Evaluating Credibility of Online Sources

In our classrooms, it has become a part of our tasks as educators to develop 21st century learners, who have the skills they need to be digitally literate. Using the internet as a tool to answer questions, research, and find information has become embedded across the curriculum and grade levels. It seems that sometimes we assume that our students should have these skills, simply because they have grown up in a digital age. However, these researching skills need to be explicitly taught to students if we want them to be successful and engaged in their learning.  

One skill that I have really noticed students need instruction in is analyzing a source for credibility- they will often believe everything they read on the internet! One activity that I do with my kids to help them realize that not everything they read/see on the internet is true is show them fake sites.

The first thing I always show them is this video, which looks incredibly believable because it is made by Google.

We always talk about why they think this video might be real or fake, and talk about the fact that just because information comes from a big name source, doesn't mean that it is always going to be the truth. 

Another site I show them is about a Tree Octopus. You can click on the image below to check out the site. Again, we discuss why this site is real or fake, and clues they can use to find this out. 

There are lots of these fake sites out there on the web, and a list for classroom use can be found at Teachbytes. Another good site is http://allaboutexplorers.com/, which has some good lessons for having students realize there is lots of false information out there. It emphasizes the importance of using more than one source when looking for information.

Some questions that you can use with your students for evaluating sources include:

• Does the information come from a respected author or organization
• is this information credible?
• is it up to date?
• do other articles or sites confirm this information? If not, what is different and why?
• is the material biased?
• if there are different sides to this topic, does the author cover them all?
• if you trace the links, ownership, or other materials in this source, what do I learn?
• (Harvey & Daniels, 2009, p.135)

I also realized that when I have students researching, it needs to be more than a fact finding mission. This type of learning isn't promoting higher level thinking. Instead, our class is going to use a question to guide our research, and students will be encourage to explain what they are thinking as they are searching for information. I always want students to be synthesizing and making meaning from the information they are gathering.The sheet below is what I will be having students use while researching. You can click on the image below to open it and make a copy for yourself if you would like. It is adapted from the Harvey & Daniels book referenced below. 

References

Harvey, S., & Daniels, H. (2009). Comprehension and collaboration: Inquiry circles for

curiosity, engagement and understanding. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.