Wikidata:Open Online Course - Wikidata


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Florian Cuny explains constraints on Wikidata (still taken from Wikidata MOOC tutorial video)

Welcome to the Wikidata open online course!

This MOOC aims to simplify learning how to edit Wikidata through an online course. Participants will understand how Wikidata works, its rules, its community, and how to contribute to it.

Anyone interested in learning about Wikidata and contributing to it, regardless of your background or computer skills. In addition to beginners, this course is also beneficial for Wikidata trainers.

Participation in this course, including interactions and discussions on various channels, is covered by the Code of Conduct for technical spaces. Participants are encouraged to contribute to making the discussion spaces safe and welcoming for everyone.

The course is offered in different iterations. After each iteration, we may adapt and improve it based on your feedback. Below is the schedule for upcoming sessions:

Iteration Class start Class end Duration Time commitment
1 Wikidata 101: An Introduction (concluded) 22 April 2024 31 May 2024 5w4d 3 to 4 hours/week
2 Wikidata 101: An Introduction (concluded) 01 July 2024 11 August 2024 5w6d 3 hours/week
3 Wikidata 101: An Introduction (enroll) 01 October 2024 14 November 2024 45 days 3 hours/week

Individual progress may vary. Some participants may complete the course earlier than the estimated duration after starting.

The Wikidata open online course is offered by the software communication team at Wikimedia Deutschland. Originally developed in French by Wikimedia France, the course content has been updated and translated into English. This effort aims to make the training material accessible to English-speaking audiences everywhere, ensuring that learners can benefit from it.

Course Structure
Chapter 1 - Introduction

Part 1 - Welcome

Sections:
  1. Outline of the MOOC and the team
  2. Introduce yourself to the Wikidata MOOC community!
  3. FORUM: Your questions about the course

Part 2 - Wikimedia movement and creation of Wikidata

Sections:
  1. What are Wikimedia projects?
  2. Brief history of Wikidata
  3. Traffic and content modifications on Wikidata
  4. FORUM: Your questions about the Wikimedia movement and the creation of Wikidata
Chapter 2 - Understanding knowledge graphs

Part 1 - Introduction to knowledge graphs

Sections:
  1. Introduction
  2. Value / data
  3. Why organise values into data?
  4. Why do we need knowledge graphs?
  5. What can a knowledge graph be used for?
  6. Constraints and consistency
  7. Role of unique identifiers
  8. Examples of unique identifiers
  9. Glossary and summary
  10. FORUM: Your questions about knowledge graphs

Part 2 - Initiation to queries

Sections:
  1. Introduction
  2. Why query a knowledge graph?
  3. What is a query?
  4. Introduction to commands
  5. Query testing
  6. Visualization queries and syntax highlighting
  7. Glossary and summary
  8. FORUM: Your questions about queries

Part 3 - Comprehension assessment

Sections:
  1. Quize
  2. FORUM: Your questions about the quize
Chapter 3 - Discover Wikidata

Part 1 - Introduction to open data

Sections:
  1. Introduction
  2. Definition of open data
  3. Open data, closed data
  4. Right and licence to use
  5. Sharing data
  6. Testing Wikidata's open data
  7. Glossary and summary
  8. FORUM: Your questions about open data

Part 2 - Introduction to the semantic web

Sections:
  1. Introduction
  2. Definition of the semantic web
  3. RDF triplets
  4. The five Linked Open Data stars
  5. The ontology
  6. Ontology on Wikidata
  7. Glossary and summary
  8. FORUM: Your questions on Chapter 5

Part 3 - Presentating Wikidata

Sections:
  1. Introduction
  2. Wikidata, what is it?
  3. A knowledgebase
  4. Data structure in Wikidata
  5. Links between Wikidata and other Wikimedia projects
  6. What is Wikidata used for?
  7. Ready, set, navigate!
  8. Does all data have a place in Wikidata?
  9. Glossary, summary and additional resources
  10. FORUM: Your questions about Wikidata

Part 4 - First steps

Sections:
  1. Introduction
  2. A personal account, why?
  3. Tutorial for creating an account
  4. Setting up your personal page
  5. Exploring new options
  6. The CC-0 license
  7. Modifying your first item
  8. Viewing and using the unique identifier with Réasonator
  9. Glossary and summary
  10. FORUM: Your questions about the first steps

Part 5 - A progress report!

Sections:
  1. A progress report!

