Website Evaluation "Clip art licensed from the Clip Art Gallery on DiscoverySchool.com“ http://school.discoveryeducation.com/

How to evaluate a website Authority Who wrote the pages and are they an expert? Is the name on the site the author or the Webmaster? Does the site provide author contact information and author biography? Who published the site **Look for About or More About the author on the webpage **Google author to get credentials/background information **Look at domain name for indication of site sponsor/publisher

Bias What is the purpose of the site – is it stated? Is the information opinion or fact? Is it biased in some way? Is site free of words such as NEVER or ALWAYS

Coverage Is the topic and purpose of the site easy to identify? Is the information provided relevant to your research needs. Is the layout well thought out and well organized? Is it easy to move from one place to another? Are the links relevant?

Accuracy Does the information agree with information from other sources? Are sources cited or listed in bibliography? Does this Web site provide useful information? Are there spelling, grammatical or typographical errors?

Currency Is the information presented current? Is there a copyright or revision date available? Do all of the links function properly?

Additional things to consider =Where does the information come from: Regulated government agency: federal (.gov) educational institution (.edu or k12) Unregulated commercial business: (.com) organization: service oriented, non-profit (.org) network organization (generic/all-purpose) – ??? (.net)

Examples of sources that are often the most credible: Official government websites Institutional sites that represent universities, regulatory agencies, governing bodies, and respected organizations with specific expertise (e.g., the Mayo Clinic) Peer-reviewed journals Reputable news sources Sources located on subscription databases   Examples of sources that are often considered less credible: Blogs Web forums Individual or business websites Materials published by an entity that may have an ulterior motive A domain name points to one or more IP addresses. Every domain name requires a domain suffix to indicate the Top Level Domain it belongs to. The top level domain sometimes indicates the type of website rgw URL is linked to.

What is the important thing about a: Subscription database paid for pre-selected material reliable published magazines, reports, documents, newspapers, books, images, etc.

Subscription Databases available at KFLMC eLibrary Science eLibrary Galenet CultureGrams Proquest Sirs

Subscription Databases provided by PA Dept. of Education Locating databases in school: Go to Destiny library home page Click on link POWER LIBRARY Select appropriate database Locating databases at home Use web address: database.accesspa.org/ Select your county (Dauphin) Select PUBLIC LIBRARY Before being able to use, you will need to select your local library name and enter your public library card #.

http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/billofrightsintro.html

Websites to Evaluate http://www.basicplanet.com/mars/ http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/mars