Evaluate a web page?

1. Evaluate a web page? Why you need to evaluate web pages! Not just any page will be acceptable for college research because … • Anyone can publish “information” on the web, from an elementary school student to someone with an unusual idea. • There is no criteria or review process for publishing on the web. Information may be false or biased. • The web is constantly changing. New sites are continually added and other sites often disappear or are never updated. • Some web pages are hoaxes or deliberately misleading. • Some sites like the entertainment ones are not for research!

2. Informational Business Advocacy News Personal Entertainment These pages are aimed at different audiences and have different purposes. Understanding these differences can help you determine if the web page you found is the right one for your needs. Often the “domain ending” of the URL will give you a clue to the type of web page that you are looking at – and the intention for that page! Examples of domain endings are: .org .edu .com .gov .mus What are some different types of web pages? (and why do you need to know??)

3. Informational • Purpose: to provide factual information • Various URL domain endings: .gov, .org, .edu, or .mus • Examples: NIAAA Smithsonian CDC National Center for Injury Prevention and Control What were the URL domain endings for these sites?

4. Business • Purpose: to advertise or sell products or services of the business • Common URL domain ending: .com • Check these out! Microsoft Amazon.com

5. Advocacy • Purpose: to influence public opinion • Common URL domain ending: .org Examples: National Right to Life Committee Republican Party National Rifle Association

6. News • Purpose: to provide the current news • Common URL domain ending: .com Examples: USA Today FOX Sports

7. Personal • Purpose: Depends on the author • Common URL domain endings: .edu or .com (depending on who is hosting the site) Examples: Dr. Kip Wheeler’s page Kathy Schrock’s Homepage

8. Entertainment • Purpose: to entertain • Common URL ending: .com Examples: Puzzles.com War Games I-am-bored

9. What are the criteria for evaluating Web pages? • Authority • Accuracy • Purpose/Objectivity • Currency • Completeness of coverage We will go through each of these, with questions and suggestions to help you determine if the page meets the evaluation criteria.

10. Authority • Questions to ask: • Who wrote the page? • Are the author’s credentials given? • Is contact information given? • Who sponsored the page? • What to look for? • Author’s name at top or bottom of page or at end of an article. • Biographical information on the author or his affiliations. • Contact information given such as address, email address or phone number. • Is the sponsor of the page mentioned? Look at the domain in the URL? Generally .gov, .edu, and .org sites are most reliable. • Is the site a commercial internet provider such as such as AOL, Mindspring, MSN or an online community such as Geocities, Tripod, Angelfire. Individuals often put their personal web pages on these sites. They may have a tilde (~) in the URL which indicates personal pages on a larger website. Use these sites with much caution.

11. Look at this site: http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/

12. Look at this site: (2 pages) http://147.129.226.1/library/research/AIDSFACTS.htm

13. “True but little known facts…”(Con’t)

14. Purpose/Objectivity Questions to ask? • What is the purpose of the web page? Educational, entertainment, persuasion, advertising or sales, informational? • Who is the intended audience? • Can you detect any bias? Controversial opinions with only one side of an issue presented? • Is this information on the page influenced by any advertising or sponsoring agency? What to look for? • Look again at the purpose of the page in the mission statement or “About this page”. Can you see any bias or particular advocacy or belief that is central to the mission. • Who is the audience? Children, academic researchers, general public, or shoppers? Is the vocabulary easy to read or the more professional or technical language of a discipline? • Is the information presented inflammatory, one-sided and controversial? Or is it balanced and covers opposing sides of an issue?

15. Look at this site: http://www.smokingsection.com/issues1.html#smoke ( 2 pages)

16. “Smokingsection…”(con’t)

17. Currency Questions to ask? • Depending on the discipline, currency may or may not be an issue. In the sciences, medicine, technology, or business, currency can be critical. • Is the information on the page current or outdated ? • Are the links still working and current? What to look for? • Is it current in comparison to other resources? • Notice the resources cited. Are they older and from about the same time period? That could mean that the page has not been updated. • Check the page for date published or last date the page was updated? • Check some of the links. Are they working? Dead links can be a sign of a page that is not being maintained.

18. Look at this site: http://www.islam-guide.com/

19. Completeness of coverage: Questions to ask? • What aspects of the topic are covered? Is there any vital information on the topic omitted? • Is the material just a short review, an opinion statement, a report of research, or an in-depth study? • Is the coverage comprehensive or does it cover just a certain time period or aspect? • What to look for? • What aspects of the topic are covered? Is there any vital information • that is omitted? • Is the material just a short review, an opinion statement, a report of • research, or an in-depth study? • Is the coverage comprehensive or does it cover just a certain aspect?

20. Examine this site: A good example of complete coverage of a topic!

21. Notice the coverage of the facts :

22. And the three perspectives covered:

23. Can you use the web in research? What for? • Current news or information. • Government documents and information. • Homepages for companies, organizations, institutes, museums, think tanks, etc. • Entertainment sites. • Popular culture information. • Scholarly information can be found on the Web, butyouhave to be very conscientious about researching the author’s credentials and evaluating the site. • One good place to look for scholarly information on the Web is to use the “Scholarly Web Information Sources” found under “Web Resources” on the Library Homepage.

24. After you determine that a web page is scholarly or appropriate for your research assignment, collect the following information to cite the page: • Author(s), editor(s), or compiler (if given). • Title of article. • If a reprint from a print resource, the publication information for the print source. • Title of site. • Organization, etc., responsible for the site (if given). • Version or edition of site, if given. • Date site was posted on the web or last updated. • Date that you accessed the site. • Complete URL or web address of the site.

25. How do you find the information on citation styles that you need to cite a book? 1.Check your assignment or ask your professor what documentation style you are to use. 2. Helpful resources for citing: • Writing at C-N, 4th ed., pp. 66-68, gives a list of preferences by C-N Academic Departments. • Library Homepage Under Library Resources, How do I? Cite Materials… - Writing at C-N , 4th ed. ( Under Citation Styles and Samples, Documentation Overview) - “Citing Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism: Documentation Guidelines” (Duke University)

26. Plagiarism and the Web: Words of Caution! • Many web sites are available where you can get (or buy) research papers or cut and paste sections of research papers.  *Doing this is a violation of the “Academic Dishonesty” policy of Carson-Newman College. • Be smart! If you were able to locate these, be aware that your professor will be able to do a search and locate these also. • If you copy from a paper on the web, you have cheated yourself outof a chance to learn and may very well fail the course!