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Evaluating Websites?

Evaluating Websites?. Is that site good enough to cite ?. Remember: Anyone can publish anything on the Web! It is your job, as a researcher, to look for quality !. Yeah, and how can we be sure our teacher will think it’s good enough to cite?. Okay, so how do we know if

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Evaluating Websites?

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  1. Evaluating Websites? Is that site good enough to cite?

  2. Remember:Anyone can publish anythingon the Web!It is your job, as a researcher, to look for quality!

  3. Yeah, and how can we be sure our teacher will think it’s good enough to cite? Okay, so how do we know if a site is good?

  4. Think of 5 W’s and How: • WHO • wHAT • WHEN • WHERE • WHY • HOW

  5. Let’s Look at a Web Site

  6. WHO? Who is the author? Do you know if the person is an expert on the topic? Is the person biased (one-sided thinking)? If no author is given, ask yourself why… IF NO AUTHOR, THEN Who published this page? Was the page published by an organization? Is the organization for-profit or non-profit? If no publisher is given, ask yourself why…

  7. Can’t find the publisher? THEN Delete characters in the address (truncate) https://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/chaucerlinks.html

  8. But what if I can’t find any author or publication information? THEN

  9. Look for Credibility Clues! Publisher Information Look for these words/phrases: About us, Who Am I, FAQs, Company Information, Profiles, Our Staff, Home

  10. WHAT? • Are there spelling and grammatical errors? • Is the information accurate? • Is the information consistent? • Is the information one-sided (biased)?

  11. WHEN? • When was this information written? • When was the site last updated? • If researching controversial issues, does it matter how old the material is? • *Be suspicious of undated material.

  12. WHERE? • Where did the author find the information? Does the author give a list of references or links to the sources they used to find their information? • What kind of links did the author choose? Are they scholarly? Did they cite Wikipedia or a similar source?

  13. WHY? Why was the site created… To inform? To persuade? To entertain? Check out this site: http://www.beefnutrition.org/

  14. HOW? • How does the page look? • Is it material I can read and understand? • Are there errors on the page? • Are there advertisements on the page?

  15. What can you learn from a URL? The end, or suffix, of a domain name can help you judge the validity of the information and the potential bias of a website. This strategy is only a guideline. People can easily purchase domains that do not reflect their actual purpose.

  16. .gov U.S. government site .org organization (often non-profit but some have strong bias and agendas) .edu school or university (is it K-12? By a student? By a scholar?) .ac educational institution (like .edu) .intinternational institution .mil U.S. military site .museummuseum .net networked service provider (Internet administrative site) .com commercial sites (vary in their credibility) .nameindividual Internet user .store retail business .biza business .proprofessional’s site ~= personal site URLs as clues to content

  17. http://www.house.gov/legislative https://www.fi.edu/live-science http://www.dhmo.org http://www.space.com/spaceflight (Take a look at some of these.) What do their URLs reveal about these sites?

  18. Remember, the free Web is not your only choice? • Did you use print sources? • Did you search subscription databases? • Did you check with your teacher and librarian for advice?

  19. So, why should we care about all of this?

  20. There are bigger questions in life!You will be using information to make important decisions! • Which car should I buy? • Which doctor should I choose? • Should my child have this surgery? • Should I take this medication? • You want to be able to ensure the information you choose is reliable, credible, current, balanced, relevant, and accurate!

  21. Just as you evaluate your sources . . . Your teacher will evaluate your work based on the quality of the sources you select. Evaluate carefully. Don’t settle for good enough! Quality always counts!

  22. Don’t know where the information was found Where? How? When? Why? Who? What?

  23. Where? How? When? Who? Why? What?

  24. Practice checking for accuracy with this site! • Governor Christie Cancels Halloween • http://dailycurrant.com/2014/10/28/new-jersey-bans-halloween-trick-or-treating-over-ebola-fears/ • Republic of Cascadia: Bureau of Sasquatch Affairs • http://zapatopi.net/bsa.html

  25. Evaluation is important!Learn to be fussy!

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