Jennifer Harrold Etivity 7 - Critical Thinking & The Web
Critical Thinking & The WebInformation for Students to Effectively Navigate the Internet
Information OverloadThere is SO much information available on theinternet. Some of it is good… but some of it is bad.We need to learn how to evaluate a website in orderto meet our learning goals efficiently and effectively.
WWWDOT An Acronym to Help us Remember How to Evaluate a SiteThe acronym WWWDOT can help us to remember the questions we need to askto effectively evaluate a website. • Who wrote this and/or what credentials does the author have? • Why was it written? • When was it written? • Does it help meet my needs? • Organization of the site? • To-do list for the future.
Who WWW DOT - An Acronym to Help us Remember How to Evaluate a SiteThe first W stands for Who…• Who wrote the information?• What credentials do they have?• What knowledge or skills do they have in the area?• Is he or she stating fact or opinion? It is important that we find out who the author is because it tells us if the information is factual or not
Why WWW DOT - An Acronym to Help us Remember How to Evaluate a SiteThe second W stands for Why…• Why was the information written?• Could the information be meant as humorous, a parody, or satire? It is important that we find out the reason the information was written because it will tell us if the information is objective. Was it written to inform us or persuade us. The purpose of the work can affect the thoroughness and accuracy of the content as well
When WWW DOT - An Acronym to Help us Remember How to Evaluate a SiteThe last W stands for Why…• When was the information written?• When was the site last updated?• Does your topic require current information?• How current are the links or sources the author used? Information can change over time and therefor can change in accuracy. For example a biography written 10 years ago can still be used for research, but a book on computers written 10 years ago would be out of date and would provide incorrect information
Does WWW DOT - An Acronym to Help us Remember How to Evaluate a SiteThe D stands for Does…• Does the information help meet my needs?• How does the information meet my needs?• Is the format useful (words, pictures, sounds, or video)?• Is the level right for me?• Is the information related to my topic? Information can be current, reliable, factual, extensive, and unbiased but if it’s off topic or too hard to read/understand for you then it is not appropriate for your project and needs.
Organization WWW DOT - An Acronym to Help us Remember How to Evaluate a SiteThe O stands for Organization…•Organization of the site?•How is the information organized?•Is the site clear and easy to navigate?•Does the site provide further organization, such as graphs, to help me understand the information? The site should be organized clearly so that you can find information quickly and thoroughly as well as understand the content more effectively
To-Do List WWW DOT - An Acronym to Help us Remember How to Evaluate a SiteThe T stands for To-Do List…• To-Do List for the future.• What information should I compare/investigate (to ensure accuracy and trustworthiness)• What information do I need to research further?• What questions do I still have? (for teacher or librarian)• Who would be interested in knowing what I learned? (teacher, parent, friend) Creating a To-Do List will help students manage their learning as well as help them to remember what sources they’ve used and what further steps they still need to take
Other Things to Consider… How to Evaluate a Site• Website or pages may change or disappear at any time• Print, download or save a copy of the information for yourself to use again and to reference in your bibliography• After applying the WWWDOT approach to evaluating your website you are still unsure if a site is reliable or not ask a friend, teacher, or librarian to help• Make sure you are tracking your findings for later reference or to provide others with as much information as possible incase you need help.• Use this or your own graphic organizer• http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/lesson_images/lesson328/evalf orm.pdf
References Teaching Students to Evaluate Websites – YouTube The acronym WWWDOT I found in this great YouTube video. The teacher’s information and the acronym came from an article he read in The Reading Teacher (see below). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPPgVLvv0oY The WWWDOT Approach to Improving Students Evaluation of Websites http://morethanenglish.edublogs.org/files/2011/11/The-WWWDOT-Approach- to-Improving-Students-Critical-Evaluation-of-Websites-2kx4kn7.pdf Website Evaluation Form http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/lesson_images/lesson328/ev alform.pdf
References Continued Think Literacy http://etfo-ot.net/Site/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/thinklitlibrary.pdf Evaluating Internet Resources http://eduscapes.com/tap/topic32.htm The 5Ws of Website Evaluation http://kathyschrock.net/abceval/5ws.pdf Internet Evaluation http://www.scribd.com/doc/16830641/BearEssentials-Evaluating-Websites