Evaluating Web Sites

Evaluating Web Sites
for EDIT 6000, July 11, 2006

Updated 7-10-06

Choose one to explore for a few minutes:

Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus
McWhortle Enterprises
66 Questions (not for the squeamish)
Rebuild Your Vision
What do you think about them? How did you make your judgment? What characteristics of the sites influenced your judgment?

Criteria

What are they?
Purpose is everything: Two stories: 1. You are at work minding your own business .... 2. A member of your family has been diagnosed ....
Information quality: accuracy, currency, authority, comprehensiveness (and often others) (Tool: QUICK)
Educational aspects: age/level suitability, relevancy, purpose suitability

Example from Marty M., a 9th grade government teacher:

"When evaluating each item I looked for ones that would provide information: a. on the multiple 'rights' stated in the First Amendment; b. for different cognitive levels; c. from various viewpoints, and d. from a historical and current perspective."

A little psychology

The role of bias in shaping decisions, opinions, and choice of information
The problem of continual trusting gullibility vs. constant critical analysis
Role of development and the ability to hold two opposing theories simultaneously without choosing one immediately; also socialization to accept authority
Logic and argumentation
Cognitive frames:

Higher order thinking (creativity, critical thinking, analysis, synthesis)
Habits of mind (openess, curiousity, skepticism, respect for data)
Information literacy (standard 2)
Media literacy

Resource type and corresponding reliability stereotypes

wikis
Wikipedia
GALILEO databases
print encyclopedias
email
blogs
diet sites
medical sites
MEDLINE
alternative medicine sites
snake oil sites
Amazon.com: bibliographical information
Amazon.com: reviews
university sites
online newspapers: New York Times | Washington Post | Wall Street Journal
letters to the editor
editorial columns
business sites: large corporations
commerical sites: things for sale
EBay
hate sites
mysteries (like the Bermuda Triangle) (How do you handle these with children?)
conspiracy sites
religious sites
spoof sites: The Onion

Strategies

Recognizing the characteristics of urban legends and checking specific ones: Snopes
Tracking down a questionable (but possibly true) statement (story: PBA30 & Rich Dad/Poor Dad)
Discriminate between fact and opinion. This is harder than it seems (especially for children) because the contexts are new.
Determine author and sponsor. What is the author's expertise? Is there a bias implied by sponsorship?
What biases are present?
How current is the page?
Does the page seem well-cared-for? Examples: attention to grammar and spelling; visual appeal; links work properly, etc.?
Balance of perspective is a marker of quality.
Look for evidence. Cross check if purpose warrants.
There are many more.

Activity
Groups of 2-3. Choose a topic from the list below.
Establish purpose (perhaps one of these: teacher wants supplementary resources; teacher wants to spark interest about ___; you want information to satisfy your own curiousity; you want to make an expensive purchase or investment; student seeks information for school project; student seeks information for personal curiousity).
Choose criteria. (If you have time and the purpose is highly important, I recommend designing a rubric.)
Search for one good site, but be ready to talk about those that you discard (we are interested in why). Share strategies.

Kennedy assassination
Loch Ness monster
Chupacabras
Vietnam War
Shakespeare
Bacteria
Nanotechnology
BigFoot
Real estate investing
High cholesterol
Pluto (in our solar system)
Vacuum cleaners
Annuities (investments for retirement)

Final Thoughts

Interesting links

Fitzgerald's opinions (some original, most adopted):

Anybody can say anything on the web.
If it's too good to be true, it probably isn't.
You can't lose 30 pounds in 30 days without surgery.
Marketing is increasingly focused on creating urges in us for things we don't really need. Marketing is incredibly sophisticated.
A personal anecdote is really just hearsay.
"Facts" change. (Example: hormone therapy)
The more important the topic, the more time you should take to do your research. I believe that most often, people fail to take advantage of the incredible resources we can now access.
I believe that many people believe far more than is warranted, and that the fictional is often remembered as true.
Sometimes, the best answer is: "We don't know yet."

Questions to think about:

What are some of your own closely-held beliefs, and how do these affect your use of information?
What kinds of things can you do in your media center to encourage critical thinking?
In curricular discussions and collaborative planning, how can you infuse critical thinking?
Of all the things we value in education but aren't tested (creativity ... ethics ... responsibility ... ), where does critical thinking fit?
How can you enhance the credibility of your own web pages?
What are components of good media center web sites and what quality criteria might apply?

The topic of evaluating information is also introduced in EDIT 6340.

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Expires 12-31-06
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