Finding Reliable Internet Resources How do I evaluate the quality of websites? What is the correct way to search for website resources? Why is it important to cite the information I find?

What is a reliable source? For your final assignment, you will be researching information on the internet. There is a lot of good information on the internet. However, there are also a lot of opinions, misconceptions, and inaccurate information. How do you judge a webpage? What do you think makes a source reliable?

The truth is out there, but so is the lie! Questions for you to think about: What can we tell about a site by looking at its author? What do connections to schools, companies, and other businesses tell us about a site? Does it matter if a site has advertisements? What is the difference between a .com, .gov, and .net URL? How does the date affect the info? Does website purpose / intended audience matter? Remember: The truth is out there, but so is the lie!

Information to Look For When Evaluating a Website From readwritethink.org: Author: Who wrote the Web page? Is the person an authority on the topic? What credentials does the author/site have? Purpose: What is the goal of the site? Is the information accurate? Does it fit the goal of your project? Why did the author publish this site?

Information to Look For When Evaluating a Website From readwritethink.org: Audience: Does the site clearly identify the audience? Are you part of the intended audience? Does the audience for the site match you as a researcher? Publication: When was the site published or last updated? Is the information current? Are the links up-to-date?

Golden Rule: Question everything you read You should be able to confirm your information with other sources. Is this site reliable? http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/

Evaluate These Websites As A Class Evaluate These Sites: http://www.unicefusa.org/ http://www.photius.com/flags/alphabetic_list.html

Search engines you will use for your research You are only allowed to search the internet for your sources by using the following sites: Factmonster.com, brainpop.com, www.infoplease.com, www.refseek.com, www.askkids.com, www.sweetsearch.com This means you do NOT log on and go straight to Google. If you do so, you will lose your computer privileges and be required to do your project at home or during lunch. Links to all of these sites can be found on the class page. You will go to the class site first, then do your research using the approved links listed there. Search engines you will use for your research

Any Questions?

What is “Plagiarism”? According to the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, to “plagiarize” is: To steal and pass off the ideas or words of another as one’s own To use another’s production without crediting the source To commit literary theft To present as new and original an idea or product taken from an existing source It is easy for teachers to spot (all we have to do is type a few words into a search engine). It is easy for you to avoid! Include a “works cited” page.

If you use ANY information from a source, you must “cite” it. Your Works Cited A Works Cited (bibliography) is a list of citations for all the resources you used for your writing or project. If you use ANY information from a source, you must “cite” it. You will need to make a citation for the internet website(s) you take information from.

How to Make a Citation Author’s Last Name, Author’s first name. “Title Use the format below to add Internet resources to a bibliography: Author’s Last Name, Author’s first name. “Title of Article.” Name of organization/institution sponsor, Copyright date. Date you found the information. <shortened website URL>.

Example of a Citation What do you need to write down? Remember, you might not be able to find everything in this list. But if you can’t find any of it, then your source is not very reliable. Don’t use it. Author’s first and last name Website article title Name of the organization or school that sponsors the site (like PBS or the University of North Carolina) The copyright date (look for the sign) The date YOU found the website

Example of a Citation Author: Josh Halliday JK Rowling’s new book The Casual Vacancy will be adapted into a TV drama broadcast by the BBC! How did I know that? Well, here is the information I took from the website! Author: Josh Halliday Title: “BBC to adapt JK Rowling’s The Casual Vacancy” Organization: The Guardian Copyright: 2013 Date I found the site: February 15, 2013

Example of a Citation Citation: Halliday, Josh. “BBC to adapt JK Rowling’s The Casual Vacancy.” The Guardian, 2013. 15 February 2013. .www.guardian.co.uk/media>. **Notice the punctuation and indenting. This is important! **If you cannot find part of the information, you simply leave it out. For example, if we didn’t know the author to this site, we would simply start our citation with “BBC to adapt . . .”

Write this website down: www.easybib.com Using a Citing Program Write this website down: www.easybib.com Click here for a Works Cited example