Aim 2

The long-term outcome of this work is for people in the UK to be able to understand and effectively engage with open knowledge. Wikimedia’s premise is that freely available access to high-quality, unbiased information based on reliable sources helps to create a shared understanding of the world.

With collaboration and peer review as foundations of the movement, Wikimedia projects are safe spaces in which to develop critical digital skills. Wikimedia UK works with educators and other partners to develop participants’ digital literacy skills, with a focus on information, media and data literacy.

Over the course of 2022-23 we were pleased to deliver 14 ‘Wikimedia in the Classroom’ further education courses, for courses as diverse as journalism, archaeology, and early-career researchers. Our Wikimedian in Residence at the National Library of Wales has supported a Masters student on an Aberystwyth University translation course, and the Wikimedian in Residence at Edinburgh University supported the setup of ‘Digital Volunteering with Wikipedia’, a new Edinburgh Award to accredit students for extended project work on Wikipedia, aimed at developing key digital skills of participants.

There has been growing engagement with civic digital literacy and university internship schemes, which are often framed in terms of information literacy skills development. SunoikisisDC, an international group focused on Digital Classics programmes, has been engaged with Wikimedia UK and our partners the Women’s Classical Committee. There have been further iterations of the Wikidata Map of Accused Witches project, now recognised within the global Wikimedia community and driving recognition of the power of Wikidata in heritage engagement.

We continue to seek funding for digital literacy work in schools across England. Our Wales programme has had continued success across our partnership with Menter Môn, focused on subjects such as digital licensing, collaborative working, data evaluation and editing. Year 12 students at Ysgol Syr Thomas Jones, Ysgol Llangefni and Ysgol Uwchradd Bodedern have been creating and enriching articles, adding the meaning and historical context of the island’s Welsh place names on the Welsh Wiki.