Accuracy and Validity

Do your students find the sources that they need on Wikipedia or other sources that you do not believe are very reliable or accurate? Students are very often misinformed and have the misconception that if something is posted on the internet it can be trusted as both accurate and valid. This misconception can cause the students to be misinformed about the topics they are researching and can learn untrue information. It can be very difficult to correct this learning with proper information. As teachers we need to teach students how to evaluate websites to be sure they are using accurate and valid information every time they are completing research on the internet.

When reviewing website there are 3 main categories to look at to evaluate the accuracy and validity; content, credibility, and technical aspects. The students must be taught to look at who is publishing the page and evaluate is they are credible, especially in the content that is being presented. What authority do they have to be publishing the given information? Second, they must look through the content that is presented. Does there seem to be any biased information? Does the author cite where they got the information for their publishing? The last thing that students should look at are the technical aspects of the site. Is the site organized? Does it look professional, like time has been put into it? Basically this will lead away from quickly made sites that probably do not have much information or knowledge backing the claims on the site.

What to do?

1. Common evaluation of internet sites
2. District wide use of evaluation

First, the district should come up with a common form of assessment of web pages. An example is found at http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/pdf/evalhigh.pdf. This should be dispersed throughout the district to all of the teachers so that they can teach the students how to correctly evaluate internet site. That evaluation should then be used by all teachers with their students, every time the students are expected to research on the internet. With district wide use of this evaluation, the students will learn that they must always evaluate sites for accuracy and validity before using them and believing the information presented.

Pros:

With district wide use of this evaluation, the students will learn that they must always evaluate sites for accuracy and validity before using them and believing the information presented. This should lead them to evaluating websites even when they are using the internet for personal reasons.

Cons:

As with any policy, it will be difficult to implement this evaluation in every classroom. There will always be some teachers that are stuck to their old ways and do not use the new evaluation. Administration will need to check on the classrooms to be sure it is being implemented when using the internet.