How to Locate and Evaluate Digital Resources

Many people know a lot about technology but NOT a lot about how to search online! Are you an effective online researcher?

Do I know how to be a good, efficient searcher?

Search engines (Google, Yahoo!, Bing) Gathering information Website Evaluation– treasure or trash? Crediting sources (avoiding plagiarism – no copying) Organizing Synthesizing info (putting it together) Presenting what you have learned

Electronic Searching

OR No results at all??

Keyword searching  Powerful if done correctly.  Very fast.  Used with search engines on the Internet.

Usually, people use search terms that are too broad. This will produce too many results that are not relevant to your topic. The Big Mistake

Keywords You must provide a word or set of words that will enable a computer to find matches, or “hits.” Example: What are the effects, if any, of television violence on children? Keywords: effects television violence children

Phrase Searching  VERY USEFUL searching TIP!!!  Using quotation marks “two words” tell the computer to look for two or more words together: “television violence” “acid rain” “Red River Valley” “Red River Valley of the North” The results will only include pages with the same words in the same order as what's inside the quotes.

Remove or Connect Words Remove words When you use a dash before a word or site, it excludes results that include that word or site. This is useful for words with multiple meanings, like Jaguar the car brand and jaguar the animal. Examples: jaguar speed -car and pandas - site:wikipedia.org Connect words When the dash is in between multiple words, Google will know the words are strongly connected. Example: twelve-year-old dog

Operators Search operators are words that can be added to searches to help narrow down the results. You can also use the Advanced Search page to create these searches. site:Get results from certain sites or domains. For example, you can find all mentions of "olympics" on the NBC website or any specific website like.edu,.gov,.org Examples: olympics site:nbc.com OR olympics site:.gov ORIf you want to search for pages that may have just one of several words, include OR (capitalized) between the words. Without the OR, your results would typically show only pages that match both terms. Example: world cup location 2014 OR 2018

Some Search String Strategies... What it does... chocolate chipsSearches for websites that contain either chocolate or chips. +chocolate+chipsSearches for websites that contain both words. Be sure there is no space between the plus sign and the word. "chocolate chips"Searches for websites that have both words, found right next to each other. "chocolate chips"-cookiesSearches for websites that contain the phrase "chocolate chips" but do not contain the word "cookies". A search string is one word or a string of words that you ask a Search Engine to use so it can find that specific piece of information online.

OR Trash? Treasure...

Why do we need to evaluate web sources?  Virtually any person can publish almost anything on the Internet.  Unlike most print sources, web sources do not have to be professionally accepted and edited to be published.

Before clicking on the link, look to see if it is a personal page. Check out the domain name or the “dots”:. gov = Hosted by a U.S. government agency.com = For-profit business, personal sites.edu = Educational organization.org = Nonprofit organization.net = Hosted by a network.biz = Business site (newer than.com).ac = Academic organization (outside the United States) ~ = personal webpage

Try the C.A.R.S. evaluation checklist: Try the C.A.R.S. evaluation checklist: C – Credibility A – Accuracy R – Reasonableness S – Support

Credibility o Who is the author? o What are the author’s credentials – experience, education, training – in the field related to this information? o Has the author provided contact information? o Appearance of site – looks professional, pictures and/or graphics, organized, neat Anonymous information, misspellings, faulty links, messy appearance

o When was this material compiled or created, and when was it presented? Is it recent? o Is this a comprehensive presentation of the thinking and the facts related to this topic? o For whom and for what purpose (advocacy, information, persuasion) is this information intended? Accuracy Out-of-date or undated information, expired links, inaccurate or overly generalized information, biased information

Does this author argue points fairly and dispassionately? o Is the material presented objectively, or is it slanted and bias? o Does the information make sense, given what I know of the world? Is it believable? o Does the information contradict itself? Reasonableness Manipulative or emotional language, one-sided information, a conflict of interest between the source and the objectivity of the information.

o Has the author provided documentation –a bibliography (list of works or resources) for this information? o Can you find at least two other sources that support the data presented? Support Lack of documentation of claims, information that contradicts other reliable sources of information, positions on issues that you already know to be faulty.

Using the CARS method, evaluate the following websites: Test

Additional Information to remember – Cite your sources, clip art, photos. Give credit where credit is due! You can find sites online that will cite sources for you –

Review – Putting it all Together When searching the Internet, use keyword searches to access the fastest, most relevant results. Look at the “dots.” What type of webpage is it? Use the C.A.R.S method to evaluate the page – Credibility, Accuracy, Reasonableness, Sources Document your information. Use safety and good, ole’ common sense when working or playing online.