Community Resources and Partnerships/India Rapid Project/Tamil Wikisource School Students Club
Applicant
[edit]- Main Wikimedia username. (required)
Sridhar G
- Organization
N/A
- If you are a group or organization leader, board member, president, executive director, or staff member at any Wikimedia group, affiliate, or Wikimedia Foundation, you are required to self-identify and present all roles. (required)
N/A
- Describe all relevant roles with the name of the group or organization and description of the role. (required)
N/A
Project
[edit]- 1. Please state the title of your proposal. This will also be the Meta-Wiki page title.
Tamil Wikisource School Students Club
- 2. and 3. Proposed start and end dates for the proposal.
2025-11-01 - 2026-04-30
- 4. Where will this proposal be implemented? (required)
India
- 5. Are your activities part of a Wikimedia movement campaign, project, or event? If so, please select the relevant project or campaign. (required)
Not applicable
- 6. What is the change you are trying to bring? What are the main challenges or problems you are trying to solve? Describe this change or challenges, as well as main approaches to achieve it. (required)
Challenges:Tamil Wikisource is one of the top 10 Wikisource projects in the world in terms of the total number of pages. It is also the leading project among Indian Wikisource projects when measured by the number of proofread and validated pages. However, there is still a lot of untapped potential for the growth of the Tamil Wikisource project. Tamil is one of the oldest classical languages in the world, with a written script and cherished literature. The Tamil Nadu government supports the growth of open-source Tamil projects like Wikisource online. In this regard, they released more than 2,000 nationalized books into the public domain to be used and distributed through Wikisource projects. This landmark declaration was made in 2016. However, even nine years since then, we have only released 500 books so far after proofreading and validation. Though we are a top project globally, we have only around 37 active contributors each month who make at least five edits. The work of proofreading is monotonous and doesn’t naturally attract even all the Wikipedia contributors. We observe that some of the active contributors are over 60 years old and contribute to make use of their retired life. We do not see strong participation from youth in the project—which is the only way to guarantee its continuity and growth. Unlike Wikipedia, Wikisource contributions specifically require a laptop or desktop, as we don’t have any dedicated apps. The nature of proofreading work is also not conducive to handheld devices.Approaches:In this context, we would like to introduce schoolchildren to Wikisource proofreading activities as an extracurricular activity so they can be introduced to the world of free culture and open source—and, in the process, gain digital literacy as well. Every open-source project tries to engage contributors while they are still young, often in schools or colleges. We have already conducted a one-day Wikisource workshop at our school in 2020. It was very well received by the students and provided us with valuable learnings that we can apply in this next round of activities. This Wikisource school club could serve as a pilot program and be repeated every year—not only in our school but also in many others that could replicate this model. Through this, we hope to create a continuous pool of new and young contributors to Wikisource while also expanding our library of proofread content. Unlike Wikipedia, Wikisource does not require specialized content-generation skills or adherence to numerous policies. The students will receive in-person, hands-on experience editing Wikisource pages under the guidance of an experienced Wikimedia contributor.
- 7. What are the planned activities? (required) Please provide a list of main activities. You can also add a link to the public page for your project where details about your project can be found. Alternatively, you can upload a timeline document. When the activities include partnerships, include details about your partners and planned partnerships.
The Wikisource Club will be initiated with a half-day training program designed to introduce students to the world of the free knowledge ecosystem and highlight the role of Tamil Wikisource within it. This training will be conducted using the school’s computer lab facility. Following the induction, students will have the opportunity to edit Wikisource either during their free time or in 15 guided one-hour sessions spread across three months. I will personally oversee these sessions, which will take place during free periods or after school hours with the permission of the school principal. Books selected for proofreading will be appropriate to the students’ age level and interests, ensuring both engagement and accessibility. Each student will be expected to proofread at least 100 pages over the course of the program. To further motivate participation, a proofreading contest will be organized, with certificates and prizes awarded to the students. The activities are scheduled to commence on December 1, 2025, and conclude on February 28, 2026.
- 8. Describe your team. Please provide their roles, Wikimedia Usernames and other details. (required) Include more details of the team, including their roles, usernames, Wikimedia group, and whether they are salaried, volunteers, consultants/contractors, etc.
Project Coordinator (Volunteer capacity): Sridhar G, experienced Wikimedian and English teacher at the government school. Project Mentor(Volunteer capacity): Balaji Jagadeesh, Ravidreams Role: Program design, Wikisource training
- 9. Who are the target participants and from which community? How will you engage participants before and during the activities? How will you follow up with participants after the activities? (required)
I work as a teacher at the government school where the Wikisource student club has been proposed. I already coordinate various other extracurricular activities for the students. Eighth and ninth grade Students aged 13+ who are interested in Tamil, literature, digital literacy, and learning activities will be given the opportunity to join this club. I will engage them in person.
