Evaluating Online Sources

            Anyone can put anything on the internet…an expert, or someone pretending to be an expert. People can say anything they like, true or false. They can change information without warning, or leave it there for years, even if it goes out of date. Consider the random orientation of Google search results. For example:

·        Official Canadian government policy on the sale of alcohol turns up next to the homepage of a Canadian university student promoting the sale of alcohol at gas stations;

·        A link to a university researching educational software appears next to a commercial site selling educational software;

·        A reference to voting trends in a respected academic journal is on the list with a newsletter from a political party.

Making judgments about the quality of information on the Internet can save you time and effort. Learn to make quick decisions about Web sites and whether or not they can help you.

Check sites for…

Accuracy

Ask yourself:

·        Are there vague or sweeping generalizations that aren’t backed up with evidence?

·        Are there any mistakes in spelling/grammar?

·        If you think the source is offering facts, are the sources for those facts clearly indicated?

·        Are opinions overstated?

·        Is the substance of the matter oversimplified?

Tips:

·        Do some cross-checking to see if the same information can be found elsewhere

·        Check for links, a list of references or other citations that look as if they will lead you to reputable, related material

·        Check the site for a high rating from a reputable rating group

·        Look up the writer on the Internet Directory of Published Writers (http://www.writers.net)

·        To explore the writer’s credentials, use a search engine or “Usenet” to find her homepage or other documents in which she’s mentioned

·        If there is an organization sponsoring this page, research it to check the validity of the information

Currency

            Ask yourself:

·        Is the information current? When was it updated?

Tips:

·        Check the bottom of the site for a “last revised” date

·        Note any dead links on the site.

·        Some information becomes dated when new research is available, but keep in mind that older sources of information can be quite sound 50 or 100 years later

Authority

            Ask yourself:

·        Who wrote the site? A private citizen? A company? A branch of government?

·        Is it a trustworthy source of information?

Tips:

·        Look for the author’s/publisher’s name, the “About Us” section and “Contact Details” (address/email)

·        Use parts of the “URL” (Uniform Resource Locator) to determine

§         who owns the server from the “organization code”

·        .ac, .edu  academic or educational servers

(universities often put a “u” before their name: www.uwaterloo.cawww.utexas.edu) 

·        .co, .com  commercial servers

·        .gov  government servers

·        .org  non-governmental, non-profit making organizations

·        .net  internet company

·        .mil  U.S. military

§         in which country the server is based from the “country code”

·        .au  Australia

·        .ca  Canada

·        .de  Germany

·        .fr  France

·        .uk  United Kingdom

(Note: A country code will not always be included in a URL. Many American sites for example, will not have the country code (.us) in their URL. Also, some countries have sold their country codes for commercial use. Tuvalu (.tv) and Federated States of Micronesia (.fm) have sold their domain names to television and radio companies)

Purpose

            Ask yourself:

·        Is the writer trying to persuade me / sell me something / inform or misinform me?

·        Are arguments very one-sided with no acknowledgement of other viewpoints?

·        Is the purpose of the site clearly indicated?

·        Is the language objective or emotional?

·        Is there a lot of flash, colour and gimmicks to attract attention? Is that masking a lack of sound information or a blatant attempt to get me to do or buy something?

Tips:

·        Advocacy web sites exist to influence and persuade people to support certain causes or ideas

·        News web sites are usually owned by newspapers, TV stations, or radio stations, and contain current news items

·        Informational web sites are often supported by educational or governmental organizations

·        Personal web sites often use .edu, .com, .net, etc., in their URL, but their authors often lack credentials

·        Business and marketing web sites are created by companies to sell their products

·        Collaborative web sites like Wikipedia, or Walkerville’s literacy wiki (walkliteracy.pbwiki.com) allow individuals to add, delete or modify the content

www.vts.intute.ac.uk/he/tutorial/education

www.premier.ca/demos/supp/Sup_Literacy

www.school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/evalhigh