Evaluating Web Resources: 4. Overall
| Introduction |
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1.
Check the URL |
Step 4 - Assess the Overall Credibility of the Site Your question here is: "Does everything add up?" Does your author have credibility? Does the owner or domain make you suspicious? Is the information current/unbiased/well documented? Ask yourself two final questions: 4.a. What is the apparent purpose of this website? Use the following five categories: Informational - These sites provide unbiased and accessible information. Explanatory - There are many good tutorial websites (especially in the sciences) that are designed to help people with tough content. Persuasion - This type of website wants to convinvce you that their views are the best. Sales - These sites have something to sell. Disclosure - There are a few websites that are both informational and serve to disclose information contained in governmental/group descision making processes. 4.b. Do you see any threats to the validty of this website? When you add up all of the checklist information, do the positives
of using the site as a reference outweigh the negatives? |
| This tutorial was created by Aaron Fried, contact frieda@cortland.edu with comments. ©2004, Aaron Fried |