It has only been the last 4 years where my students have regularly used computers. Previous to that my school only had 1 PC per classroom and there was no computer lab. In recent years the IT situation has greatly improved. There is now a lab of 20 PCs and up to 3 PCs in each classroom and the school is networked with individual email accounts for the students.
When I taught stage 2, I was very structured when the students were using the internet. I had decided what sites I wanted them to enter and what information I wanted them to obtain. Most of the other time spent on the PC’s was for word processing, graphing, slide shows and using various learning software.
When I taught years 5 and 6 I was more flexible. My stage partner and I set up 2 online units on Moodle; Antarctica and Global Connections. Before the students started the online unit we had put in the ground work by establishing the relevant website to list on the unit. This task was extremely arduous and laborious. Only recently have I begun to understand the techniques used to evaluate the websites quickly. If only I had known some of these simple quick questions, I could have saved myself being taken on ‘Merry Go Rounds’ – websites which take you no where!
Previously, I was fed up with wasting hours and hours searching for relevant sites so subsequently I had only a few sites which I allowed my students to explore. I was also adamant that the students were under no circumstance allowed to freely search the net for information as I felt it was either a time-waster or they would find inappropriate material. The students did however complete ‘Treasure hunts’ where they had to find unit based information by visiting pre approved sites.
Since reading about the different techniques on evaluating web pages I feel more confident to show the staff and students some simple techniques to help them critically analyse sites. It might even be a viable option to print some of these techniques on to A4, laminate them and stick one next to every PC.
Monday, March 19, 2007
Evaluating websites at a glance
The following websites were critically evaluated according to the web evaluation reading 'Evaluating Web Pages: Techniques to Apply & Questions to Ask'. OC Berkeley - Teaching Library Internet Workshops.
Activity: You wish to help your students by presenting to them reliable and valuable web sites. You have found these sites in your search. Critically evaluate them according to one of the web evaluation models or readings.
· How do you assess these sites?
· How could you teach your students to evaluate these sites?
· Which will you choose for your students?
http://www.greenleft.org.au/2006/656/7463
Green Left Weekly is an ‘independent voice committed to human and civil rights, global peace and environmental sustainability, democracy and equality’.
Is a non profit organisation - hence ‘.org’
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
It is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
It was last updated on the 14th March 2007.
The articles are authorised by K. Miller, 23 Abercrombie Street, Chippendale, NSW. Site by Kiwa Systems
The site also offers links which are on the same topic.
The page is put in on the web with the aim of ‘linking like-minded activists, socialists, environmentalists, feminists, anti-racists.’
The article was produced to inform and to persuade. The information is written to persuade the audience on a subject, or a viewpoint or an idea the site feels strongly about. The information is biased.
http://www.abc.net.au/stateline/nsw/content/2006/s1567784.htm
The site is from Stateline which is a program that focuses on local and political issues which affect us. It is part of the ABC – Australian Broadcasting Commission – very reputable.
This particular article was posted on 10/02/2006 so it’s now over a year old.
There are no related links.
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
Is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
The article was produced to inform and give facts.
http://www.sydneywater.com.au/EnsuringTheFuture/Desalination/
This site is made by Sydney Water, a utility owned by the NSW Government.
‘Sydney Water provides drinking water, recycled water, wastewater services and some storm water services to more than four million people in Sydney, Illawarra and the Blue Mountains.’
It is not a personal page. It is a government website.
The site has links to other government sites.
The site has information which is of an unbiased nature.
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
Is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
The article was produced to inform and give facts.
http://www.unsw.edu.au/news/pad/articles/2005/jul/Water.html
This article has been posted on the 12 July 2005, which is not recent, but the information is still relevant.
The site is produced by the University of New South Wales.
The site has information which is of an unbiased nature.
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
Is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
The article was produced to inform and give facts.
http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s1416663.htm
The site was produced by the ABC.
The site has information which is of an unbiased nature.
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
Is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
The article was produced to inform and give facts.
The article was posted on Tuesday, 19 July 2005
The site has links to other ABC programs.
http://www.suthlib.nsw.gov.au/ssc/home.nsf/WebPages/E2E213220EF39236CA257075001FEC54?OpenDocument&Expand=2
This site is a Local Government site produced for the Sutherland Shire Council.
The site has information which is of an unbiased nature.
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
Is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
The article was produced to inform and give facts and to persuade.
http://webdiary.com.au/cms/?q=node/262
This site is an ‘open conversation between the readers, based on articles about half of which are written by readers and about half of which are sourced from Project Syndicate.’
The site allows people to join in debates on political and local issues.
The site has advertisements which are unrelated to the site and its contents.
The information which is posted may not be accurate or correct so students take information at there own risk.
