Using the Web
Finding Additional Information
Assignment: Give the students an article to critique. Have them locate two Internet sources which support their response to the topic. Have them cite the URLs and highlight the points that show support of their response.
Purpose: Give the students an opportunity to appreciate that information can come from a variety of sources.
Finding Suitable Information
Assignment: Give the students a set of Web pages to look at. Have them note any reasons why these pages are, or are not appropriate for university level student research or for in-class use.
Purpose: A source that is useful in one instance, may not be useful in all instances. Either scholarly or popular sites might be appropriate depending on the requirements of the class assignment.
Locating and Evaluating Internet Sites
Assignment: Have the students find a Web page or site of interest to them, or one that is appropriate to a project they are working on. Have them cite this page using a style manual and write 2-3 paragraphs evaluating the site they have chosen. Be sure that they use criteria suggested on the Evaluate the Results of Your Search page. You might have them include a print copy of the first page of the Web site. As an additional part of the assignment, you might have them present a log of the search strategy that they used to locate the site.
Purpose: Students should learn to use the appropriate criteria when evaluating Web sites.
Comparing print and Web resources
Assignment: In groups of 3-5, have students examine pairs of items (books, articles, web sites) to determine: indicators of quality in each item; where exactly they found those indicators; the appropriate use for each item. Have them report their findings to the class after the class has had a chance to also evaluate the sites.
Purpose: Students will learn that the Web has not replaced print resources, rather it should be used as a complement to them.