Part 6 - Wikidata Discovery Assessment

Sections:
  1. Quiz
  2. FORUM: Your questions about the quiz
Chapter 4 - Contribute to Wikidata

Part 1 - Important announcement

Sections:
  1. New spaces

Part 2 - The Interface

Sections:
  1. Introduction
  2. Discover the interface
  3. Identifier and label
  4. Alias and description
  5. Structure of statements
  6. Properties and property values
  7. Qualifiers, references and ranks
  8. Glossary and summary
  9. FORUM: Your questions about the Interface

Part 3 - Creation of new Items

Sections:
  1. Introduction
  2. Admissibility case studies
  3. Check eligibility
  4. Admissibility case studies
  5. Avoid duplication using the search engine
  6. Create the new Item
  7. Add triples to the new Item
  8. Add references to the new Item
  9. Use Item page history
  10. Modify and delete data
  11. Geotagged Items
  12. Glossary and summary
  13. FORUM: Your questions about creating new Items

Part 4 - The Community

Sections:
  1. Introduction
  2. Social spaces in Wikidata
  3. Contribution statuses
  4. Discussion pages
  5. Where to ask a question?
  6. How does decision-making or an election take place?
  7. Glossary and summary
  8. FORUM: Your questions about the Community

Part 5 - Data quality

Sections:
  1. Introduction
  2. What is data quality?
  3. What is a well-populated Item page?
  4. Constraints
  5. How to correct errors?
  6. Completeness? RECOIN?
  7. The quality of references
  8. ORES and tracking recent changes
  9. Glossary and summary
  10. FORUM: Your questions about data quality

Part 6 - Final assessment

Sections:
  1. Explanations of the assessment
  2. Final exercise report
Chapter 5 - Bonus resources

Part 1 - Scientific bibliography from Wikidata

Section:
  1. Why this bonus?
  2. General information and history of Wikidata
  3. Uses of Wikidata in libraries and research
  4. Internal workings, tools and alignment
  5. Data quality
Frequently Asked Questions
(1) Who is this course for?
  1. Beginners eager to learn Wikidata from scratch.
  2. Individuals in need of a refresher on Wikidata concepts.
  3. Trainers looking to further develop their skills for teaching others.
(2) How can I enroll for the Wikidata course?
  1. Visit the course page. You may also browse the Wiki.Learn course catalogue for Wikidata 101: An Introduction.
  2. Click on enroll and complete by signing in with your Wikimedia account.
  3. If you don't have a Wikimedia user account, you'll need to create one to sign in and enroll. To create an account, visit Special:CreateAccount and fill in the required fields
(3) Is the course free?

Yes, the course is completely free of charge.

(4) Is the course self-paced?

Yes, the MOOC operates on a self-paced model without the need for an instructor or teacher guiding the learning process. You can progress through the material at your own speed.

(5) Is there a grading system in place?

Instead of traditional grading, the course utilizes peer assessment, where learners evaluate each other's work. However, it's important to note that a minimum number of participants is required for the peer assessment system to function effectively.

(6) Where can I ask questions during the course?

You can post questions and interact with fellow learners on the community forum within the course platform. Throughout the course, you'll regularly see pointers and links in the discussions on the community forum. Discussions on the community forum will be archived once the course concludes.

(7) Is there anywhere else I can get help outside of the forums in the MOOC?

Yes, for general Wikidata inquiries, you can join the Wikidata Help Telegram channel. Unlike the course forum, the Telegram channel provides a more permanent location for your inquiries.

(8) Where can I give general feedback about the program?

You may leave feedback on the project discussion page: Wikidata talk:Open Online Course, or write directly to mohammed.abdulai wikimedia.de

(9) Is this course accessible on mobile devices?

Yes, the MOOC is hosted on the Wikimedia Formations platform, which is responsive and accessible on both mobile devices and tablets.

(10) Can I join multiple iterations of the course?

Yes, you can join as many iterations of the course as you like, as long as new course schedules are made available. However, please note that only one iteration will be available at any given time.

(11) Can I receive a certificate of completion for this course?

Yes, participants can receive a digital certificate of completion upon request. To request your certificate, simply tag @masssly in the course forum.

(12) Can I fork the MOOC in my language?

The MOOC is hosted on Wikimedia France servers, and they reserve the rights to the original content and decisions about hosting. However, English text and video subtitles are available upon request. Reach out to Mohammed Abdulai (WMDE) if you need them.