For my Masters class in Integrating Technology in the Classroom, I recorded my cognitive processes while taking the necessary steps to evaluate the reliability and validity of the website Help Save the Endangered Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus (http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/). I decided upon Option A: Screen Capture With Audio Recording for this evaluation. This was the first time I have ever used this type of technology, and it will not be the last. Going through this process helped me to slow down and take the time to carefully evaluate a website.
Before even beginning my evaluation of the website, I reviewed what I would specifically be looking for. In the Walden University resources there's a video A Teacher’s Perspective: Evaluating Information Online (2011), where Beth Phillips talked about the ABC’s of looking for information online. Look at the author, bias (fact or opinion), and content. Then, look at the web address to determine if it is a .org (organization), .gov (government), or .edu (education). These three web addresses are usually good. Also, in our text it was stated to find out the author, purpose of the website, who created the website, when the site was updated, and watch out for opinions not backed up by facts (Eagleton, & Dobler, 2007). November (2008) reinforced in my mind the need to read the URL, examine and think critically about the content, check for the author, and look at the forward links that can help evaluate if the site is biased or quality information.
I kept all of the above in mind while evaluating the tree octopus website. I did learn how to find the author of the website, which proved to be very valuable. By going backwards in the URL, I was able to discover the creator of the website. The first sentences I saw for www.zapatopi.net was about the site being a source for conspiracies and other diversion, and that it is serving the paranoid since 1997. That was an eye opener. It takes common sense to realize that this website in questionable right away. The further I went into the website, the more it appeared to be written for entertainment purposes.
Then, I went back to the home page and began to evaluate it for validity. This was a great experience. I explored the links. The Wikipedia links were legitimate, but gave no validity to the existence of the tree octopus. Other links went to websites written by the same author of the website I was evaluating for validity. This sent up all kinds of red flags in my mind. These are skills that I could easily teach my 2nd graders. They are young, but I think they can grasp these concepts. Certainly my young students can use common sense and have enough prior knowledge to understand that house cats are not foreign species, and there is no such thing as sasquatch. I could use this particular activity to point out to my students the need to think, and not believe everything you read on the internet.
References
Eagleton, M. B., & Dobler, E. (2007). Reading
Laureate Education, Inc. (2011). A teacher’s perspective: Evaluating information online.
November, A. (2008). Web literacy for educators. Thousand Oaks , CA
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