Hi Nemo,
I am happy to clarify! With "staff" I included university teachers and professors. I intentionally wrote it a bit more blurry as I figured that this might differ between different countries. :-)
In Sweden we have so far worked directly with teachers and professors to formulate an interesting topic and they have added themselves - or colleagues - as supervisors. Wikimedia Sverige's staff is involved as external experts that will help guide the students.
To make it more concrete I have included an example of a thesis topic that we have added to the university's database below:
What role can Wikipedia’s material have in Sweden’s prisons? It is possible to provide prisons with an offline version of Wikipedia so that the prisoners can read and continuously educate themselves? This has already been tested in Switzerland in 2013-2014. It would be interesting to evaluate the possibilities for similar projects in Sweden and to find out what the possibilities and the obstacles are.
Supervisor Henrik Hansson, DSV, John Andersson, Wikimedia Sverige
https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Kiwix_-_Wikipedia_Offline
https://se.wikimedia.org/wiki/Projekt:Wikipedia_i_fängelser_2015
If there is interest from a student then the discussion continues in
order to narrow down the topic - in a way that is good for both us and
for the student. The result can then, hopefully, be used for an external application to fund a project.
In Sweden many universities also offer the possibility for external
organizations/companies to send in suggestions on thesis topics even without the contact with a professor/teacher in advance. The professors/teachers at the university will then decide if they care to be supervisors or not.
A few months from now we will see if this works out well for us or not.
John> From: wiki-research-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org
> Subject: Wiki-research-l Digest, Vol 111, Issue 7
> To: wiki-research-l@lists.wikimedia.org
> Date: Tue, 11 Nov 2014 00:57:40 +0000
>
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> Today's Topics:
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> 1. List of student research assignment (John Andersson)
> 2. Re: List of student research assignment (Kerry Raymond)
> 3. Re: List of student research assignment (Federico Leva (Nemo))
> 4. Re: List of student research assignment (Kerry Raymond)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Mon, 10 Nov 2014 20:48:25 +0100
> From: John Andersson <john.andersson@wikimedia.se>
> To: "Wiki-research-l@lists.wikimedia.org"
> <wiki-research-l@lists.wikimedia.org>
> Subject: [Wiki-research-l] List of student research assignment
> Message-ID: <DUB131-W90D8F08860280D1CFAD4BDBF800@phx.gbl>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>
> Hi,
>
>
>
> The last year Wikimedia Sverige has deepened the cooperation with a
> number of universities in Sweden and we have recently started providing
> them with research assignment for students' thesis work (to work on for
> either during 10 weeks (Bachelor) or 20 weeks (Master)). As a small pilot I gave a presentation about this a couple of weeks ago and we have seen a great interest in this opportunity from staff and student - with around 10 students (out of ~300) deciding to do their thesis work about our movement and projects next year!
>
>
>
>
> I was wondering if there is a list of possible thesis assignments compiled
> somewhere (of course many different structures for thesis work exist - but anything would help)? We would especially like more ideas regarding technical assignments that the students could do - and investigate the effect from - during their thesis course. I.e.
> not just the Phabricator/Bugzilla bugs, but something a bit more
> comprehensive and structured. Is there anything out there? (Kind of like GSoC - but during the semesters.)
>
>
>
> If no such resource exists - and if more people/chapters/WMF would find this approach of involving universities interesting - perhaps we could create the necessary structures for this in the future?
>
>
>
> PS. Wiki Education Foundation do not have one - I already asked.
>
>
>
> Best,
>
> John
>
> - - - -
>
>
>
> John Andersson
>
>
>
> Wikimedia Sverige
>
>
>
> Project Manager
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Phone: +46(0)73-3965189
>
>
>
>
>
> Email: john.andersson@wikimedia.se
>
>
>
>
> Skype: johnandersson86
>
> Be sure to follow us on Twitter at @WikiEuropeana and @WikimediaSE
> Would you like to support free knowledge and Wikipedia? Please consider becoming a member of Wikimedia Sverige! We need your support.
>
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>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 2
> Date: Tue, 11 Nov 2014 08:44:15 +1000
> From: "Kerry Raymond" <kerry.raymond@gmail.com>
> To: "'Research into Wikimedia content and communities'"
> <wiki-research-l@lists.wikimedia.org>
> Subject: Re: [Wiki-research-l] List of student research assignment
> Message-ID: <3C3663FD56044700B9B728BDAFE626B5@chapelhill.homeip.net>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
>
> This is a very interesting idea and could be targeted both at technical work
> assignments as well as research assignments at all levels. However, to be
> viable, we probably need to have some information available to the students
> on the codebase and whatever else is required to be immediately productive.
> Maybe that could be the first assignments!
