Website Evaluation
Evaluating Online Sources
GoalIdentify criteria to evaluate websites.Evaluate websites to
determine their usefulness for research & your own personal
information.
Why evaluate Websites?Anyone can put anything on the Internet.No
one oversees whats out there. Information can easily be copied,
have mistakes or be intentionally wrong.You need accurate
information for school and your own life!
Slowinski, Mike. "Determining Website Credibility."YouTube.
YouTube, 19 Apr. 2011. Web. 26 Sept. 2014.Website Evaluation
CriteriaAuthority(Who wrote this? Are they qualified?)Accuracy(Is
this factual info?)Currency(Is this current info?)Objectivity(Is
this free of bias or product promotions?)
AUTHOR (Authority)Has the author written other works (articles,
books, etc.) on the subject?Is the author an expert in the field?Is
the author believable? Can you believe the information on this
site?Does he/she have any credentials you can check? Can you
contact him/her?
AccuracyWho wrote the page, is he or she qualified to write on
the topic and can you contact him or her?What is the purpose of the
document and why was it produced?Can you verify the information
with other sources?
ObjectivityWhat goals/objectives does this page meet?How
detailed is the information?What opinions (if any) are expressed by
the author?If the page is from an organization or company, does it
provide information about the companys purposes?
CURRENCY
What is the copyright date?Is it outdated or current for the
topic you are studying?Are the links current or updated
regularly?Has there been any new information on the subject since
the website was published? (Note: current events, and often science
topics become out of date quickly.)
COVERAGE
Are the links (if any) evaluated and do they complement the
sites themes?Is it all images or a balance of text and images?Does
it cover all the aspects of the topic?Is the information presented
cited correctly so you can check it?
CONCLUSIONIf you can answer yes to most of these questions, then
the site is most likely useful for your
research.Author?Coverage?Accuracy?Date?Whats the Address?
(URL)Commercial Sites (.com) Some .com sites may contain good info,
but be sure to evaluate them carefully.Personal BlogsBiased
SitesWikipedia might help with quick definitions/ideas, but
articles won't work for research papers since anyone can edit them.
Check references at the end of the article they may lead to
legitimate sources.
StepsUse the worksheet to evaluate websites to determine their
usefulness.Share the information and rationale with others.
And For LifeReliable information is essential to making
decisions for your life. Did J.K.Rowling really steal the idea of
Harry Potter from someone else?Bob has diabetes. Could I get it
too?Is Denver a good place to live?14We use websites for much more
than just school assignments. You need to know how to sort through
the information and the websites out there to find information for
all kinds of things in your everyday life.For LearningReliable,
accurate information is essential to solid researchand good
grades!
