1. Beverly Jorgenson Library/Media Specialist John Marshall High School
EVALUATING WEB SITES
Beverly Jorgenson
Library/Media Specialist
John Marshall High School

2. Why Evaluate Web Sites?
Anyone can publish anything they want to on the Internet.
Internet resources are rarely reviewed or edited.
There are no universal standards to ensure accuracy on the Internet.

3. Who Wrote It? Can you find an author or an editor?
Who is publishing the site?
An Individual?
An Organization?
A University?
A Corporation?

4. Who Wrote It? Can you find other publications by the author?
Can you contact the author or responsible organization?
Are the spelling and grammar accurate?

5. DOMAIN NAMES .edu indicates a source in higher education.
.gov indicates a government agency.
.net indicates a source that is net work
related.
.com indicates a commercial source.
.org indicates a non-profit and/or research organization

6. HOW OLD IS THE WEB PAGE?
Can you find the copyright date, the date the page was placed on the Web?
When was the page last updated?
Are the links live or dead?

7. IS THERE AN OPINION BEING PRESENTED?
Information from business, political and religious sites may be biased or one sided.
What is the purpose of the site?
What opinions are being expressed by the author?

8. HOW EASY IS IT TO USE THE WEBSITE?
Is the Web page easy to navigate or is it confusing?
Does it have a logical arrangement?
Does it have more animation and graphics than substance and text?

9. IF YOU CAN: Verify the responsible person or organization,
Find current dates the site was launched and/or updated,
Determine the purpose of the site, and…
Navigate the site easily……

10. YOU HAVE A HIGHER QUALITY WEB PAGE THAT COULD BE OF VALUE TO YOUR RESEARCH!!

11. ISD 535 Research Tools Go to the district home page: ww.rochester.k12.mn.us and minimize.
Under the resources pull-down, select Library Media.
Select the high school online resources
Click here now to find out when to use the Encyclopedia resource.
Go to the end
Click here next to find out when to use the Library resource.
Finally, click here to find out when to use the Database resource.

12. Encyclopedia Find out facts about the topic including
Research done in topic
Historic information
Click here to go back to review the research options

13. Library Resource
You can find out what books and magazines are available at JM
You can find out what can be order from other libraries, including the Rochester Public Library
Click here to go back to review the research options

14. Database Newspapers Magazines
This might be the most current information
Click here to go back to review the district research options

15. Now Click here to go to the 5 point quiz.