EVALUATING WEB PAGES

Prepared by Sarah Brick Archer

   

 
 Criteria 
Examples 
Links 
  Search Engines
The purpose of this web page is to provide an overview to variables involved in critically assessing the information found on the Web.
 

Criteria Used in Evaluating Web Sites

 
The Internet is not systematically organized. Resources are not evaluated, reviewed, and selected like other library materials. Sites do not always stay on the server, nor are they always free. Because anyone can place a page on the Web, it is important that each page be carefully scrutinized by the reader. Before choosing the Web as a resource, determine which resource would answer the question the best.

Things to look for when scrutinizing a page include the following:
 

  1.  Authority: Is the author identified? What are the credentials of the author and/or organizational source of the page? Is it easy to contact the author? On what server does the page reside? Edu identifies an educational institution which could be a student or faculty member; gov is government and is fairly reliable; org is for organizations, and they have to be carefully scrutinized; com is commercial, are they selling something?
  2. Accuracy: Is the information truthful? Have facts been checked?
  3. Objectivity: What is the author's purpose in writing the page? Are biases obvious or are there any hidden agendas?
  4.  Coverage:  What topics are covered and how thoroughly are they presented? Are there any omissions?
  5. Currency: Are there dates listed on the page? Is the information on the page current? When was the page created? When was it last updated?
  6. Links: Are the links relevant? Do they work? Were you referred to the page from a reliable source? Is it easy to return to the home page?
  7. Composition: Are there spelling or grammatical errors? Are the graphics appropriate? Is the page easy to use? Are graphs clearly labelled?
  8. Marketing: On commercial sites, are advertisements separate from the rest of the page?
  9. Research content: if research is cited, does the bibliography include non-Internet sources? Are they cited appropriately?

Examples of Web Pages

Using the criteria provided above, assess the quality of the information provided on the web pages listed below.
 
Education Reporter
http://www.eagleforum.org/~eagle/educate/
Feline Reactions to Bearded Men
(http://www.improb.com/aairchives/cat.html)
Melatonin Central
(http://www.melatonin.com)
National Right to Life Committee
(http://www.nrlc.org)
New Hartford, Minnesota
(http://www.lme.mankato.msus.edu/newhartford/newhtfd.html
Oklahoma Association of Wine Producers (http://members.aol.com/okawp/okawp.htm)
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
(http://humanities.uchicago.edu/forms_unrest/webster.form.html)
 
 LINKS TO OTHER SITES EVALUATING WEB PAGES:
Evaluating Web Pages
(http://www.science.widener.edu/~withers/examples.htm

Judging Quality on the Web (http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/url/referenc/judging.htm)

Thinking Critically about Discipline-Based World Wide Web Resources http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/college/instruct/discp.htm

Thinking Critically about World Wide Web Resources
http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/college/instruct/critical.htm
 
 SEARCH ENGINES THAT EVALUATE WEB PAGES:
NSU Library Guides (http://www.nsuok.edu/jvl/ref/subject.html)

Point (http://www.pointcom.com/)

Magellan Internet Guide (http://www.mckinley.com/)
 
 

Prepared by Sarah Brick Archer, Assistant Professor of Library Services, John Vaughan Library, Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, OK.

Prepared on February 2, 1998. Last updated on March 17, 1999.  For comments or suggestions, contact Sarah Brick Archer
    Return to Faculty Workshop Home Page