>
>
>
> _____
>
> From: wiki-research-l-bounces@lists.wikimedia.org
> [mailto:wiki-research-l-bounces@lists.wikimedia.org] On Behalf Of John
> Andersson
> Sent: Tuesday, 11 November 2014 5:48 AM
> To: Wiki-research-l@lists.wikimedia.org
> Subject: [Wiki-research-l] List of student research assignment
>
>
>
> Hi,
>
>
> The last year Wikimedia Sverige has deepened the cooperation with a number
> of universities in Sweden and we have recently started providing them with
> research assignment for students' thesis work (to work on for either during
> 10 weeks (Bachelor) or 20 weeks (Master)). As a small pilot I gave a
> presentation about this a couple of weeks ago and we have seen a great
> interest in this opportunity from staff and student - with around 10
> students (out of ~300) deciding to do their thesis work about our movement
> and projects next year!
>
>
>
> I was wondering if there is a list of possible thesis assignments compiled
> somewhere (of course many different structures for thesis work exist - but
> anything would help)? We would especially like more ideas regarding
> technical assignments that the students could do - and investigate the
> effect from - during their thesis course. I.e. not just the
> Phabricator/Bugzilla bugs, but something a bit more comprehensive and
> structured. Is there anything out there? (Kind of like GSoC
> <https://developers.google.com/open-source/soc/?csw=1> - but during the
> semesters.)
>
>
>
> If no such resource exists - and if more people/chapters/WMF would find this
> approach of involving universities interesting - perhaps we could create the
> necessary structures for this in the future?
>
>
>
> PS. Wiki Education Foundation do not have one - I already asked.
>
>
> Best,
>
> John
> - - - -
> John Andersson
> Wikimedia Sverige
> Project Manager
>
> Phone: +46(0)73-3965189
> Email: john.andersson@wikimedia.se <mailto:JohnAndersson86@hotmail.com>
> Skype: johnandersson86
>
> Be sure to follow us on Twitter at @WikiEuropeana
> <http://twitter.com/#%21/wikieuropeana> and @WikimediaSE
> <https://twitter.com/WikimediaSE>
> Would you like to support free knowledge and Wikipedia? Please consider
> becoming a member <https://donera.wikimedia.se/node/6> of Wikimedia
> Sverige! We need your support.
>
> -------------- next part --------------
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>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 3
> Date: Tue, 11 Nov 2014 00:36:48 +0100
> From: "Federico Leva (Nemo)" <nemowiki@gmail.com>
> To: Research into Wikimedia content and communities
> <wiki-research-l@lists.wikimedia.org>
> Cc: Wikimedia Education <education@lists.wikimedia.org>
> Subject: Re: [Wiki-research-l] List of student research assignment
> Message-ID: <54614C10.40504@gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed
>
> John Andersson, 10/11/2014 20:48:
> > we have recently started providing them with research assignment for
> > students' thesis work (to work on for either during 10 weeks (Bachelor)
> > or 20 weeks (Master)). As a small pilot I gave a presentation about this
> > a couple of weeks ago and we have seen a great interest in this
> > opportunity from staff and student
>
> Interesting! But, sorry for the stupid questions, how can this work? Are
> you talking of thesis as in final work for the degree? Does it mean the
> student can decide the thesis on their own? What does the staff have to
> do with it? How are external entities allowed to propose theses?
> https://studyinsweden.se/study-information/degree-programmes/masters-studies/
> and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thesis#Sweden are not particularly
> useful to explain.
>
> In Italy the bachelor/master thesis is in practice proposed by the
> prof./teacher and the university staff has no say whatsoever in it. (Let
> alone the state; that would even be against the constitution, probably.)
>
> Nemo
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 4
> Date: Tue, 11 Nov 2014 10:57:33 +1000
> From: Kerry Raymond <kerry.raymond@gmail.com>
> To: Research into Wikimedia content and communities
> <wiki-research-l@lists.wikimedia.org>
> Cc: Wikimedia Education <education@lists.wikimedia.org>
> Subject: Re: [Wiki-research-l] List of student research assignment
> Message-ID: <3C9E75AF-2D83-4AB2-89D3-16CD72C81F57@gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>
> I'd just see it as a pool of ideas which could be used by student, staff, the state or whoever decides these things in that particular context.
>
> Sent from my iPad
>
> > On 11 Nov 2014, at 9:36 am, Federico Leva (Nemo) <nemowiki@gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > John Andersson, 10/11/2014 20:48:
> >> we have recently started providing them with research assignment for
> >> students' thesis work (to work on for either during 10 weeks (Bachelor)
> >> or 20 weeks (Master)). As a small pilot I gave a presentation about this
> >> a couple of weeks ago and we have seen a great interest in this
> >> opportunity from staff and student
> >
> > Interesting! But, sorry for the stupid questions, how can this work? Are you talking of thesis as in final work for the degree? Does it mean the student can decide the thesis on their own? What does the staff have to do with it? How are external entities allowed to propose theses? https://studyinsweden.se/study-information/degree-programmes/masters-studies/ and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thesis#Sweden are not particularly useful to explain.
> >
> > In Italy the bachelor/master thesis is in practice proposed by the prof./teacher and the university staff has no say whatsoever in it. (Let alone the state; that would even be against the constitution, probably.)
> >
> > Nemo
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > Wiki-research-l mailing list
> > Wiki-research-l@lists.wikimedia.org
> > https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wiki-research-l
>
>
>
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>
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