Critical Thinking and the Wider Web Unit 1 Checking Facts and Gathering Opinions

What was William Shakespeares date of birth? Find three websites that provide an answer Fill in the boxes on the worksheet for each of them Comment on any notable features of the sites or answers you discover

What was William Shakespeares date of birth? Some sources say 23 April 1564: –Google search for William Shakespeare birth dateWilliam Shakespeare birth date –The Shakespeare Country websiteShakespeare Country website

Results of Google search for William Shakespeare birth date Retrieved 5 June 2008

Results of Google search for William Shakespeare birth date Retrieved 5 June 2008

Shakespeare Country website 20 June 2008

Shakespeare Country website 20 June 2008

What was William Shakespeares date of birth? However, we dont really know the precise date –He was baptised on 26 April 1564 –At the time, babies were usually baptised within a few days of birth –23 April is Shakespeares death date, and has also become the traditional date to commemorate his birth

Results of Google search for William Shakespeare birth date Retrieved 5 June 2008

Results of Google search for William Shakespeare birth date Retrieved 5 June 2008

What was William Shakespeares date of birth? However, some scholars give reasons to doubt this –Shakespeare Onlines biography section suggests that if Shakespeare had been born on 23 April, the most probable date for his baptism would be 25 April, as this was a feast dayShakespeare Online

Shakespeare Online biography page Retrieved 20 June 2008

Summary - key things to note The straightforward answer to a question is not always the most precise As information is transmitted, important qualifications are sometimes lost

Why might we find conflicting answers to a question? There may be real uncertainty about the answer Authorities may disagree There may be multiple ways of interpreting a question

Why might we find conflicting answers to a question? Some sources may be more up to date than others Answers may vary in precision Some sources may simply be wrong

Questions to ask when assessing sources Who is the author? –An individual or an institution? –What are the authors credentials? Is this a scholarly resource, or a more informal one? How up to date is this source?

Questions to ask when assessing sources Are there reasons to doubt the reliability of this source? –Does it include information I know to be false? –Does it contradict itself or use poor reasoning? –Is it biased towards a particular view?

Questions to ask when assessing sources Is the information provided confirmed by other sources? –Are references provided? –Do other websites agree? (A major advantage of the Web is that many sources can be compared quickly and easily.)

Remember the three Ws WHO wrote this site? –Is the author a trustworthy source? WHEN was it written? –Is it up to date? WHY was it written? –Does the author have an axe to grind?