Grants:Programs/Wikimedia Research Fund/The Contribution of Wikipedia Clubs in Strengthening Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Skills among Young People in West Africa
 | This is a stage 2 Wikimedia Research Fund application. Review the full proposal. |
Overview[edit]
Applicant(s)
- Emmanuel Dabo, Donatien Kanga and Géraldine Yanon
Affiliation or grant type
- Wikimedia Côte D'Ivoire
Author(s)
- Emmanuel Dabo, Donatien Kanga and Géraldine Yanon
Wikimedia username(s)
- Emmanuel Dabo: User:Emmanuel Dabo ; Donatien Kanga: User:Papischou
Project title
- The Contribution of Wikipedia Clubs in Strengthening Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Skills among Young People in West Africa
Research proposal[edit]
Description[edit]
Description of the proposed project, including aims and approach. Be sure to clearly state the problem, why it is important, why previous approaches (if any) have been insufficient, and your methods to address it.
In the digital age, the issues of misinformation are of increasing concern. While it is true that the growing use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) contributes to "the improvement of well-being, economic development, the consolidation of social ties, the enhancement of local cultures, and citizen engagement" (Yanon & Barbey, 2018), the fact remains that the uses to which they are put are sometimes damaging (cybercrime, cyberstalking, disinformation, etc.). In light of this ambivalent reality, many researchers and civil society organizations (CSOs) "raise the need to educate citizens, from an early age, about the risks and benefits of digital environments" (J. Palfrey, 2008; J. Hartley, 2010). In Côte d'Ivoire, young people are an appropriate target for Media and Information Literacy (MIL) in that "young people are very much into the Internet and digital products (social networks, wikis, etc.)" (Yanon, 2017) and 75% of the population is under 35 years old (Census 2021). Faced with this reality, various initiatives are being carried out. Since the start of the 2018-2019 school year, Côte d'Ivoire has integrated a training curriculum on "information and communication technologies in schools" for grades K-12. "The curriculum emphasizes the practice and the need to learn to criticize information found on the Internet and use it in a way that respects Ivorian social and civic values while developing critical thinking skills in the face of digital content." (Corroy & Yanon, 2019). In addition, various organizations including UNESCO have initiated a number of initiatives. Since the year 2020, Wikimedia Côte d'Ivoire association has created six Wikipedia clubs in schools and universities. In Nigeria (Wikimedia Fan Club, University of Ilorin) and Ghana (Wikipedia Club Ghana Institute of Journalism), there are also clubs. The purpose of this study is to identify how these clubs contribute to building the MIL skills of youth. What activities are conducted in the Wikipedia Clubs? What MIL-related skills do young people gain from participating in Wikipedia Club activities? To what extent can the experience of the Wikipedia clubs be scaled up to the West African sub-region? To answer these questions, the study combines qualitative and quantitative methods. Interviews will be conducted with the leaders of each of the clubs. A focus group will also be conducted with members of each club. Finally, a questionnaire will be administered to each club member.
Personnel[edit]
N/A
Budget[edit]
Approximate amount requested in USD.
- 38,943 USD
Budget Description
Briefly describe what you expect to spend money on (specific budgets and details are not necessary at this time).
The budget comprises 6 parts:
1. equipment and software (7315 USD)
2. fieldwork is about the interviews, the focus group and the survey dissemination (6925 USD)
3. finding dissemination and Open access publishing costs (6500 USD)
4. salaries or stipends of the 3 Principal Investigators, the French-English Translator and the data entry operator (10600 USD)
5. Institutional overhead (5149,95 USD)
6. Others or miscellaneous (4476,495 USD)
Impact[edit]
Address the impact and relevance to the Wikimedia projects, including the degree to which the research will address the 2030 Wikimedia Strategic Direction and/or support the work of Wikimedia user groups, affiliates, and developer communities. If your work relates to knowledge gaps, please directly relate it to the knowledge gaps taxonomy.
Our project is part of the 2030 strategic direction. As the first research project carried out by the Ivorian User Group, we see it as a new form of local contribution (R9). The target of young people is not fortuitous, as they are primary actors in the knowledge ecosystem. Taking an interest in them is a way to promote their inclusion (R3). Moreover, by studying the contribution of Wikipedia in the MIL skills strenghtening, the "service" function of the encyclopedia will necessarily be evaluated (R10), suggesting perspectives on user experience (R2) or high impact topics (R8). Our results will thus constitute internal knowledge (R7) useful to the whole movement.
Dissemination[edit]
Plans for dissemination.
The progress reports (questionnaire, focus group and interviews) and the overall report of the study will be published on Meta-Wiki after their validation. At the end of the study, two scientific articles will be submitted for publication in journals. A feedback conference with policy makers, scientists, CSOs and media will also be organised.
Past Contributions[edit]
Prior contributions to related academic and/or research projects and/or the Wikimedia and free culture communities. If you do not have prior experience, please explain your planned contributions.
Emmanuel Dabo, 2022, Contribution sur Wikipédia et renforcement des compétences en éducation aux médias et à l’information chez les adolescentes en Côte d’Ivoire
Donatien Kanga & Emmanuel Dabo, 2020, Monitoring des discours de haine en ligne en Côte d’Ivoire
Yanon Géraldine & Barbey Francis, 2018, Numériques : nouvelles opportunités, nouvelles inégalités : Quelle éducation aux médias numériques pour le rayonnement des cultures locales ?
Yanon Géraldine, 2017, Littératie de renforcement des capacités dans les instituts d’enseignement lycéens et universitaires publics ivoiriens : les réseaux sociaux numériques pour apprendre ?
Donatien Kanga, 2014, Étude sur les usages du numérique par les Organisations de la Société Civiles ivoiriennes
I agree to license the information I entered in this form excluding the pronouns, countries of residence, and email addresses under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0. I understand that the decision to fund this Research Fund application, the application itself along with all the information entered by my in this form excluding the pronouns, country of residences, and email addresses of the personnel will be published on Wikimedia Foundation Funds pages on Meta-Wiki and will be made available to the public in perpetuity. To make the results of your research actionable and reusable by the Wikimedia volunteer communities, affiliates and Foundation, I agree that any output of my research will comply with the WMF Open Access Policy. I also confirm that I have read the privacy statement and agree to abide by the WMF Friendly Space Policy and Universal Code of Conduct.
- Yes