Evaluating Internet Resources

Comprehensive Lists

Bibliography on Evaluating Web Information

http://www.lib.vt.edu/help/instruct/evaluate/evalbiblio.html

Good list of Internet and print resources which address evaluation issues.

Evaluation of Information Sources: WWW Virtual Library

http://www.vuw.ac.nz/staff/alastair_smith/evaln/evaln.htm

Lengthy list of links to sites concerned with evaluating information sources, especially Internet resources.

Basic Checklists

Evaluating Web Resources (Widener U.)

http://www3.widener.edu/Academics/Libraries/Wolfgram_Memorial_Library/Evaluate_Web_Pages/659/

Provides checklists for evaluating different types of web sites (e.g. news, business, advocacy, personal pages).

Evaluating Information -- Applying the CRAAP Test (California State U., Chico)

http://www.csuchico.edu/lins/handouts/eval_websites.pdf

Coined by Sarah Blakeslee at Meriam Library, the CRAAP Test is a great way to remember the critical elements for evaluating any information, including Web sites. This one page PDF document outlines the criteria to consider for the information's Currency, Relevancy, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose.

Evaluation of Information Sources (Purdue U.)

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_evalsource.html

This worksheet lists basic questions for students to consider when evaluating web documents.

Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators: Critical Evaluation Information

http://school.discovery.com/schrockguide/eval.html

Checklists for elementary, middle school, and high school students.

Thinking Critically About World Wide Web Resources (Esther Grassian)

http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/college/help/critical/index.htm

Popular checklist which covers criteria such as content, source, date, and design.

Additional Discussions/Applications

Evaluating Information Found on the Internet (Elizabeth Kirk, Johns Hopkins U.)

http://www.library.jhu.edu/researchhelp/general/evaluating/

Discusses basic evaluation criteria for any type of information resource. Links to another page which suggests how to investigate authorship, publisher, and currency via the Internet.

Evaluating Quality on the Net (Hope Tillman)

http://www.hopetillman.com/findqual.html

Expanding on her original paper, the author discusses issues related to evaluating web vs. print sources. Last section looks at various search engines and directories and their use in finding quality sites.