Information Literacy

Many sites on the Web are created by non-experts.  An appropriate evaluation process to judge the quality and accuracy of information may include the following:

• AUTHORITY AND ACCURACY
  • What is the author's identity and qualifications? Is there a way to determine the accuracy of information?
• PURPOSE AND CONTENT
  • What is the purpose of the website?  Is the information factual and unbiased?
  • What is the purpose?
    • Is it a personal webpage? An organization? A company?  A scholarly information site?  An advertisement?  For entertainment?
    • Does the website provide factual, balanced, and objective information?
    • Does the website seem to offer only subjective, biased, and opinionated information?
• CONTACT INFORMATION FOR VERIFICATION
  • Is there a way to contact the author or webmaster?
• CURRENCY
  • Is this the kind of website where updating of information is critical to provide the most current information?
  • When was the site last updated, revised, or modified?
• DESIGN, ORGANIZATION & EASE OF USE
  • These are important considerations. If a site lacks any of these factors it loses value and credibliity.

Internet Domain Extensions:
.gov - Government body
http://www.ed.gov

.ca - Country or state codes
http://www.ode.state.oh.us

.edu - Educational institution, used in the U.S.
http://www.rio.edu

.org - Organization that may be non-profit
http://www.redcross.org
        
.net - A top-level domain name used for Internet administrative sites in the United States
http://www.microsoft.net
        
.com - A commercial enterprise
http://www.bobevans.com