Criteria for Evaluation by Larry Johnson and Annette Lamb
Students need to learn to evaluate the quality of information they find on the web as well as other information resources such as books, magazines, CD-ROM, and television. Ask students to be skeptical of everything they find. Encourage them to compare and contrast different information resources. Consider the following ideas:
Authority.
Who says? Know the author.
■Who created this information and why?
■Do you recognize this author or their work?
■What knowledge or skills do they have in the area?
■Is he or she stating fact or opinion?
■What else has this author written?
■Does the author acknowledge other viewpoints and theories?
Objectivity.
Is the information biased? Think about perspective.
■Is the information objective or subjective?
■Is it full of fact or opinion?
■Does it reflect bias? How?
■How does the sponsorship impact the perspective of the information?
■Are a balance of perspectives represented?
■Could the information be meant as humorous, a parody, or satire?
Authenticity.
Is the information authentic? Know the source.
■Where does the information originate?
■Is the information from an established organization?
■Has the information been reviewed by others to insure accuracy?
■Is this a primary source or secondary source of information?
■Are original sources clear and documented?
■Is a bibliography provided citing the sources used?
Reliability.
Is this information accurate? Consider the origin of the information.
■Are the sources truth worthy? How do you know?
■Who is sponsoring this publication?
■Does the information come from a school, business, or company site?
■What's the purpose of the information resource: to inform, instruct, persuade, sell? Does this matter?
■What's their motive?
Timeliness.
Is the information current? Consider the currency and timeliness of the information.
■Does the page provide information about timeliness such as specific dates of information?
■Does currency of information matter with your particular topic?
■How current are the sources or links?
Relevance.
Is the information helpful? Think about whether you need this information.
■Does the information contain the breadth and depth needed?
■Is the information written in a form that is useable (i.e. reading level, technical level)?
■Is the information in a form that is useful such as words, pictures, charts, sounds, or video?
■Do the facts contribute something new or add to your knowledge of the subject?
■Will this information be useful to your project?
Efficiency.
Is this information worth the effort? Think about the organization and speed of information access.
■Is the information well-organized including a table of contents, index, menu, and other easy-to-follow tools for navigation?
■Is the information presented in a way that is easy to use (i.e., fonts, graphics, headings)?
■Is the information quick to access?
from http://eduscapes.com/tap/topic32.htm
Saturday, July 30, 2011
The Wikipedia debate
from http://www.flickr.com/photos/octaviorojas/238466023/
It is very interesting that the debate surrounding Wikipedia in educational circles is such a hot one. As the Colbert Report "reporting" on the concept of Wikiality. This is the next edition.
So the information on-line is fragile and susceptible to manipulation but is getting rid of WIkipedia the answer when it is the "go to" source for so many of our students? Peter Macinnis has made an interesting contribution to the debate and his answer to the calls from many to "get rid of Wikipedia" in which he says
" I think the answer has more to do with training people to accept that all sources can be wrong, faulty or biased, and need checking. Further, these large-scale information systems need a straightforward mechanism to allow moderators to be alerted to blunders. And there needs to be some way of ensuring that corrections flow to downstream sites. "Peter Macinnis from http://www.abc.net.au/rn/science/ss/stories/s1613571.htm
Students are often going to use Google and Wikipedia as their first port of call - the starting point on their information searches. As teacher librarians it is imperative that we equip our students with the skills to use these sites in the most powerful and effective ways. Which includes skilling them with the ability to CRITICALLY evaluate the content of so many websites - including Wikipedia. Wikipedia can be powerful in giving students an extended vocabulary to take with them on further searches. The lower part of entries have links to many other sources - often other websites.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pedrosz/5868197461/
So whilst students will click away to their hearts content - and if the information in front of them doesn't grab them within 10 to 15 seconds they have moved on, as teacher librarians we needs to give them the critical lenses to view all the online information they encounter so they can utilise the BEST ones for the purposes.
