Supporting Internet Research in the Classroom
Posted by Eric M. on November 26, 2006 in Internet Research, Word
In a recent podcast, Wesley Fryer compared the internet to a buffet. Food buffets provide a variety of choices, some of which are not healthy options. Likewise, the information landscape has an overwhelming variety of choices, and not all of the sources of information are safe to use.
Students do not naturally make the best choices about what web sites to use and how to process the information they find. Instead, they need guidance from their teachers about what sites to use and how to organize the information they gather.
There are many web sites that offer advice about what questions students should consider about the web sites they use. In short, they suggest having students look for evidence that the web site has a credible and objective author as well as up to date and accurate content.
I also recommend providing students with a template to record notes and citation information as they browse web sites. This Word document has sections for students to record citation information and thoughts about the reliability of the site, and a place to copy and paste text and images from the web site.
Recommended Links for Evaluating Web Sites
- Evaluating Web Pages: Techniques to Apply & Questions to Ask (from UC Berkeley)
- Evaluation Criteria: authority, accuracy, objectivity, currency, and coverage (from New Mexico State University Library)
- Kathy Schrock’s critical evaluation surveys (in pdf and Word formats)
Related File
Related Posts
- Moving at the Speed of Creativity Podcast: Reflections from Hawaii on our Information Landscape
- Using Word as a Research Tool (IT Blog: October 22, 2006)
February 9th, 2009 at 8:02 am
I am adding this page to my bookmarks. I look forward to future articles. TY