CRITICAL EVALUATION OF A WEB SITE : MIDDLE SCHOOL LEVEL
©1996 Kathleen Schrock ([email protected])
Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators --
http://discoveryschool.com/schrockguide/

1. What type of connection do you have to the Internet?
  T3

2. What Web browser are you using?  nestcape

3. What is the URL of the Web page you are evaluating?

http: http://www.geology.sdsu.edu/how_volcanoes_work/

4. What is the name of the site?
                       how volcanoes work

Part One : Looking at and Using the Page

Does the page take a long time to load?  NO

Are the pictures on the page helpful? YES

Is each section of the page labeled with a heading? YES
Did the author sign his/her real name? YES

Did the author give you his/her e-mail address? YES

Is there a date on the page that tells you when it was last updated? YES

Is there an image map (big picture with links) on the page? YES

Is there a table (columns of text) on the page? (Check the source code.) YES

If so, is the table readable with your browser? YES

If you go to another page on the site, can you get back to the main page? YES

Are there photographs on the page? YES

  If so, can you be sure that photographs have not been changed by the author?
                            YES

If you're not sure, should you accept the photos as true? YES
 

Summary of part one

Using the data you have collected above, write a paragraph explaining why you would or wouldn't recommend this site to a friend for use with a project.

 I think that this site is well put together.  It has many visual aids to help in the explanations about volcanoes.  The information seems legitimate and thorough.
 

Part Two : What's on the page and who put it there?

Does the title of the page tell you what it is about? YES

Is there a paragraph on the page explaining what it is about? YES

Is the information on the page useful for your project? YES

Would you have gotten more information from an encyclopedia? NO

Is the information on the page current? YES

Does up-to-date information make a difference for your project? N/A

Does the page lead you to some other good information (links)? YES

Does the author of the page present some information you disagree with? YES

Does the author of the page present some information that you think is wrong? YES

Does some information contradict information you found elsewhere? YES

Does the author use some absolute words (like "always" or "never")? YES

Does the author use superlative words (like the "best" or "worst")? YES

Does the author tell you about him/herself? YES

Do you feel that the author is knowledgeable about the topic? YES

Are you positive the information is true? YES as you can be about anything

What can you do to prove the information is true?
 Check other sources.

Summary of Part Two

Looking at the data you have collected in part two, compose a note to the author of the Web site explaining how you are going to use the Web site in your project and what your opinion is of the page's content.
 The content of this page seems to be complete and correct.  It would be usable for students in the middle and upper grades as well as a resource for a teacher.  I am not using it for a particular project at this time.
 
 

URL of this page : http://discoveryschool.com/schrockguide/evalmidd.html