Kathy Schrock and the ABCs of Website Evaluation
from http://www.flickr.com/photos/hawksanddoves/325231714/
As it apparently to anyone living in the 21st century grappling with the breakneck speed of technology, that the on-line world is becoming increasingly important. As an educator you cannot discount the on-line world, students will regard you as a dinosaur who refused to learn - so how can you be taken seriously as an educator if you aren't interested in learning.
With that premise as the foundation stone - Kathy Schrock's 2002 article "Teaching Media Literacy in the Age of the Internet - The ABC'S of Website Evaluation" is a good starting point in my investigation of what to consider when gathering the relevant website for the teaching and learning needs for those in my school.
As Schrock points out "students and teachers need to be able to critically evaluate Web pages for authenticity, applicability, authorship, bias and usability."
Both Brown (2oo2) and Schrock point out that there is no editing or publishing process for information on-line in order to weed out the "substandard information".
The acquisition of digital literacy skills is dependent upon the student's ability to find information, determine its usefulness and accuracy, and utilize it effectively.Following is the 24(!) criteria :
- AUTHORITY - is the author a well-regarded name you recognise? Does the online document contain an biography and an email address? Are you led to additional information about the author?
- BIAS - is it clear what organization is sponsoring the page? Is there a link to the sponsoring organisation's website? Is the page actually an ad disguised as information?
- CITATIONS - Is there a bibliography which students can consult? Are the citations in full?
- DATES - does the site have the date when it was created and when it was last updated? Does it provide a date when the data was collected? (currency)
- EFFICIENCY - does the site take a long time to load? Will this create problems if a whole class is trying to access the site? Can it be used at all times with the same efficiency?
- FALLACY - Be sure that the students can see the "top" of the website- read the author's purpose and rationale for providing the information so it is not read out of context
- GRAPHICS - Do the graphics AID the students' understanding of the content? Do the graphics serve a clear purpose or are they just irrelevant additions?
- HANDICAPPED ACCESS - is it possible for visually impaired users to access the information on this site? Especially to "read" the graphics software?
- INFORMATION AVAILABILITY - do you have to pay for the information? Students should be aware of the costs involved in keeping information up-to-date.
- JERRY - BUILT - Is the site poorly built? Is unprofessional in that it contains spelling and grammatical errors?
- KNOWLEDGE - Schrock advises that students should have a working knowledge of the topics that they are browsing
- LINKS - Is the site's purpose to be comprehensive or a sampler, starting point or an overview? Are the links appropriate for the intended audience's purposes and needs? What does this site provide that no other site provides?
- MISINFORMATION - Can the content of the website be altered by anyone? Does the site contain mainly opinion or fact? Students need to be aware that there are many pranks and jokes on the Internet.
- NAVIGABILITY - Is the site easy to navigate? Are the links easy to identify? Are the links grouped logically? Is the content well organised? Does the site have a keyword search function?
- ONLINE RESEARCH MODELS -Does the site have models of how to research - does it help the student in the formation of their research question, search strategies and gathering of information?
- PERTINENT Is the information pertinent to the students' needs? - Students should also be able to learn how to evaluate whether the information they find is pertinent to their purpose.
- QUALITY OF INFORMATION - Students need to be aware of the sites that they use in the searches on topics - visit them regularly and see if the information is updated regularly.
- REQUIREMENTS - Does the site ask for students to be registered users? Does the site require it to be accessed through a specific Internet browser? Caution should be exercised if Yes is the answer to either question.
- SCHOLASTIC REVIEWS - Is the website reviewed by a professional periodical like SCAN? Has the site been given an award? Do other sites dealing with the topic provide links to this site? If answer is YES then it is more than likely a website of quality and useful for students' needs.
- THEORISTS - For example, Eisenberg and Bekowitz'sBig 6 - provides sound educational framework for research and seraching for information - get students to use a theory in helping them to assess the usefulness of the information they are finding.
