Hamilton Heights High School Library

Because it is so much easier to publish to the web than to publish a print source, evaluating information found on the Internet is essential.

Use the following criteria to establish whether the information you have found is worthwhile:

1. Currency -- Is the information dated? If so, is it suitably current for the type of information that is needed? Subject areas like science and technology change quickly, so timely information is essential. If your subject is something such as literary criticism, the date is was published is not as important, but it is still good to know.
   
   
2. Authority -- Does the author of the information have the authority to give accurate information? Is he or she an acknowledged expert in the topic area of the information? If you are unsure, you can sometimes do a web search of the creator's name to see what other information is linked to this person or organization.
   
   
3. Accuracy -- Does this information seem to be in line with other information that you have found? If data is critical, then cross-checking the information with other sources is especially important. When dealing with statistics or other types of factual information, verifying the accuracy of the numbers you receive is vital.
   
   
4. Objectivity -- Does the creator of the web site have reason to be biased on the topic? If so, then the information found through that source is less reliable than that found from an impartial source. For example, when doing research on a highly charged topic such as abortion, it is important that you not get all your information from either pro-choice or pro-life organizations.

There are several excellent resources available to help with evaluating web sites. Here are two of the best:

• Kathy Shrock's Guide for Educators http://school.discovery.com/schrockguide/eval.html -- Choose the "Critical Evaluation Survey for High School" in PDF or word format to print out a copy of this checklist.
  
  
• Joyce Valenza's Webquest about Evaluating Web Sites http://mciunix.mciu.k12.pa.us/~spjvweb/evalwebstu.html -- This includes links to several contrasting sites so you can practice your web evaluation skills.

Remember, information from a controlled source like that found in an electronic database like Newsbank or EBSCO Host must still be checked for currency,  authority, accuracy, and objectivity.