Using Website Evaluation
to Promote Higher-Order
Thinking
Teri Schmidt
Matt Rose
K-12 Outreach
Center for Education and Research in
Information Assurance and Security, Purdue
University
“If it’s on the Internet,
it must be true.”
Have you heard . . .?

NutraSweet/Diet Coke (Aspartame) Causes Cancer:

Free Champagne:

Pepsi Drops the Pledge of Allegiance:

Oliver North Warned of Osama Bin Laden:
http://www.aspartame.org/aspartame_myths.html
http://www.veuve-clicquot.fr/home_flash/alerte.htm
http://www.pepsiworld.com/help/false_rumor.php
http://www.northamerican.com/benladen.htm
“I heard this from ___ who’s a lawyer, so it’s true. . .”
Today’s Agenda
1.
Higher-Order Thinking Overview
2.
Website Evaluation Overview
3.
Lesson Plan Highlight/Demonstration
4.
Debrief Lesson Plan
1. Importance of HigherOrder Thinking Skills


Economic shift from traditional industrial base
to information & service base
Tomorrow’s worker will have 3+ careers which
are continually redefined by rapidly advancing
technology

Decentralization of workplace authority

Politics, society, & mass (multi)media
1. Higher-Order
Thinking

Metacognition: Thinking about thinking while
thinking

Subjective Reaction vs. Reasoning

Critical Literacy:
• Comparison, classification, deductive reasoning,
critiquing

Bloom’s Taxonomy of Learning:
• Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analysis,
Synthesis, Evaluation
1. Higher-Order
Thinking Outcomes
2. Website Evaluation



Why study Website evaluation?
Where & When should Website
evaluation be studied?
How should Website evaluation be
studied?
2. Why evaluate
Websites?

Increased use of Internet
in schools

Magazine rack analogy*

“Knowledge society”
*Harris, R. (1997). Evaluating Internet research
sources. Retrieved January 5, 2004 from
http://www.virtualsalt.com/evalu8it.htm.
2. Why evaluate
Websites?


Address student’s preconceptions
about “how the world works”
Promote active learning by modeling
& practicing metacognition, critical
thinking, and transfer
2. Where & when to
evaluate?:



Before the students are allowed to search
the Internet freely
Subjects in which research, investigation, or
inquiry takes place
Reinforced in other subject areas
2. How to evaluate
Websites?

Pre-evaluate

Look to evaluation of print media (Authority,


Scope, Currency, Purpose, Accuracy)
Use an established rubric or checklist (i.e.
the CARS Checklist by Robert Harris)
*Don’t forget to use common sense
2. How:
The CARS checklist




Credibility
Accuracy
Reasonableness
Support
Harris, R. (1997). Evaluating Internet research
sources. Retrieved Jamuary 5, 2004 from
http://www.virtualsalt.com/evalu8it.htm
2. CARS:
Credibility

Author’s credentials
 “About the Author,” “Credits,” or Contact Information
 Credentials relevant?
http://pubweb.acns.nwu.edu/~abutz/di/intro.html

Sponsoring organization
 “About us,” “Mission”
 URL (see handout)

Website Design: Professional?
2. CARS:
Accuracy



Timeliness/Currency
 page creation and revision dates (if applicable)
Audience and Purpose
 sponsoring organization and owner of domain
 URL
Completeness
 presentation of opposing viewpoints

Links to other sites

A HELPFUL TOOL: http://www.alltheweb.com
2. CARS:
Reasonableness



Unbiased tone
http://www.mediaawareness.ca/english/special_initiatives/gam
es/joecool_joefool/jo_cool_teachers.cfm
Absence of broad unsupported statements
Consistent with knowledge gained from other
sources
2. CARS:
Support

Source documentation

Corroboration
http://147.129.226.1/library/research/AIDSFACTS.htm
3. Lesson Plan
Demonstration
Now it’s your turn!
http://www.beefnutrition.org/
Some resources for your classroom:



http://muse.widener.edu/Wolfgram-MemorialLibrary/webevaluation/examples.htm
http://libweb.sonoma.edu/assistance/eval
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Eva
luateWhy.html
4. Debrief/Questions
Thank you!
Teri Schmidt
[email protected]
(765) 496-7707
Matt Rose
[email protected]
(765) 496-7710
http://cerias.purdue.edu/education/k-12/