1 Who is responsible for posting this information on the Web?  (Authority / Source)

 

n       An authoritative source lists the author’s name along with his credentials and background.

n       Contact information, such as email, should be given.

n       Look for the name of the author or sponsoring organization. Is the sponsoring organization reputable?

n       If no information is given, check any links that say “Home” or “Main page” to find the responsible party.

n       Look at the Web site’s URL or Address to try to determine affiliation.

 

Practice:

Go to Legalization of Marijuana No.1

  1. Is the author/sponsoring site credible?
  2. Could you use this site for a paper?

 

Go to Legalization of Marijuana No.2

  1. Who is the author of this site? Is this person an expert?
  2. Is the sponsoring site credible?
  3. Could you use this site for a paper?

 

 

 

2 What is the message?  (Accuracy / Completeness)

 

n       Read through the document for content.

n       The content should be comprehensive and the facts should agree with other information you have found.

n       Arguments and assumptions are logical and well supported.

n       The document should be well written, without spelling or grammatical errors.

n       Look to see if the links work and go to reliable sources.

 

Practice:

Go to Secondhand Smoke No.1

  1. Is the sponsoring site credible?
  2. Select the “Health Effects” link. Are statements supported and sources documented?
  3. Do links go to reliable sites?

 

Go to Secondhand Smoke No.2

  1. Is the content well-written, without spelling or grammatical errors?
  2. Select the link “Secondhand Smoke: The Big Lie.”  Read the first few paragraphs. Are statements supported with credible sources and/or examples?

 

 

 

3 Why is this information posted on the Web? (Purpose / Objectivity)

 

n       The document’s purpose is clearly stated (to inform, to persuade, or to sell)

n       The presentation of the material is objective and any bias is plainly stated.

n       Arguments and assumptions are logical and well supported.

n       The language should not be emotionally charged.

n       Does the author or organization have a particular reason to try and convince the reader of their point of view?

n       Does the author acknowledge other viewpoints and are other views fairly presented?

 

Practice:

Go to Gun Control

  1. Is the purpose of this site to inform, persuade, or sell? Is it clear?
  2. Is the content biased or balanced? Is it clear?
  3. Are the arguments well-supported?

 

Go to Halloween

  1. What is the purpose of this site? Is it clear?
  2. Is the content biased or balanced? Is it clear?
  3. Are the arguments well-supported?

 

 

 

4 When was the information posted?  (Currency)

 

n       Look for any dates that tell you when the information was first written or posted on the Web.

n       Very often, a date will be given that tells when the site was last updated.

n       Dates are often located at the end of the document, so scroll to the end of the page.

n       Are the links current, or are there many “dead” links?

 

Practice:

Go to Latin American Studies

  1. When was this site last updated? Is it current?

 

Go to Cloning

  1. When was this site last updated? Is it current?

 

 

A hint about URL’s - The domain suffixes for Web sites may provide advance clues about the kinds of information to expect, and the purpose of the information.

 

.com      commercial

.edu      educational institution

.org      non-profit organization

.gov      government

.mil       military

.net       news and networks

.biz       business

.info     informational

~          personal pages

 

 

 

Searching for Websites

http://del.icio.us/jtkam/Internet

 

Search Engines – When you are searching for specific websites

      Offers search suggestions as you type and

      Select the Site tab to see results by URL (.com, .edu, .gov, etc.)

      Omit .com sites from your results by including –site:.com in the search box.

 

Subject Directories – When you have a general topic and want to browse websites

      Select Free under Resource Access and Subject Browse at the bottom on the window.

 

Search Tips

  • Put phrases between quotation marks – “legalization of marijuana”
  • Be careful with spaces – makeup & make up will produce different results
  • Double check spelling and punctuation
  • Not enough results? Try searching with synonyms or broader terms
  • Too many results? Add search terms or search with narrower terms

 

Ways to add search terms

 

AND / + (lions AND tigers AND bears)

Documents must have all 3 terms

*Most search engines automatically insert the AND commands between search terms.

 

OR (lions OR tigers OR bears)

Document must have one or more of these terms

*Google searches synonymous terms when the ~ command is added to a term (e.g., ~food will also search for recipes, nutrition, cooking, etc. ).

 

NOT / - (lions NOT football)

Documents must have lions and must not have football

      *Try: search term -.com (to omit .com sites from your results list)