Critical Evaluation of Web Sites “It’s on the Internet, so it must be true!”

Understanding the “Grammar” of the Internet “The Internet is the wild, wild West of information Students need to learn : M eta-Web Information a way to develop the critical thinking skills of understanding the structure of the information on the Internet and how to cross- reference the source A uthors P urpose and there is no sheriff in town !!

Let’s Talk Tech Working protocol URL- universal resource locator (indicator or address) Domain names: What do they mean? Country codes Country codes – domain extensions As for books, there are Internet equivalents of footnotes, indexes, and bibliographies

Invent a domain name E-VENTURE Think of a domain name to advertise yourself. See if it is available at EasyDNS.com EasyDNS.com Check all domain extensions Which ones exist and who owns them? who owns them?

AUTHOR The Story of Zach pubweb.northwestern.e du/~butz/di/intro.html pubweb.northwestern.e du/~butz/di/intro.html Internet addresses begin with general information and end with the specific Easy who is Author’s name should be clearly stated Source for information should be stated where necessary address should be provided for questions Does the author have expertise?

Dissecting a web address

Purpose What is the site trying to accomplish? Sell? Present information? Advocate ideas? Entertain? What is the difference between advocacy and objectivity?difference between Does advertising overshadow the content ? Home Web page of Arthur R. Butz: new link

E-venture Comparing sites First, what you can you describe from the following URLs without even clicking on them? Now click on the links to investigate. Rank the usefulness of each site based on the criteria you have determined. Share your information

What We Should look for… 1. Accuracy - 2. Authority- 3. Objectivity - 4. Currency - 5. Coverage - Author and “contact us “ section Credentials? URL? Where does it come from? Why was it written? Purpose? Is there advertising? Is it current? When last updated? Dead links? Is there a fee? Is it text only? Software necessary?

Terms you should know URL IP address Bias Domain Name Extension Readability Using an example of a site we looked at earlier, see if you can apply some of these concepts to this web address:

Research Resource Guide Sheet When deciding to use a resource for your research project, ask yourself the following questions: Readable Is this a “just-right” resource for me? Can I understand the information on my own, or with a little help? Is it “kid-friendly”? Trustworthy Can I find an author or publisher name? Do I recognize the resource? ( URL, publisher, author,name) Is the information current? What is the copyright date? Can I find at least one other source with the same information? Useful Does this resource have what I am looking for? Does it follow my research plan? Do I need it? source: Bailldon, Mark and Rindi. Guiding Independence:Developing a Research tool to support Student Decision making

A Good Mnemonic R E A L Read the URL Do you recognize the domain name? What is the extension in the domain name? Are you on a personal page? Examine the content Is the information on the site helpful? Does the site have more resources & links? Do the links work? Is the site upto date/ can you tell when it was last update? Is the information correct/ Are the facts different from information you have found elsewhere? Ask about the author and owner Is the author’s name on the site? Is there a contact person or address? Is there any information about the author/ Does the author know the topic well? Is he or she an expert? Look at the Links

Let’s take a look Evaluate these sites in terms of their usefulness to you. Do they meet the RTU guidelines? Frogs on ice The Exploratorium Ova Prima Foundation

Bibliography ALSC Children and Technology Committee.”Selection Criteria,” Great Sites. Mark and Rindi. “Guiding Independence: Developing a Research Tool to Support Student Decision Making in Selection Online Information Sources. The Reading Teacher. Vol. 61, No.8. May, Pgs November, Alan. Empowering Students With Technology. Pearson Education:2001. Schrock, Kathleen. Kathy Schrock’s Guide for Educators,”Critical Evaluation of a Website Middle School Level.” evalmidd.html January 15,2008