Evaluating Information
- Anyone can "publish" on the Internet: experts, amateurs, fanatics, children, corporations, and the government
- There are no publishing standards or controls on the Web
- Pages are subject to change so currency is difficult to ascertain
- Quality and reliability are uneven
- There is no overseeing authority that validates or organizes information on the web
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Who created this page? Is s/he an authority or expert on the topic? Is there a sponsoring agency you can trust?
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Is the information accurate? Compare the information from several similar sites; look for discrepancies.
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When was the page created? Does it matter? If you can't find a date on the page, be careful.
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Is the information biased or designed to sway your opinion? If so, do you think it's likely to be entirely reliable?
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How in-depth is the information provided? Does it cover enough material to address your question?
- General Guidelines
- Duke Libraries Evaluating Web Sites
- Simple, clear explanation of the five key things to consider in looking at a web site.
- Evaluating the Quality of Information on the Internet
- "A checklist for discovering quality, commentary on technical trickery, examples of bogus Web sites."
- The Good, The Bad, & the Ugly: or Why It's a Good Idea to Evaluate Web Sites
- Nice checklist of questions to ask and why, with examples of the good and the bad.
- Checklists
- These are printable, easy-to-use checklists that offer a quick way to evaluate the important aspects of a site.
- Checklist for Evaluating Information from the Web
- A checklist that scores aspects of web sites on a scale: from SUNY Oneonta Milne Library.
- Criteria for Evaluating Web Sites
- A simple, one page list of questions to ask in regards to the validity of web sites.
- Indiana University Libraries, Evaluation Web Sites
- Excellent handout with guidelines including criteria, information about domain names, and types of web pages.
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- Online Tutorials
- Internet Detective
- An interactive tutorial with reading and questions.
- NetTUTOR: Evaluation of Web Sites
- Take this 15-30 minute tutorial, with examples, to learn what to look for to select a good web site.