Evaluating Websites Last updated: 11/2013

Objectives By the end of today you will know: Why websites should be evaluated How to evaluate websites

Why Evaluate? All websites are not created equally Example: Martin Luther King, Jr. http://www.martinlutherking.org

Google results

http://www.martinlutherking.org Would you use this site?

What do you think about this site?

Sample flyer

Who’s the author of the site? 8 8

What do you think of the author?

So, how will you know if a website is reliable?

How to Evaluate? Start your research using reliable sources Cross reference - find the same information in another source

How to Evaluate? Check Domain names Example, .com, .edu .gov = governmental agency (very reliable!) Example: hawaii.gov Information at .gov sites needs to be approved before posting.

Link check Find out who is linking to the site Example,

Link check results

(Who’s Higa? Teacher? Student? Expert in the field?) URL Check the URL or the web address: Does is have a tilde “~”? Indicates a personal website Ex. http://www2.hawaii.edu/~Higa (Who’s Higa? Teacher? Student? Expert in the field?)

Currency Consider your topic… Do you need current, or up-to-date information? Would “old” information be okay?

Authority: Sources listed? Does the author/site include a list of sources used? Where did they get their information from? Can you tell if the sources are credible or not?

Author’s purpose? To share facts versus opinion?; To entertain people?; To persuade or convince someone to do or not do something??

F, O or B? FACT = something that is true OPINION = what someone thinks BIAS = a preference for a particular belief or idea over other ideas and beliefs; a judgment based on a personal point of view

Some types of bias RELIGIOUS BIAS– favoring one religion over another; POLITICAL BIAS– favoring one’s own political party or beliefs; CULTURAL BIAS – favoring one culture over another

Example What do you think Pearl City High School is known for?

Fact, opinion or bias?

Athletics too… Current?

Link check results

Wikipedia: What do you think?

Wikipedia: Good & Bad

Wikipedia: The Bad Side E.g., A 2007 news article: • 1,662 Wikipedia edits made from Univ. of Hawaii computers • 776 edits made from Dept. of Ed. computers

Wikipedia: The Bad Side Examples: Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice died in a Texas bathroom in 2004 Hawaii Congressman Neil Abercrombie has killed more than 5 million wolves (anyone can post information)

Wikipedia: The Good Side You might find great information under External links

Let’s Review How can you evaluate a website? Check domain names (.gov is good!) Link check – are others linking to the site and if yes, who? Currency Author’s background and purpose (ex. fact versus opinion)

Thank you for your attention, now you try it!