Web Site Evaluation Training Guide

Evaluating web sites for accuracy and authority and Judging for relevancy—Training Document

1/13/04, updated 12/4/07 by Barbara A. Jansen

If you are using information from a site on the free Web, you must determine whether the content is accurate and authoritative. You will find important criteria below. Once you answer all of the questions, you must then decide whether or not the Web site is useful for your purposes. Some of the links below are legitimate examples that you may use, some are non-examples. You decide why they are examples or non-examples. You may even need to use some of the biased examples occasionally, especially if you are writing a paper that offers more than one opinion. You determine.

Your name(s):

Web site URL: http://

Title of web site:

Content

Is the purpose (inform, persuade, sell, entertain, or communicate) of the site indicated on the home page? (if you answer "yes," circle one or more)	YES	NO
If not, can you guess the purpose(s) of the web page? Write it here.	YES	NO
Could that purpose cause the web author to be biased?	YES	NO
Do you feel as though the document is trying to convince you of something? (non-example)	YES	NO
Look at the advertising on the page. Could the companies paying for the ads influence the content or cause bias? (non-example)	YES	NO
Is the information useful for your purpose?	YES	NO
Would it have been easier to get the information somewhere else?	YES	NO
Would information somewhere else have been different?	YES	NO
If so, why?
Did the information lead you to other sources that were useful?	YES	NO
When was the document created?
Is the information current? (non-example)	YES	NO
Does up-to-date information matter for your purpose?	YES	NO
Does the author express his or her opinion as fact? (non-example)	YES	NO
Does the author support his ideas with references to show that he has done research? http://www.crystalinks.com/egyptafterlife.html (non-example) and http://www.indiana.edu/~ancmed/egypt.HTM (example)	YES	NO
Does the information contradict something you found somewhere else?	YES	NO
If there are graphics, do most of the pictures supplement the content of the page?	YES	NO
Can readers edit the content on the page?	YES	NO
Does it matter if the page content is editable by users (readers)?	YES	NO
Briefly describe the contents of this site:

Authority (If you cannot establish the authority of the site, you don't want to use it!)
Is there a person or organization responsible for the web page?	YES	NO
Write the name of the person or the organization.
Is there an e-mail address to contact the author or authors?	YES	NO
What authority or credentials does the person or organization have? Describe.
Is the Web page linked to a home page for an organization, commercial enterprise, or individual? (circle one)
Has the site been reviewed by an online reviewing agency or has it won any awards from a reputable organization? (example)	YES	NO
Does the domain (i.e. edu, com, gov) of the page influence your evaluation of the site? http://www.whitehouse.gov/ or http://www.whitehouse.org/	YES	NO
Are you positive that the information is true?	YES	NO
What can you do to prove that it is true?
Are you satisfied that the information is useful for your purpose?	YES	NO
If not, what can you do next?
Are you using this web page for your paper or project?	YES	NO

Modified version of Kathy Schrock's Critical Evaluation Survey : Secondary School Level.
Used with permission. Updated 12.04.07.

Web Site Evaluation Training Guide

Content

Authority (If you cannot establish the authority of the site, you don't want to use it!)