- UNIQUENESS - the great advantage of websites is its ability to blend many different formats to aid students' learning
- VERIFIABLE -Can the information on the site be verified with a reputable print source? Does the site contain citations?
- THE FIVE Ws -Schrock has her five Ws for students to simply evaluate a web site (see below)
- LACK OF ORGANISATION - it is important to keep in mind that the Net is not run by one company, it lack organization and you cannot consistently navigate it - not can you search everything that is on the Net all at once.
Much of what Schrock has listed in her article is more things to consider rather than a clearly articulated set of criteria. She has obviously distilled these ideas into her FIVE Ws which is much more useful than the rambling above list!
WHO - Who wrote the pages and are they an expert? Is a biography of the author included? How can I find out more about the author?
WHAT - What does the author say is the purpose of the site? What else might the author have in mind for the site? What makes the site easy to use? What information is included and does the information differ from other sites?
WHEN- when was the site created? When was it last updated?
WHERE - Where does the information come from? Where can I look to find out more about the sponsor of the site?
WHY - Why is this information useful for my purpose? Why should I use this information? Why is this page better than another?
From http://kathyschrock.net.abceval/5ws.pdf
Brown, J. (2002). Why Evaluate Web Information. www.ed.uiuc.edu/wp/credibility/page2.html
Schrock, K. (2002)Teaching Media Literacy in the Age of the Internet - The ABCS of Website Evaluation
Science Fiction - what to read?
by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan
http://www.flickr.com/photos/63619732@N06/5908797263/
I was sent a really interesting link from the Digital Citizenship group via Diigo.com about good Science Fiction reading suggestions - not really my preferred cup of earl grey but I need to keep in mind that fantasy and science fiction is a very much loved genre for my many reading students and I shouldn't discount it because it isn't what I normally turn to for a lovely reading indulgence.
http://www.sfgateway.com/
Critical Evaluation of Print and e-Resources
http://www.flickr.com/photos/adriarichards/3629666375/
Website evaluation is now part of the TL skill set; described by James Herring as a key activity or one of the core competencies for a TL - and that it is increasingly important that teachers and TLs become EXPERTS IN WEBSITE EVALUATION.
And as collaboration is such a fundamental part of the TL role this is an area in which sharing and working with colleagues is going to become more and more vital in order to positively influence the teaching and learning that occurs within the school setting.
Some things need to be kept in mind:
- what are the learning needs of the students and what are the desired learning outcomes?
- SPECIFICITY is key when it comes to the task of website evaluation
- Website evaluation is highly dependent upon the given CONTEXT
- TL need to focus on matching the learning needs of the students to what the websites can offer
- REMEMBER TO BE STUDENT FOCUSED
James Herring in his books Improving Students' Web Use and Information Literacy - A guide for teachers and teacher librarians (2011) Facet Publishing : London. outlines THREE important areas for website criteria and it is important to remember that when looking at websites you need to look at ALL THREE AREAS - that a judgement needs to be base don the BALANCE of criteria in relation to a particular website.
- educational criteria - this is really the MOST IMPORTANT of all the criteria for the TL. Think about what is the purpose of the website? Is it for a student or a teacher resource? Within the class what is the range of reading levels? and comprehension levels? Does the site allow activities for student engagement and allow for differentiation? Can this site challenge students to extend themselves?
- reliability criteria - this is quite complex but is asking Is this site reliable? Do I trust this site? The needs of the students and teachers need to be kept in mind and what the key question is based on bias? Who is the author? Do I trust the author(s)? Is the content opinion based?
- technical criteria - this deals with how well designed the sites are? Many evaluation criteria stress the importance of technical aspects but it needs to be balanced in terms of the educational needs of the students - Are my students going to get lost in this site? Does the technical aspects of the site meet the education needs of some or all of the students?
Friday, July 29, 2011
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