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Filtering Wikipedia Sites

Why does netTrekker include Wikipedia sites?

Wikipedia is an encyclopedia written by its users in over 200 languages worldwide. Contributors collaboratively add and edit Wikipedia content for free and open use by the global community. netTrekker values Wikipedia sites for their breadth of coverage, ad-free content, multiple language inclusion, and readability. Librarians' Internet Index (LII) lists Wikipedia as an encyclopedia resource. American Library Association (ALA) lists Wikipedia as one of the Best Free Reference Websites of 2005. We do not advise Wikipedia use as a single source authority, as we do not advise that for any resource. Instead, we believe that with today's strong emphasis on information literacy, teachers and librarians can equip students for the task of using multiple sources to verify information.

While we see significant value in Wikipedia resources, netTrekker is sensitive to the real and perceived vulnerability of Wikipedia resources and the reluctance of some educators to allow their use. If you would prefer not to have Wikipedia sites appear in your search result, we provide two options for excluding them.

How do I remove Wikipedia sites from my search results?

1) You can remove Wikipedia content from your individual search result by using the Advanced Search feature. Click on Advanced Search at the top of any page (to the left of the Features toolbox) and select the option to "Filter out Wikipedia websites."

2) A netTrekker Administrator can filter Wikipedia content in Admin Tools for all searches done by anyone within the school population. Only people who have been designated as netTrekker Administrators can use this process. To access Admin Tools, log in with your Administrative username and click on Admin Tools in the My Tools box at the right of any page. Click under netTrekker Settings, select "Filter out Wikipedia sites," and click the Save Changes button. Keep in mind that filtering out Wikipedia sites through Admin Tools removes them from all search results for all users.