Does Wikipedia´s content could be consider as legit ?
By alilin28
@alilin28 (1527)
Uruguay
September 8, 2012 4:05pm CST
hi friends how are you? many of us are students, and I remebered that some of my biology´s teacher told to my classroom that we coundt use wikipedia for search some extra info about a topic. What do you think? or What was your experience using this site to get some info? What would be the real problem by this site?
I know that people could edit some articles, the idea is to improve the info, but sometimes people make silly changes that affect everybody.
Sometimes this site, gives a key for something we are searching for, or just to be sure about something.
Could any wikipedia´s area be more affected (if we are comparing to areas?
Have a nice day
4 people like this
16 responses
@cashforus (75)
• Philippines
8 Sep 12
Hello!
I think even if the content has refence, some of the terms may be rephrased that may make different interpretations to the reader. You may however get ideas from wiki and then make further reasearch from reliable sites focusing on a subject. To answer your question, I don't think it should be considered legit as anyone can add details in it without the opinion of experts and proof readers before publishing it on the web.
@ladym33 (10979)
• United States
8 Sep 12
Your professors are wise to say that. For the most part the information on Wikepedia is good and valid information. However, any body can post on there and they are not required to fact check. There are also people who go on there and add or change information to make it incorrect because they think it is funny. If you are going to use Wikepedia as a reference you can do so but don't let that be your only reference, check the facts you find on there on other web sites to be sure the information is accurate.
@Maggiepie (7816)
• United States
23 Dec 12
[b]I don't entirely trust Wikipedia because it can be edited by the public. Thus it is that misinformation & outright lies can be there. Some things, less controversial, perhaps, are okay. but caveat emptor! Just to be safe, check out several sources, & decide whom you trust to get facts correct.
Maggiepie[/b]
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
11 Sep 12
What I do is research a topic by Wikipedia and use the other links presented in the page. Many teachers of mine have a low opinion of the site when it comes to authenticity and veracity. But it is a good place to start your research. Some people thik that Wikipedia is not that credible since it is in a format which can be edited by anybody – which can be an educator or someone who just tries to pass off something as quality information.
@mythociate (21437)
• Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
9 Sep 12
Wikipedia is about as good a source as 'the old man sitting on his porch-swing at twilight.' That is: yeah, sure it's a good source; but you ought to back it up with some 'good source'-citations (an encyclopedia, a newspaper/magazine/science-journal).
Wikipedia's articles & entries are often supported by citations of the "real" sources they came from. Wikipedia's only a good source of information you want to know; if you need to know (for a report or something), you need scientifically valid resources.
@AmbiePam (85606)
• United States
9 Sep 12
Several of my professors also told us we could not use wikipedia to get information. Almost anyone can post whatever they want, and the incorrect information is not always caught and deleted. I remember seeing an interview on TV where the interviewer got the information about the person he was speaking with on wikipedia. Nearly all the "facts" the interviewer thought would be interesting to discuss with the person were in fact, false. And it was quite embarassing for the interviewer.
@ShepherdSpy (8544)
• Omagh, Northern Ireland
9 Sep 12
While Many Wikipedia entries would be as accurate as possible,the user update facility means anyone can potentially alter what might have been a reliably sourced entry..For this reason,Wikipedia can only be recommended as ONE potential source for information..verification of all the information being used for research is recommended from multiple sources,and never relying on Wikipedia alone.
@Citizen_Stuart (2016)
•
8 Sep 12
Wikipedia's alright for a starting point to your research, but you shouldn't depend on it. You should double check everything you read in it against more specialist sources of information.
@silverfox09 (4708)
• United States
8 Sep 12
I think most wiki content are legit source of information . I am always using wiki for my assignment and I would used it and also leave reference . Its the best online information resource in my opinion .
@inedible (768)
• Singapore
9 Sep 12
You shouldn't cite Wikipedia directly in your papers or projects, but you can use Wikipedia to get a basic understanding first. Plus, you can check the papers/books/sites referenced by Wikipedia to gather more information, and cite those references instead. If you're worried about the accuracy of the page itself, try checking its history and see if there are any strange and drastic changes, like edits that change the meaning or information completely.
@sender621 (14894)
• United States
9 Sep 12
I have found that many teachers will refuse to use wikepedia as a source for school projects. i think it may be v=because informatrion sources for wikedia can not be validated sincerely. It is is best to use a source that can be well documented.
@BabyGurrl (65)
• United States
9 Sep 12
Yeah, a lot of teachers say do not use Wikipedia as a source and some people still do. I still check it every once in a while to see when some of my favorite artists are coming out with another album or working on anything new. But I have other sites I can check as well because you still can't trust Wikipedia 100%.
