Wikipedia gets its fair share of backlash and eye rolling, but it can be a useful way to get an overview of a topic – especially when you’re just learning about that topic for the first time. Is it a scholarly source? Of course not, but it is often a great place to start. You would never cite it in your bibliography (seriously, your professor will automatically fail you), but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have educational merit. Here are some ways you can use Wikipedia to your advantage, while avoiding some of the pitfalls that give it its questionable reputation.
Gather background information.
Wikipedia provides a quick overview of a topic. Within a matter of seconds, you can get a general idea about something you’ve never studied before. You can search for your topic, read up on it, and then follow links to other sources. This will give you a better understanding of your topic. Apocalypse Now makes much more sense if you have an idea of the preparation that went into making it.
Develop keywords for continued research.
If you are learning about a new topic, you might not have the vocabulary to discuss it or even to search for it in an article database. Wikipedia pages will use the language that other researchers would use about any given topic, so you can use certain phrases to search for more sources. Make sure you pay attention to any bolded terms or any words that appear in the table of contents. These will be used frequently when talking about a topic.
Continue reading.
Every Wikipedia page has a section of external links for further reading. You can go to these websites to learn more about whatever topic you’re researching. Wikipedia serves as a great outline for a topic, but it’s far from all-encompassing. These websites will help to build credibility as you’re making your argument. You can never have too many sources, and someone has already done the work of compiling some for you.
Get a lot of information quickly.
The term “wikihopping” has made its way into the pop culture lexicon for this very reason. Each Wikipedia page has highlighted keywords that take you to other Wikipedia pages. You have a seemingly endless wealth of human intelligence at your fingertips. You could start off on the page for the Berlin Wall and follow it to The Cold War or Communism or even David Hasselhoff. You could learn about topics that you wouldn’t even think to add to your paper.
Find more references.
If you find a piece of information on Wikipedia that you know would really tie your paper together, follow the footnote to the bottom of the page. That will take you to the original source, which will develop validity for its place in your research. Now, you can cite this source in your bibliography. Also, there will be an assortment of references on whatever topic you’re researching. For example, the Wikipedia page for the 2009 film The House of the Devil has 20 different sources in its reference section. If I were to read into each of those, I would be able to write a compelling argument about the film, while beefing up my works cited page in the process.
