Online Learning

Online Learning

Part 2

More Tips

Finally, look beyond the article for more clues.

·         Read the website’s home page and the About Us page. Look for a mission statement to learn more about the site, its purpose and the organization sponsoring it.

·         If there is an author listed, look for a biography that discusses the author’s education, profession and other relevant background. If there is no bio on the site, search for one elsewhere on the Web.

·         Check the date. Facts can change over time, so see if the site shows when it was last updated.

·         Presentation counts; look at everything from design to spelling.  A clean, well-organized site shows a certain degree of professionalism.

·         Avoid sites that are pornographic, vulgar, inappropriate, below par, suggestive, and falsifying.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT

Online Learning

Online Learning

Part 1

Read Between the Lines

 Make a judgment about the site’s reliability based on your own analysis of the site and the information it contains. Here are some ways to do this:

·         Look for facts you know or can check with a trusted source. If the site gets those facts right, its more likely that the other facts on the site are also accurate.

·         Study the language used. Is it angry? Is it, satiric, or overly impassioned? This may indicate that the site is biased.

·         Consider whether the arguments are logical and backed up by evidence, and whether the site presents only one point of view.

·         Check the links to the sources that the author acknowledges. Scholarly writing, whether in print or online, should include a biography.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT