Evaluating Content Validity on the Internet

Introduction

The Internet provides an exciting medium available to classrooms. It has been described as "a worldwide personal library," (Ellsworth, p. 7) one that allows for retrieval of new information, data, images, and software. Sometimes this data is only available online. In addition, the interactivity can provide a whole new depth of experience for students. Projects can be experienced in real-time, communication can occur with sites around the world, students can learn and develop totally new search abilities. This type of learning can be very engaging and invigorating for students as well as teachers.

While the Internet combines the permanence and convenience of text with the timeliness of the electronic media, it also provides many new challenges to overcome. Because the World Wide Web has exploded so quickly, there are no guidelines for material that is published in the medium. The world of print has evolved a set of guidelines through editorial processes and review boards so that readers can expect a certain quality with published works. When a reader purchases the New York Times or a National Geographic, there is a certain expectation about the type of material that will be included. On the Internet, anyone can publish whatever they desire.

This presents a serious issue for the educator who wishes to incorporate the rich possibilities for learning presented by the Internet. "Many genre categories exist as sources for Internet sites including universities, commercial services, electronic journals and commercial magazines, special interest groups, companies and organizations, advertising pages, personal pages, search engines, software sites, city and state pages, federal government pages, and special interest groups." (Caruso, p. 25). Just as educators need to determine if textbooks or supplemental materials are appropriate and valid for their classrooms, so will Internet sites need to be assessed.

Six categories are presented here to help in assessing the validity of an Internet site: Purpose, Authorship, Currency, Content, Site Design, and Technical Issues.
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Purpose of the site

The purpose of a site will be crucial information in order for the teacher and student to evaluate the usefulness of the material contained within that site. The purpose should serve the intent of the lesson, while expanding upon the information provided through other resources, such as print materials. Without a clear goal in mind, the Internet can become a mindless activity rather than a clear curricular connection.

• Is the purpose clearly stated up front?
• Does the site enrich the user's experience and expand the imagination?
  

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Authorship

Determining who is responsible for the information will be extremely important. Because anyone can publish a Web page, the user will need to take steps to identify the author. There may be times that a student author will be pertinent to what the class is studying, but other situations that will call for a more documented body of information.

• Is the author identified by professional qualification, background, credentials, or institutional affiliation (stated clearly or made available through clear links)?
• Is the site created by a group or an individual?
  • Groups may have more long term interest as well as financial backing to give stability to the site.
  • Individuals may have developed the site as a hobby or for personal vanity.
  • An email address to "info" or "webmaster" may indicate a group or committee.
  • Domain names such as "edu." (education) or "gov." (government) can indicate authorship.
• Is there evidence of possible bias such as the type of affiliation?
  • A commercial site may be promoting products or business interests, even if only in a subtle way, such as the presence of a company name.
• Can the author be identified through other means?
• Try searching within the web site for links about the author.
• Try searches in the following locations to find an author listing:
  • Alta Vista -Search engine
  • Scholarly Societies Project
  • InterNIC--collaborative project among Network Solutions and the National Science Foundation to register domain names
• Country domain codes by Flinders University, South Australia
• Internet Address Finder

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Currency

Technological information changes very frequently, especially on the Internet. Educators need to determine if there is any stability to an Internet site so that the site is likely to still be available when trying to incorporate the material into lesson plans.

• Is the site updated regularly & recently?
• Is the date of the last update clearly printed at the top or bottom of the site?
• Are there clear pointers to new content?
• If the update is not evident, can it be located by other means?
  • Look at "document info" in "view" of the toolbar for a possible date.
  • Use the URL and back-up to the first slashmark to get the homepage (usually dated).
  • Search the title using quotes in Alta Vista (http://altavista.digital.com/).

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Content

Because there are no reliable means currently available to set standards or to review information on the Internet, educators need to be able to assess the type of material located in a site to determine if the material is valid and appropriate for a classroom setting.

Is the content useful, unique, accurate rather than "derivative, repetitious, doubtful"? (Collins, p. 124).

Does the content material make the visit worthwhile and expand or add to information found in other sources such as in printed publications?

• Does the depth of material go beyond the main page?
• Does the site have intrinsic value--how valuable is the information?
• Is the content age-appropriate without being too wide an age span, such as 8-13?
• Is the material appropriate for the skills of the intended audience?
• Is there evidence of gender, racial biases, or stereotyping?
• Does the site support a constructivist learning style through discovery and inquiry?
• Does the site adhere to copyright issues?
• Does the material contain correct spelling and grammar?
• Do the links lead to more substantive information that is relevant, appropriate, and reliable?
• Does the site provide a means for user feedback and questions?
• Does the site give proper credit to sources used?
• Is there evidence of peer review of the content if appropriate?

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Site Design

The site should allow good access to information in an appealing but clear manner. The user should be able to navigate within the site without getting lost and have the ability to return to the home page easily. Added features such as graphics and multimedia should enhance the content.