- 9.1. If your project includes in-person activities, are there any international participants travelling to India for them? (required)
- 9.1.1. List all countries of participation. (required)
- 9.2. Will the project be transferring funds to any international participants? (required)
- N/A
- 9.2.1. List all international participants receiving funding and their countries. (required)
N/A
- 10. Does your project involve work with children or youth? (required)
- Yes
- 10.1. Please provide a link to your Youth Safety Policy. (required) If the proposal indicates direct contact with children or youth, you are required to outline compliance with international and local laws for working with children and youth, and provide a youth safety policy aligned with these laws. Read more here.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/17OqnM8nkfftcy-OZyNxj9MHzl87AvYzh/view?usp=sharing
- 11. How did you discuss the idea of your project with your community members and/or any relevant groups? Please describe steps taken and provide links to any on-wiki community discussion(s) about the proposal. (required) You need to inform the community and/or group, discuss the project with them, and involve them in planning this proposal. You also need to align the activities with other projects happening in the planned area of implementation to ensure collaboration within the community.
We discussed this idea during the Tamil Wikimedia community gathering conducted in Salem last March. We will also post the project details in the Tamil Wikisource Village Pump and seek endorsements.
- 12. Does your proposal aim to work to bridge any of the content knowledge gaps (Knowledge Inequity)? Select one option that most apply to your work. (required)
Other Important Topics (topics considered to be of impact or important in the specific context)
- 13. Does your proposal include any of these areas or thematic focus? Select one option that most applies to your work. (required)
Education
- 14. Will your work focus on involving participants from any underrepresented communities? Select one option that most apply to your work. (required)
Digital Access
- 15. In what ways do you think your proposal most contributes to the Movement Strategy 2030 recommendations. Select one that most applies. (required)
Innovate in Free Knowledge
Metrics
[edit]- 17. What do you hope to learn from your work in this project or proposal? (required)
We hope to learn the following: * How school students can be better engaged in Wikisource contributions (and whether it is feasible) * How to reproduce the same program across years and schools * How to curate age-appropriate content and contribution goals * The motivations and challenges experienced by new and young contributors to the Wikisource program, and how these can be addressed * How to introduce Wikimedia contributions as part of education
- 18. What are your Wikimedia project targets in numbers (metrics)? (required)
| Other Metrics | Target | Optional description |
|---|---|---|
| Number of participants | 50 | 50 students from grade 8 and 9. Since this is a focused event at a single school, all participants in the club will also become editors. |
| Number of editors | 50 | 50 students from grade 8 and 9. |
| Number of organizers | 1 | 1 Organizer will be the teacher at the school concerned. 2 more organizers will guide the implementation of this program online |
| Wikimedia project | Number of content created or improved |
|---|---|
| Wikipedia | |
| Wikimedia Commons | |
| Wikidata | |
| Wiktionary | |
| Wikisource | 5000 |
| Wikimedia Incubator | |
| Translatewiki | |
| MediaWiki | |
| Wikiquote | |
| Wikivoyage | |
| Wikibooks | |
| Wikiversity | |
| Wikinews | |
| Wikispecies | |
| Wikifunctions or Abstract Wikipedia |
- Optional description for content contributions.
5000 pages proofread. 50 students proofreading @ 5 pages an hour for 20 hours spread across three months. 50*20*5=5000.
- 19. Do you have any other project targets in numbers (metrics)? (optional)
No
| Main Open Metrics | Description | Target |
|---|---|---|
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A |
- 20. What tools would you use to measure each metrics? Please refer to the guide for a list of tools. You can also write that you are not sure and need support. (required)
https://outreachdashboard.wmflabs.org
Budget
[edit]- 21. Please upload your budget for this proposal or indicate the link to it. (required)
- 22. What is the amount you are requesting for this proposal? Please provide the amount in Indian Rupees. (required)
66500 INR
- 22.1. Convert the amount requested into USD using the Oanda converter. This is done to help you assess the USD equivalent of the requested amount. Your request should be between 500 - 5,000 USD. (required)
754.14 USD
- By submitting this proposal request you agree with the Institutional Partner Privacy Policy, Application Privacy Statements, WMF Friendly Space Policy and Universal Code of Conduct.
Yes
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