1. EVALUATING ONLINE SOURCES

2. GOAL Identify criteria to evaluate websites. Evaluate websites to determine their usefulness for research & your own personal information.

3. WHY EVALUATE WEBSITES? Anyone can put anything on the Internet. No one oversees what’s out there. Information can easily be copied, have mistakes or be intentionally wrong. You need accurate information for school and your own life!

4. Slowinski, Mike. "Determining Website Credibility." YouTube. YouTube, 19 Apr. 2011. Web. 26 Sept. 2014.

5. WEBSITE EVALUATION CRITERIA Authority (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?)

6. 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?

7. ACCURACY Who 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?

8. OBJECTIVITY What 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 company’s purposes?

9. 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 Is it outdated or current for the topic you are studying?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 (Note: current events, and often science topics become out of date quickly.)

10. COVERAGE Are the links (if any) evaluated and do they complement the site’s 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?

11. CONCLUSION If you can answer yes to most of these questions, then the site is most likely useful for your research.

12. WHAT’S THE ADDRESS? (URL ) Commercial Sites (.com) Some.com sites may contain good info, but be sure to evaluate them carefully. Personal Blogs Biased Sites Wikipedia 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.

13. STEPS 1.Use the worksheet to evaluate websites to determine their usefulness. 2.Share the information and rationale with others.

14. AND FOR LIFE … RELIABLE 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?

15. FOR LEARNING… Reliable, accurate information is essential to solid research… and good grades!