Wikiversity:Page protection templates

This page is currently being developed and will be proposed as part of possible future Wikiversity policy, guideline, or processes for dealing with original research within Wikiversity. The ideas on this page are under discussion. The actual policy discussions will take place at the Wikiversity beta multi-lingual website, start at: Research guidelines. References or links to this page should not describe it as "policy".

There are several reasons why Wikiversity participants might want to protect some pages from editing. Wikiversity does not prevent participants from crossing the line into original research and since Wikiversity participants are also encouraged to document their personal learning experiences, page protection at Wikiversity is slightly more complex than at Wikipedia. Wikiversity incorporates the page protection system of Wikipedia (protection of pages from editing by custodians), but adds an additional element. Registered Wikiversity participants can protect pages that they create from modification by other Wikiversity editors. This allows Wikiversity participants to easily create "archive pages" that will document their own experiences, thoughts, plans and multiple stable versions of documents set aside for study and future reference. Courses and research projects that are in progress can be restricted so that only some Wikiversity participants can edit them.

Decisions by Wikipedia users to protect pages are always subject to review and reversal by custodians and referees. Pages that a user has created can be marked as protected using the page protection templates.

These templates do not provide a software block against other users from editing a page. They function by trust and respect (which are made easier by technical functions of the mediawiki software).

Protected course template edit

Template:Protected course

One reason to protect pages from editing is if a main namespace page is being used by participants in a course at a bricks-and-mortar educational institution. You can use Template:Protected course to restrict editing of a page for a course to just people enrolled in that course.

Example: see UIUC PHIL 270.

Protect template edit

Template:Protect can be used to request others not to edit a research project.

{{Protect|JWSchmidt}} produces:

JWSchmidt respectfully asks that people use the discussion page, their talk page or email them, rather than contribute to this page at this time. This page might be under construction, controversial, used currently as part of a brick and mortar class by a teacher, or document an ongoing research project. Please RESPECT their wishes by not editing this page.

Only Wikiversity participants with a registered username and a confirmed email address can use this page protection template. Anyone using this page protection template must place the scholarly ethics template on their user page.

The first section of a page using Template:Protect must explain why the page has been protected from editing.

Any Wikiversity editor can remove this page protection template from a page if

  • the page is not in the main namespace
  • the template was placed on the page by someone who was not the creator of the page
  • there is no reason provided for use of the template
  • the person who placed the template on the page is not a registered user, does not have a confirmed email address, or does not have the scholarly ethics template an their user page.

Wikiversity referees and custodians can remove a page protection template from a page if the page has content that is against Wikiversity policy or is disruptive to Wikiversity.

Protected data template edit

Some pages might contain raw data or machine-readable data to accompany a lesson. Any small change to this data could prevent it from being used properly. The {{Protected data|pagename}} template could be used on these pages, it produces:

See also edit