Topics&Roles

=A WebQuest About Evaluating Web Sites=

**Introduction**
 Not all Web resources are created equal. If fact, there are great variations in the quality of the resources you access. The rule of thumb is "when in doubt, doubt." When you carefully select your resources, when you understand their strengths and limits, you create better products. It is essential to be able to evaluate the information that is presented on a web site as well as the overall design and navigation of the site.

Task
You will be working in a group to evaluate **four** Web sites on the topic of cloning or dinosaurs. One of you will be the editor for the group and the others will be examining sites from different perspectives. Each expert will develop a summary based on finding s for each website through the focus of their assigned role. Finally, you will be ranking the sites and comparing your rankings with the rest of the class.

Resources
Youu will each be responsible for completing a summary developed by using guiding questions for your assigned expert role (see chart below). As a group choose any **four** sites from suggested list for your assigned topic.
 * **Stem Cell Research sites: **
 * Stem Cells [|**stemcells.alphamedpress.org**][|/]
 * AAAS – Center for Science, Technology and Congress [|**www.aaas.org**][|/spp/cstc/briefs/stemcells/]
 * Human Stem Cell Research: All Viewpoints [|**www.religioustolerance.org**][|/res_stem.htm]
 * Do No Harm: The Coalition of Americans for Research Ethics [|**www.stemcellresearch.org**][|/]
 * NIH Stem Cell Information Home Page [|**stemcells.nih.gov**][|/]
 * University of Wisconsin Stem Cell & Regenerative Medicine Center []
 * Stem Cell Consortium []
 * Stem Cells at the National Academies [] ||


 * **Dinosaurs (for Intermediate and Middle School Students): **
 * Dino Directory []
 * Dinosauria Online []
 * Billy Bear's Land O' Dinosaurs []
 * Zoom Dinosaurs []
 * DinoBuzz []
 * Walking With Dinosaurs []
 * Discovery Channel []
 * Dinosaur Jungle [] ||

Process

 * Your group will choose **four** of the many web sites listed under your assigned topic and evaluate.
 * Use the following guidelines to gather evidence for your specialty.
 * **1. Content specialist: **
 * Does the site cover the topic comprehensively? Accurately?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Can you understand what is being said? Is it written above or below your level of understanding?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">What is unique about this site? Does it offer something others do not?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Are the links well-chosen? sufficient?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Currency: Can you tell: the date the information was created? the publication date? the date the material was last revised? Are these dates meaningful in terms of the subject matter?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Would you get better information in a book? an encyclopedia?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Would you include this site in your bibliography? || **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">2. Authority/Credibility specialist: **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Who is responsible for this site? Who sponsors it? Hint: truncate each section of the URL back until you are able to find the sponsor.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">What are his/her credentials?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Have the authors of the site cited their own sources? Are the sources documented appropriately?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">What is the domain name? Does it end in .com, .gov, .edu, .org, .net? Is it a personal page?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Is that a meaningful clue in evaluating the site? (You can't always judge a web page by its suffix. Some commercial sites provide solid information. Some university sites offer less-than-serious personal pages to graduate students.)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Who else links to the site? (You can perform a //<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">link check // in AltaVista or Google by entering "link:webaddress" in the search box. Is it linked to by reliable sites? What do other sites say about this one?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Would you include this site in your bibliography? ||
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.5pt;">3. Bias/purpose specialist: **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Why was this site created? (to persuade, inform, explain, sell, promote, parody, other?)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Is it a personal, commercial, government or organization site?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Is there any bias? Is only one side of the argument presented? Does it appear that any information is purposely omitted? Is there a hidden message? Is it trying to persuade you or change your opinion? Is the bias useful to you in some way?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Can you distinguish facts from opinion?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Would you include this site in your bibliography? || **<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">4. Usability/design specialist **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Is the site easy to navigate (user-friendly)?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Is there a well-labeled contents area?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Do all the design elements (graphics, art, buttons, etc.) enhance the message of the site? Is there consistency in the basic formats of each page?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Are there any errors in spelling or grammar?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Do the pages appear clean, uncluttered?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Do the links on the site work?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Would you include this site in your bibliography? ||


 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Each member in the group should complete his/her section of the organizer through the perspective they are assigned. (If 2 members are assigned the same role, both should post their findings in the organizer, then edit to reflect their consensus. The History will show me each member's participation.) The chart above has guiding questions, but you should also use additional resources mentioned in Course Content to help you with your perspective.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">For each site, develop a summary that conveys your expert opinion based on your findings. This summary will help members to discuss the final ranking for websites. Also record your personal ranking on the organizer (1 for best to 4 for least best) for each website.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Ranking the websites: While you are doing your investigation into each website, you should consider which of the sites is the best for //your role// and think of that as a 1. While you are forming a consensus with the group you may recognize that a #1 for your role is not necessarily a #1 for another person's role and will then use all information to form a group consensus on the best to least best websites overall. (1 is best; 4 is least best)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Review work of all group members and discuss to form a final group consensus on ranking the 4 websites. The editor will use your group discussion to report your consensus findings with comments to support the findings.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Communicate in a timely manner with all group members.