority or fringe viewpoints accurately described as such?
Does the article attempt to persuade the reader in favor of one position or away from another?

Sources and References

A Wikipedia article should be based on the best sources available for the topic at hand. When possible, this means academic and peer-reviewed publications or scholarly books.

Are all facts in the article backed up by a reliable secondary source of information?
Are the sources thorough - i.e. Do they reflect the available literature on the topic?
Are the sources current?
Are the sources written by a diverse spectrum of authors? Do they include historically marginalized individuals where possible?
Are there better sources available, such as peer-reviewed articles in place of news coverage or random websites? (You may need to do some digging to answer this.)
Check a few links. Do they work?

Organization and writing quality

The writing should be clear and professional, the content should be organized sensibly into sections.

Is the article well-written - i.e. Is it concise, clear, and easy to read?
Does the article have any grammatical or spelling errors?
Is the article well-organized - i.e. broken down into sections that reflect the major points of the topic?

Images and Media

Does the article include images that enhance understanding of the topic?
Are images well-captioned?
Do all images adhere to Wikipedia's copyright regulations?
Are the images laid out in a visually appealing way?

Talk page discussion

The article's talk page — and any discussions among other Wikipedia editors that have been taking place there — can be a useful window into the state of an article, and might help you focus on important aspects that you didn't think of.

What kinds of conversations, if any, are going on behind the scenes about how to represent this topic?
How is the article rated? Is it a part of any WikiProjects?
How does the way Wikipedia discusses this topic differ from the way we've talked about it in class?

Overall impressions

What is the article's overall status?
What are the article's strengths?
How can the article be improved?
How would you assess the article's completeness - i.e. Is the article well-developed? Is it underdeveloped or poorly developed?

Examples of good feedback

A good article evaluation can take a number of forms. The most essential things are to clearly identify the biggest shortcomings, and provide specific guidance on how the article can be improved.

Peer review of this article about a famous painting

Which article are you evaluating?[edit]

Gender studies

Why you have chosen this article to evaluate?[edit]

(Briefly explain why you chose it, why it matters, and what your preliminary impression of it was.)

I chose this article because it is my chosen major, and it is also very relevant to the course I am taking. My first impression is that it is very detailed, with lots of links to other pages and citations.

Evaluate the article[edit]

(Compose a detailed evaluation of the article here, considering each of the key aspects listed above. Consider the guiding questions, and check out the examples of what a useful Wikipedia article evaluation looks like.)

Lead section: The lead has a good introductory sentence, and it lays out some of the major sections of the article, but not all of them. The lead seems to have a bit more detail than is needed, and brings up some points that are not heavily referenced later in the article.

Content: The article's content is mostly relevant to the topic, and seems fairly up to date. There are not a lot of countries listed in the "Government Attitudes" section, which I think needs expanding. This article does deal with one of wikipedia's equity gaps, and has a lot of information about marginalized communities. However, there is not a large number of references to women of colour scholars on the subject, even though they have had great influence on the topic. I do not think the article is as detailed or expansive as it should be.

Tone and Balance: The article seems fairly neutral, with both positive and negative aspects of the field represented. The criticism section does seem a bit large in contrast to the overall length of the article, and I think there could be some more positive outcomes of the field listed. The article is not persuasive, but there could be more indication of what views are minority/fringe ones.

Sources: Many of the links seem to work, and there are ample citations. However, more scholars of colour should be included, as there are many notable ones missing.

Talk Page: There is a lot of discourse and discussion about different sections, which makes sense as Gender Studies is already a highly contested topic. The article is rated at a C, which after looking at the evaluation criteria, I agree with. The talk page has more controversial discourse about the subject than we have had in class, and there seems to be more disagreement as well.

Feedback[edit]

Good work! Chronophoto (talk) 17:53, 21 September 2023 (UTC)