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Learning patterns/Organizing a Translatathon

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A learning pattern foreditathons
Organizing a Translatathon
problemWikipedia is a multilingual, international project, but edit-a-thons often focus on a single language. This can make some attendees feel as if their language skills are underappreciated and lead to a lack of cohesivity among attendees of disparate language background.
solutionOrganize a translatathon, an edit-a-thon that focuses on the act of translation. A translatathon is a way to bring together attendees from disparate language and cultural backgrounds, and to unite them with a unified goal.
creator• Kosboot
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created on16:08, 6 August 2019 (UTC)
status:DRAFT

What problem does this solve?

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A translatathon is distinguished from other public facing editing events in that is not limited to projects in specific languages. Therefore, while it requires many of the same skills and resources as an edit-a-thon, the translatathon requires a greater number of on-hand organizers, additional preparatory steps, and flexibility on the day of the event.

What is the solution?

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Things to consider

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  • Connect the translatathon with an event that could make a positive impact in a thematic area, such as Black History Month or Womens' History Month.
  • Consider inviting a speaker to give a relevant talk. For instance, a talk on historically undervalued languages or on how the Internet helps keep languages alive.
  • Once the time and place are decided, create a Wikipedia page for the event providing the details. The page should additionally function as a place to sign-up for the event, and for listing potential articles or topics that attendees may want to edit. One-line descriptions of people or topics can be very helpful to those determining which article(s) to edit. As in a typical editathon, strongly encourage attendees to register Wikipedia accounts well before the event.
  • Reserve a space larger than what one would need for an edit-a-thon of equivalent size. During the translathon, attendees may be distracted by ambient discussions in different languages; more space will allow attendees working in different areas to group together.
  • Identify dominant languages in the community you wish to invite. For instance, what languages are spoken by students at a University?
  • Assess the organizers linguistic capabilities, and identify any gaps you may wish to fill through outreach. A Central Notice Banner across different language Wikipedias will help organizers reached logged-in editors in a specific geographic location.
  • Produce promotional materials in multiple languages in order to reach more people. For instance, a poster that says Wikipedia in many languages visually demonstrates the focus of the event.
  • Since attendees will be editing in numerous languages, there will be a reduction in the ability to share computers or laptops. Organizers need to ensure appropriate numbers of computers and know how to change the language settings. You may have to use virtual keyboards when translators have literacy in the language but are not used to touch-typing.
  • Decide how you will train new editors to translate across Wikipedias. For instance, attendees might focus on the lead section, or use the Content Translation Tool to translate a larger portion of an article.


When to use

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Endorsements

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See also

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References

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