The view points are of those who are against or for issues so information may be of a biased nature.
Activity: You wish to help your students by presenting to them reliable and valuable web sites. You have found these sites in your search. Critically evaluate them according to one of the web evaluation models or readings.
· How do you assess these sites?
· How could you teach your students to evaluate these sites?
· Which will you choose for your students?
http://www.greenleft.org.au/2006/656/7463
Green Left Weekly is an ‘independent voice committed to human and civil rights, global peace and environmental sustainability, democracy and equality’.
Is a non profit organisation - hence ‘.org’
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
It is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
It was last updated on the 14th March 2007.
The articles are authorised by K. Miller, 23 Abercrombie Street, Chippendale, NSW. Site by Kiwa Systems
The site also offers links which are on the same topic.
The page is put in on the web with the aim of ‘linking like-minded activists, socialists, environmentalists, feminists, anti-racists.’
The article was produced to inform and to persuade. The information is written to persuade the audience on a subject, or a viewpoint or an idea the site feels strongly about. The information is biased.
http://www.abc.net.au/stateline/nsw/content/2006/s1567784.htm
The site is from Stateline which is a program that focuses on local and political issues which affect us. It is part of the ABC – Australian Broadcasting Commission – very reputable.
This particular article was posted on 10/02/2006 so it’s now over a year old.
There are no related links.
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
Is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
The article was produced to inform and give facts.
http://www.sydneywater.com.au/EnsuringTheFuture/Desalination/
This site is made by Sydney Water, a utility owned by the NSW Government.
‘Sydney Water provides drinking water, recycled water, wastewater services and some storm water services to more than four million people in Sydney, Illawarra and the Blue Mountains.’
It is not a personal page. It is a government website.
The site has links to other government sites.
The site has information which is of an unbiased nature.
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
Is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
The article was produced to inform and give facts.
http://www.unsw.edu.au/news/pad/articles/2005/jul/Water.html
This article has been posted on the 12 July 2005, which is not recent, but the information is still relevant.
The site is produced by the University of New South Wales.
The site has information which is of an unbiased nature.
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
Is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
The article was produced to inform and give facts.
http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s1416663.htm
The site was produced by the ABC.
The site has information which is of an unbiased nature.
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
Is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
The article was produced to inform and give facts.
The article was posted on Tuesday, 19 July 2005
The site has links to other ABC programs.
http://www.suthlib.nsw.gov.au/ssc/home.nsf/WebPages/E2E213220EF39236CA257075001FEC54?OpenDocument&Expand=2
This site is a Local Government site produced for the Sutherland Shire Council.
The site has information which is of an unbiased nature.
It is an Australian site hence the ‘.au’ on the end of the URL.
Is not a personal page – there are no personal names following the title.
The article was produced to inform and give facts and to persuade.
http://webdiary.com.au/cms/?q=node/262
This site is an ‘open conversation between the readers, based on articles about half of which are written by readers and about half of which are sourced from Project Syndicate.’
The site allows people to join in debates on political and local issues.
The site has advertisements which are unrelated to the site and its contents.
The information which is posted may not be accurate or correct so students take information at there own risk.
The view points are of those who are against or for issues so information may be of a biased nature.
Why is the understanding of the new literacies important?
Until recently, I believed ‘literacy’ was the understanding of language through reading and writing and students learnt these skills using traditional resources and techniques. However, with the electronic age, students are faced with a whole new medium of information to navigate their way through and understand. Educators and students need to be able to critically analyse this information on websites and learning software to determine its ‘authenticity, applicability, authorship, bias and useability (Schrock, K 2002).
Since there is not a single body which ensures that all sites are relevant, unbiased and whether they are trying to sell something, students (as well as educators) need to adopt a series of techniques to help them find what they are looking for.
The web is still so young and it is rapidly changing and growing everyday. With change, the design of web sites and learning software is being updated all the time with the idea of being more enjoyable and engaging to the reader. The information may be presented in various ways such as digital images, fonts, size, colour etc. to make it more appealing. We need to teach our students new literacy skills to scan through all the ‘bells and whistles’ and make informed judgements based upon validity.
Since there is not a single body which ensures that all sites are relevant, unbiased and whether they are trying to sell something, students (as well as educators) need to adopt a series of techniques to help them find what they are looking for.
The web is still so young and it is rapidly changing and growing everyday. With change, the design of web sites and learning software is being updated all the time with the idea of being more enjoyable and engaging to the reader. The information may be presented in various ways such as digital images, fonts, size, colour etc. to make it more appealing. We need to teach our students new literacy skills to scan through all the ‘bells and whistles’ and make informed judgements based upon validity.
Sunday, March 18, 2007
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