Unit two

Researching an essay

Unit contents

Evaluating Websites

The internet is revolutionizing the world of information gathering, but it's unlikely to help you much in your writing unless you are careful in your choice of sources. Because anyone can publish anything they like on the web, you need to know how to tell if the information in a web site is reliable or not. On this page you will find links to several web sites that will help you to critically evaluate information on the web. Spend some time exploring these sites and then complete the task at the end of the page.

Links

• How to critically analyse information sources
  Describes how to critically analyse printed information sources: including some information on how to determine the usefulness of an article though its bibliography.
• Widener University/Wolfang Memorial Library
  A great site which has a whole module (complete with PowerPoint slides) that takes you step by step through the process of evaluating web resources.
• Resources for Critical Evaluation
  Compares traditional and electronic sources and has some very useful advice on how to cope with the special problems electronic researchers face.
• Checklist for an advocacy web page
  This site explains how to recognize and evaluate an advocacy page - a page sponsored by an organization attempting to influence public opinion or sell ideas.