| Tarleton State University Libraries | Unit 8 |
| EVALUATING INTERNET RESOURCES | |
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Internet resources are vast, but often are not reviewed thoroughly.
As a result, many contain unreliable information. Before using Internet
resources, evaluate them using criteria like those listed below, which
are grouped in six categories. Each category offers a series of evaluative questions and gives suggested ways to find answers to the questions. Links to more criteria are provided after the last category. |
PURPOSE & AUDIENCE • Does the resource try to persuade, inform, or sell something? How so? • Is the site a primary or secondary source? • Who is its intended audience? How might this influence its content? • Is advertising included (pop-up ads, banners, inserts, etc.)? Might it impact the content or indicate the resource's purpose? |
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| Checking purpose and audience: -- Read the purpose/mission statement for the resource, if available. -- Check the home page for the resource. -- Read the article submission guidelines, if present. -- Notice the tone and terminology used in the resource. -- Note the presence/absence and types of advertising and announcements. -- Examine the types of information, evidence, and examples used. -- Search the Internet for reviews of the resource. -- Check the domain: non-profit organization (org), commercial site (com), US higher education site (edu), and so on. |
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AUTHORITY • Does the author have adequate qualifications/expertise? • Where is the resource located (i.e. in a larger site, an e-journal, and so on)? • Is the work cited in other works or linked to by other sites? • Are the author's qualifications given? Where is the author employed? • Who is the sponsoring agency, organization, or institution for the resource? • What are the agency's/organization's credentials and reputation? • Has the author or agency/organization created other web resources? • What domain is shown in the URL. For example, gov in whitehouse.gov indicates a federal government domain. |
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| Checking
the author's authority: -- Use biographical dictionaries and critical essays to investigate the author. -- Search appropriate databases & the Internet for citations to the resource. -- Read articles that cite/critique the resource (and other works by the author). -- Find out if the author has written other articles, reports, etc. on the topic. -- Check the online home page for the resource or its sponsoring organization. -- WhoIs web site can help you identify the sponsor of a site.  TOP |
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ACCURACY & RELIABILITY • Does the web resource offer trustworthy information? • Is the information protected by copyright? Who is the copyright holder? • Does the resource indicate editorial quality (free of errors)? • Can the people/agencies listed as authors/sponsors be verified as such? • Is contact information given? (email & physical addresses, phone numbers, etc.) |
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| Checking
accuracy and reliability: -- Examine the text for evidence of careful research. -- Check if data, statistics, and facts are documented (and current). -- Double-check information in the resource with other sources. -- Read critiques and analyses in reputable sources. -- Determine if the resource is peer-reviewed, editor-reviewed, etc. -- Examine the quality of items listed in the bibliography, if one is present. -- Check the sponsor/site type: academic, commercial, personal, etc. |
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OBJECTIVITY • Is the text mostly fact or opinion? Is that appropriate? • Does the text acknowledge the above? • Does the author use logical or emotional appeal? |
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| Checking objectivity: -- Examine the writer's claims. Are they logical and reasonable? -- Examine the evidence presented. Is it adequate and credible? -- Read critical essays about and responses to the resource. -- Notice the presence/absence and types of advertising. TOP |
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CURRENCY • When was the web resource first produced? Is that important? • When was it put online? Is that important? • When was it last updated? Is that important? • Is the information current? Should it be? • Are current research findings and/or theories evident? Should they be? • Do links work? Do they lead to quality resources? Are they up-to-date? |
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| Checking work's currency: -- Check dates on references, if any are given. -- Check dates given for any data presented in the text. -- Compare the information with that presented in other sources. -- Check the publishing history (date on the resource, notes about previous publishing, links on other sites, update information, etc.). |
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COVERAGE • Does it claim to present results of research and/or scholarly projects? • Can claims of scholarship be confirmed? • Does it include information from various resource types (print & online)? • Does the resource present original ideas or rehash those of others? • Are significant aspects of the topic omitted? • Are omissions acknowledged and explained? • Do links go to other pages in the same site, to other sites, or both? • Do research results and documentation style adhere to practices normally used in that discipline? |
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| Checking coverage: -- Examine the introductory paragraphs and editor's notes about the article. -- Analyze the breadth of content. Does it meet expectations? -- Read articles/other resources that discuss/analyze the resource in question. -- Compare the resource with similar works. -- Follow links and evaluate linked resources. |
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TOPAdditional Evaluation Criteria
| • | Evaluating Internet Research Sources by Robert Harris, VirtualSalt, Nov. 1997 |
| • | Evaluating Web Pages: Techniques to Apply & Questions to Ask from University of California, Berkeley Library |
| • | Evaluating Web Resources from Wolfgram Memorial Library |
| • | Thinking Critically about World Wide Web Resources by Esther Grassian, University of California Los Angeles College Library |
 Evaluating
Articles |
Learning
Activities  |
Updated 5/2005