And Beyond How to Evaluate What You Have Searched from the Internet

Your aim…. … to get a small number of » relevant » specific » quality results….

However…. A majority of students:  don’t know how to form a sound search query;  don’t have a strategy for dealing with poor results;  can’t articulate how they know content is credible;  don’t check the author or date of an article.

Students’ Primary Search “Strategy”... wildly firing random terms into a search box, and hoping they’ll get lucky.

Think Before You Search “If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll probably end up somewhere else.” - Yogi Berra

General Search Tools

Most public libraries have free access to World Book

SweetSearch searches 35,000 websites that research experts have evaluated and approved.

Try Several Search Engines…..  SweetSearch searches 35,000 websites that research experts have evaluated and approved. SweetSearch  SweetSearch4Me features sites for emerging learners. SweetSearch4Me  We created these, yet don’t use them exclusively – we use the full range of resources.

Evaluating a Web Site How do you know what to believe? Evaluating Information on the Internet a Tutorial

Evaluating your results are they…..what about… relevant?coverage? accurate?authority? current?content? good quality?sources?

The Problem? – Quality Control Anyone can publish ANYTHING they want online, including Wikipedia (you can self- publish online: you don’t need an editor or a publisher, just some web space). Some sites are MEANT to mislead – they have a hidden agenda

Question your Sources – Content You must learn to look at web sites with a critical eye Just because you find it online doesn’t make it true Think about the following as you find resources on the Internet:

Purpose – Why The very FIRST thing to do is determine why the page is there in the first place. To inform? Entertain? To sell you something? Is the advertising on the page separate from the content? Follow the links – where is this site leading you? The purpose may not always be obvious. Does the site have any social or political biases? E.g., WhiteHouse.gov is not a neutral source for information on U.S. Presidents.

Author – Who Is there an author listed or an “about us/me” link? If so, read it. Do a Google search on the author. Go the root of a web site to find out who pays for the site. If the site does not provide the name of the publisher and its editors you cannot rely on it. Even if it “looks good or sounds good.”

Personal Web Pages Someone’s first & last name A site with “users” or “members” in the address: (i.e.) members.aol.com/ortiz/photos.htm An academic site with a tilde (~) in the address: (i.e.) columbia.edu/~profmartin/china.html. Is it a personal web page or a professional web page? How can you tell the difference?

Details – When Is the web site current? When was it last updated? (look for a date) Does the page have obvious spelling errors or false information? Is the design professional or do-it-yourself?

Search Smarter Be specific Search term is not case sensitive. Google’s Boolean default is AND (+) (not needed). Use minus (-) or NOT to exclude some keywords Use OR to expand search Put quotes around a name or a phrase you want to search. The order of your keywords in quote matters. Google supports truncation or stemming (wildcard*).

A Word on Domain Types Restricted TLD.edu – Limited to post-secondary accredited educational institutions.gov – Limited to U.S. government agencies.mil – Limited to use by the U.S. military Unrestricted TLD.com.org.info.net – Anyone can register a site with one of these domains – Take the information with a grain of salt (maintain a degree of skepticism about its truth) Top-level Domain (TLD) There are MANY other domains, including country-specific domains (ex..au,.ca) no longer restricted to nonprofits

Use Academic Sites Use NYPL.org – it’s free with your library card. Search the library online. Go to the Internet Public Library: to find materials. Search the Library of Congress: loc.gov. Think about where you’d look if there was no Internet & find that source online (government sites, for example).

Don’t Believe Everything You Read Students should think like a detective.  A dose of healthy skepticism is required.  Information is only as good as its source.  No single element determines credibility.  ALWAYS verify critical information with several sources.

Remember… Question your source: just because it’s online, doesn’t mean its true Review your search results--make sure you’ve found what you need Search smarter, find results faster If you’re in doubt, throw it out Media Literacy

Is It True? Sites to check accuracy Google Scholar Snopes FactCheck.org WhoWhatWhen How to identify and avoid spreading misinformation

Wikipedia ( Wikipedia is a virtual collaborative effort between internet users to create an online encyclopaedia. You can even contribute information by clicking the “edit this page” tab. It is a good place to start for research. We are told not to use it for research but everyone knows we use it to start off with. Bear in mind that it should only be a starting point as the information provided is very general and possible unreliable. You can click the citations at the end of the article to get further and more in-depth information.

Internet Safety Personal Information. Screen Name. Photos. Online Friends. Online Ads. Internet Safety Understanding Spam and Phishing Internet Safety Your Browser's Security Features Downloading. Bullying. Social Networking.