Don't Get Caught in the Web
I don't know how many times I've done research on the internet for apaper, found an amazing and very informational website, but when I go to cite it I'm not sure about the authenticity of the site. The publishing date or the last time it was updated was quite a few years ago or I'm unsure source
where the information comes from besides originating on this website.The frustration of having read the website, liked it, and then had to go and find other one could have been avoided. I needed to go into the research process with a mind set that thinks all websites are not reliable until proven otherwise. If I would start there then I might not waste my time reading websites that might beentertaining or appear informational. Learn from the mistakes I made when I was a novice web surfer! Remember, there are so many ways anyone can get information on the web that the authenticity of the information should be something you always keep in mind when searching.
Evaluate
You can start evaluating the websites before you even click on any of them by looking at the ending of the URL. Does it end in -gov, -com, -org, -edu, -net. By looking at the domain name you can decide whether you even want to look at the site.
- edu- education
- gov-government
- org-organization
- com- commecial
- net-network infrastructure
Edu and gov sites tend to be quite reliable, but the other three you will have to look at the site more closely.
Different people will present you with a variety of ways to evaluate a website. Some have an ABCCC (Authority, Bias, Content, Currency, Consistency) process. However, all of them generally have 5 things in common. This brief video explains them in a fun fashion:
I would suggest looking for the first two things so you do not read the entire website and then find out that you couldn't use it. The last 3 things can be used while skimming and reading the site. If you keep in mind the currency, authority, purpose, objectivity, and writing style there will be less time wasted on web sites that do not have their information properly support or authentic.
Due to the easy access of the internet to all students and the frequency to which it is used in papers, there are a lot of websites, particularly colleges, that createdifferent sites. These sites even have some exercises that you can use to practice your "web site evaluation skills".
check out this wiki maintained by the EASTCONN literacy and Educational Technology Specialist. Teachers who attend her training session are allowed to join and add to the wiki. This wiki provides different worksheets and a multitude of resources on how to evaluate websites.
Rest assured that there are a lotof people out there that want you to not only receive accurate information but use for your papers or even just in every day life. If you couldn't tell most of the websites I'm sending you to for more information are colleges. We have been given a great expanse of information through the World Wide Web now all we have to do is learn how to use it correctly.Not only must you evaluate the site but you need to format it correctly when you put it on your reference page in your paper. There are many different websites that give you information on how to create your citations. It can get confusing remembering which piece of information you need and where it goes. I know I am continually referring to different websites to ensure accurate citations. You want to make sure that your teacher or whoever might be reading your paper knows where the information came from and how they themselves could access it to verify its authenticity or learn more about the topic.
I'm going to give you information for some other internet sources as well as websites because you will run into these sites and different hits you receive when surfingthe web for information:
1. Online book, dictionary, encyclopedia, journal, magazine, or newspaper
Write it the exact same way you would for the non-online sources; however, you will have to add two extra things: the date you accessed the site and its url. It will be added onto the end of the citation as so- retrieved ___date___, from ___url____.
2. Online Databases
You start by writing down on the information on the source as you normally would for any other cite and then also add the date retrieved along with the name of the database. It will be added onto the end of the citation as so- retrieved____date____, from___insert name of database.
3. Websites
You will need a variety of things particular to the website
- the website name in italics
- name of the website article
- author of the source
- date the website was created or the particular article was published (if known)
- the date you accessed the website
- the URL
It will need to be in this order:
Author, A. (Date Published). Article name. Name of Website. [Retrieved] Date, [from] URL of the Website.
Here, let me give you an example of one of the websites I have this blog post linked to in order to provide more information.
Reitz, J. April 5, 2010. Guide to Evaluating Web Sites. Western Connecticut State University. Retrieved August 10, 2010 from http://people.wcsu.edu/reitzj/res/evalweb.html
Now that I'm done acting like a citation machine,
Do you brave the expanse of the World Wide Web to do your research? Do you think you can evaluate a website now? Have you found other ways to specify your search so you get reliable websites? Have you learned other useful tips to evaluating a website?
Oh citations, how I love you!....NOT! :) That has always been my biggest anxiety about writing for my coursework. However, since our friend the internet has come around I find it MUCH easier to find how to do citations with all of the "how to" websites. I can also quick reference previous documents that I have saved on my computer to recall how to site a work. I certainly agree though, that it is a good idea to check with any teacher you're working with on their expectations for using APA format.
ReplyDeleteI think you initial suggestion for evaluation concerning what the URL ends in is a useful one. When it comes to evaluating websites a quick reference is the best thing for most users. You are correct that it is better to not starting looking at the site unless you plan on using the infromation. Unfortunately if you begin reading a site you often get hooked on it and even if you don't use the site information from it is stuck in your head...
ReplyDeleteI'm with Chris, as I agree with you, in that if you check for Currency, Authority, and Content at the very least when you come across a site, it could save you the trouble of browsing through the entire page. For example, when was it written, who by, who do they represent, and are there any headings, table of contents, or textual breaks for you to skim to give some clue as to what the page is all about. However, I definitely agree that despite these checks, sometimes finding the right website is about as easy as finding a needle in a haystack, but with the safeguards you suggest this process seems much less formidable. Very thorough - I especially like those "wizard" sites that format a APA/MLA citation for you provided you're able to identify and enter in the correct information. Saves me tons of time, and I always format it and add it to my Bibliography as soon as I've found a source that I know I want to use. Saves time, again.
ReplyDeleteYou have posted some really helpful tips when searching the web for quality information. I particularly enjoyed reading the quick tip of looking at the end of the site and weather it is .go or .org ECT. It was a good example of a quick tip to start your searches. I also thought you tips on APA formatting and how those can help a researcher decided if the information is from a quality source. It was also key to remind readers of when the information was published. It may be from a credible source ten years ago, but in time information changes. Good post!
ReplyDeleteWell done - that's a good test that I'll be sharing with my students this year.
ReplyDeleteFor me, the issue with wikipedia is so black and white it's not even up for debate! At the point the student themselves could edit the page and change the content I could not see viewing the information as credible.
I do tell my student's it's often a good place to start and at least understand the particular vocabulary associated with their topic but any citation to wikipedia will lose points on the assignment. IE, if they are doing a speech on digital cameras the wikipedia page is a good place to learn some definitions of key terms and a broad idea of the topic. But then the student should find more authoritative material.
Well done - thanks for your insight!
I have a question. For some reason I could not get my text to wrap around my photos this time. It did it for my first blog post, but despite all my efforts and verbal reprimands, it would not work this time. Help?
ReplyDeleteI believe when you insert the image there is a bar that shows up that lets you align the image. If you click on the image a blue bar appears underneath. If you click left or right it should wrap the text around the image. Did you use a different browser for your second post? Perhaps that feature does not work on all browsers.
ReplyDelete