• Is the site designed for a group or for individuals?
• Is the material accessible in a single class period of forty to fifty minutes?
• Does the site use appropriate treatment for its objectives (such as game, simulation, or tutorial)?
• Are there strategies & lesson plans to assist teachers?
• Does the site accomodate different learning styles by using visual, aural, numerical, or verbal media?
• Are there accomodations for the needs of the disabled (such as text instead of sound for hearing impaired)?
• Does the site allow for different languages?
• Is the material accessible rather than buried in too many hidden layers?
• The "3 click rule"(Collins, p. 124) is useful. Information that is more than three clicks to find is buried too deeply.
• Is the information broken down logically with an outline of topics for easy navigation?
• Is there clear use of menus, an image map, an index, and table of contents?
• Are the links simple, uncluttered, and easy to use with no dead-ends?
• Does the site include search features & instructions for searching?
• Does the site include boolean capabilities for searching by "and", "if", "and not"?
• Does the site allow keyword searching for both subject and title?
• Is the speed of the search engine adequate?
• Is the output of the search engine understandable to the intended audience?
• Are the updates of the site indicated at the top level and in a clear manner?
• Do the graphics and multimedia capabilities add to the content without detracting from the material?
• Are there text-based alternative pages for users that need to turn off graphics (such as for very slow computers or browsers)?
• Does the site contain a help system that really does help?
• Is there a link provided for returning to the home page?

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Technical Issues

Technical issues will influence the usability of a site that may include outstanding content but that has overriding technical issues will not be usable within the scope of a classroom period. Similarly, students may not have much tolerance for sites that don't work.

• How accessible is the site?
  • Is the site consistently available?
  • Is the response time adequate enough to maintain the user's interest?
  • Will the time of day (such as business hours only) be a factor in accessing?
  • Will geographic distance slow down response time (such as international sites)?
  • Is the host computer and its connections adequate enough to support use?
• Does the location have the correct URL (site address)?
  
• Does the site support several formats for different computers? 
• Does the site contain different versions for a variety of browsers? 
• Is the downloading time manageable for a typical class period? 
• Are the rules for use stated up front? 
• Is the user informed of improper or controversial issues contained within the site? 
• Does the site identify any necessary plug-ins or helper applications?
  

Educators will need to spend time assessing Internet sites before incorporating them into curricular lessons. A sample evaluation form for website review can be found at Kathy Schrock.net. Even with this advanced preparation, students may inadvertently stumble into sites that contain inappropriate material. The wise teacher will have a policy in place for how to handle this situation. In addition, students will need to be taught how to do their own critical reviewing of information or of sites. Evaluation forms for students can be found at Kathy Schrock's Guide.  In addition, this site gives a wealth of information on how to assess student web pages.

To be able to connect students to the whole world provides some wonderful new types of opportunities. The interactive nature will provide a different type of experience than straight book learning. Collaborative projects can be developed for works in progress. However this brings new responsibilities as well. Educators will need to develop ways to monitor the sites that students are using, work with students in learning how to make their own critical decisions about quality, and make wise decisions about how the Internet is brought into the classroom.

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REFERENCES

Association for Library Service to Children. "Selection Criteria: How to Tell if You Are Looking at a Great Web Site." [Online, Available, 1998] http://www.ala.org/parentspage/greatsites/criteria.html

Caruso, Carol. "Before You Cite a Site." Educational Leadership. November, 1997.

Collins, Boyd R. "Beyond Cruising: Reviewing." Library Journal 121, no. 3 (February 15, 1996):122-24.

Ellsworth, Jill H. Education on the Internet. Indianapolis: Sams Publishing, 1994.

Grassian, Esther. "Thinking Critically About World Wide Web Resources." [Online] Available
http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/college/instruct/web/critical.htm, May 5, 1998

McLachlan, Karen. "WWW CyberGuide Ratings for Content Evaluation." [Online] Available http://www.cyberbee.com/guide1.html, 1996.

Kirk, Elizabeth. "Practical Steps in Evaluating Internet Resources." [Online] Available http://www.library.jhu.edu/elp/useit/evaluate/practical.html, May 26, 2003.

Robin, Bernard and Elissa Keeler and Robert Miller. Educator's Guide to the Web. New York: Holt and Co., 1997.

Scholz-Crane, Ann. "Evaluating World Wide Web Information." [Online] Available http://camden-www.rutgers.edu/~scholzcr/eval.html, March 7, 1997.

Schrock, Kathleen. "Critical Evaluation Survey." [Online] Available. http://school.discovery.com/schrockguide/eval.html,May 26, 2003.

Tillman, Hope N.. "Evaluating Quality on the Net." [Online} Available http://www.hopetillman.com/findqual.html, July 20, 2003.

Wilkinson, Gene L. and Lisa T. Bennett and Kevin M. Oliver. "Evaluating the Quality of Internet Information Sources: Consolidated Listing of Evaluation Criteria and Quality Indicators." [Online] Available
(http://itech1.coe.uga.edu/faculty/gwilkinson/criteria.html), May 19, 1997.
 

OTHER RESOURCES

 

 

Evaluation Techniques of Internet Resources

Great Web Sites for Kids Selection Criteria

Web Research for Kids

 

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