INTERNET INFORMATION EVALUATION MATERIAL AND SITES

INTERNET INFORMATION EVALUATION MATERIAL AND SITES

EVALUATION WORKSHEET

Just as learners find out that everything that is in paper print is not true, they need to become aware that everything that is on the Internet is not true. Indeed, it is much easier to post something on the web than to have it put into printed form - no editors, fact checkers or stylists necessarily intervene in the process. This worksheet will help you discover some problems and develop guidelines for evaluation of Internet information sources.

Go to the following sites and note what problems you see with the content of the pages.
Smoker's What Issues? - (http://www.smokingsection.com/swafr.htm)

AIDS "facts" - (http://147.129.1.10/library/research/AIDSFACTS.htm)

Webster's - (http://humanities.uchicago.edu/forms_unrest/webster.form.html)

Mankato, MN - (http://www.lme.mankato.msus.edu/mankato/mankato.html)

What clues were there that these pages had problems?

Smoker's What Issues?

AIDS "facts"

Webster's

"Mankato, MN Chamber of Commerce"

Based on this exercise and your previous experience, what guidelines would you suggest for students and other Internet "surfers" to evaluate web resources?

Now go to the Widener Evaluation site: (http://www2.widener.edu/Wolfgram-Memorial-Library/webevaluation/webeval.htm)

What lesson materials are available here to help you teach on this topic? -

What kinds of web sites are listed?

Briefly summarize the guidelines for an "informational web page" (http://www2.widener.edu/Wolfgram-Memorial-Library/webevaluation/inform.htm)

The author, Dr. Kathy King, is grateful for the work that is referenced in this worksheet which is copyrighted by Jan Alexander & Marsha Tate, 1999.

Alexander, J., & Tate, M. A. (1999). Web wisdom: How to evaluate and create information quality on the web. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.