GUIDE TO EVALUATING WEB RESOURCES
As a research, you can use the following checklist to critically evaluate websites for objective, reliable and credible material for your paper or project.
AUTHORSHIP
Who created
the page?
What are the author's credentials? Is he/she an expert in the field?
Is the creator responsible for all the material on the page?
ACCURACY/DOCUMENTATION
Does the
author refer to other sources and include notes or a bibliography?
Can the facts mentioned on the page be verified in another source?
Does the site appear to be objective? If not, is the bias noted in the
material?
Are charts/graphs
with statistical data easy to read, and can you easily identify the source
of the statistics?
WARNING: Even some "official"-looking sites have inaccurate
information; they may include fictitious or fake statistics, facts, etc.
CURRENCY
When was
the page written? When was it last revised?
Do statistics, graphs, charts, etc. include dates to indicate when the
data was collected?
PURPOSE/CONTENT
What is the
author's purpose for writing this page (to inform, persuade, sell, etc)?
Does the content agree with other information you've seen on the subject?
What audience does the author target (children, adults,professionals in
a particular field, etc)?
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES ON EVALUATING WEB SITES:
Evaluating
Web Sites
(University of North Carolina)
Evaluating
Web Resources (Widener University)
Evaluating
Resources (University of Louisville)
Web Site Evaluator
EvaluatingWebResources_guide
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