Online Learning: Part 1

Online Learning

Part 1

Read Between the Lines

Make a judgment about the site’s reliability based on your own analysis of the site and the information it contains. Here are some ways to do this:

        ·       Look for facts you know or can check with a trusted source. If the site gets those facts right, it’s more likely that the other facts on the site are also accurate.

        ·       Study the language used, Is it angry, satiric or overly impassioned? This may indicate that the site is biased.

        ·       Consider whether the arguments are logical and backed up by evidence, and whether the site presents only one point of view.

        ·       Check the links to the sources that the author acknowledges. Scholarly writing, whether in print or online, should include a biography.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!

It’s Online, But Is It On Target?: Part 3

It’s Online, But Is It On Target?

Part 3

Dot-What?

Look at the site’s address. What follows the dot?

        ·       Dot-com is not for businesses; anyone can use it. Dot-coms include well-known and respected companies, but also private individuals.

        ·       Dot-org usually indicates a not-for-profit organization. Many dot-orgs present unbiased information, but others have political agendas, focus on debatable issues instead of facts, and might not present all sides of an argument.

        ·       Dot-gov indicates a government website at the federal, state or local level. The federal government is a good source of statistics, and its sites are widely considered among the most reliable.

        ·       Dot-mil is used by sites that are part of the military.

        ·       Dot-edu usually indicates a university websites. While its published research is generally considered very trustworthy, anyone associated with the university, whether a world-renowned scholar or a freshman, can be given space on its server. Professors sometimes put student course work up on the Web, but that doesn’t mean they’re vouching for the information’s accuracy.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT!!!