Evaluating Web Sites

Researching on the Internet, including information for evaluating web sites, doing an effective on line search, and avoiding plagiarism

Evaluating Web Sites

Try these sites for information on how to evaluate the quality of internet resources.

• Internet Detective
  This is an interactive tutorial on evaluating the quality of Internet resources.
• Widener University Site
  This site, an excellent resource for evaluating web sources, divides web sites into types of pages depending on the reason for posting these pages and provides checklists for each kind of page.

The following is a brief compilation of the information from the sites above.

• Traditional library method of evaluating ACCURACY
  • How reliable and free from error is the information?
  • Are there editors and fact checkers?
• Evaluating Web Sites for ACCURACY
  • Can the sources be verified?
  • Is the information free of grammatical, spelling, and other typographical errors?
  • Are charts and graphs clearly labeled and easy to read?
  • Is there a bibliography or links to other useful sites?
• Traditional library method of evaluating AUTHORITY
  • What are the author’s qualifications for writing on the subject?
  • How reputable is the publisher?
• Evaluating Web Sites for AUTHORITY
  • Who is responsible for the web page? Can you trace the source to a person, company, organization, institution, etc.? Is that source reliable?
  • Is the party responsible for the page an authoritative source of information?
• Traditional library method of evaluating OBJECTIVITY
  • Is the information presented with a minimum of bias?
  • To what extent is the information trying to sway the opinion of the audience?
• Evaluating Web Sites for OBJECTIVITY
  • Are the biases of the person, company, organization, institution, etc. clearly stated?
  • Is any advertising clearly differentiated from the informational content?
  • Are editorials and opinion pieces clearly labeled?
• Traditional library method of evaluating CURRENCY
  • Is the content of the work up-to-date?
  • Is the publication date clearly indicated?
• Evaluating Web Sites for CURRENCY
  • Are there dates on the page to indicate when the page was written, when the page was first placed on the web, and/or when the page was last revised?
  • Are there any other indicators that the material is kept current?
• Traditional library method of evaluating COVERAGE
  • What topics are included in the work?
  • To what depth are topics explored?
• Evaluating Web Sites for COVERAGE
  • Is there any indication that the page has been completed, and is not still under construction?
  • Is the entire work available on the web or only parts of it?
  • To what depth are topics explored?
  • Is it clear what topics the page intends to address? Does it succeed or has something significant been left out?

Effective Search Strategies

The following sites present information on how to do an effective on line search for information.

• Kansas City Public Library
  This site provides an overview of current search engines and tips for using them effectively.
• ProFusion
  ProFusion is a meta-search engine with intelligent agents. It looks on up to nine other search engines for leads and then uses its agents to winnow those down to the most useful and relevant set.

The following is a brief compilation of information from the sources above.

Effective Search Techniques

• Know your search engine
  • Catalogs
    • Information is broken down into categories that will find a broad range of established sites.
  • Search engines
    • These use key words or phrases to search the web. Some look only at page titles and headers while others look through documents.
  • Meta search engines
    • These search other search engines.
• Learn how the search engine works
  • Read the instructions and FAQs
  • Know the strengths and weaknesses of each engine
• Select your terms carefully
  • Use exact, specific terms
  • Do a subject word search in an online catalog of a library
  • Some search engines provide alternative related keywords to search on
• Know the limitations of the Web and of search engine
  • The web does not contain all the information that can be found in libraries. Use it as a supplement to conventional research

Additional Resources

The following sites provide excellent information on how not to plagiarize when using sources.

Plagiarism

• University of Delaware
  This site defines plagiarism and presents strategies for writers to use to avoid plagiarism.
• University of Toronto
  An excellent resource on how not to plagiarize.

Resources for Writers and other Online Writing Assistance
The following sites present other online information for writers.

• Black Hills State University Online Writing Center
  This site provides writing prompts, writing resources, and space for writers to workshop with other writers. It has been created and is maintained by students in our English Education program.
• Information Quality WWW Virtual Library
  This site is a resource for both evaluating and developing web resources.