Welcome to Study Hall! The Internet can be a great resource as long as you know how to use it. Here you will find tips for effective web research to help you get the most out of the Internet.
Maya
Cyber Defender & Databank Supervisor
Because of her unquenchable thirst for knowledge, Maya started out as a librarian. While she loved her job, she wanted to do more to help protect people.
Since Cyber Villains such as Ms. Information and Elvirus can corrupt websites and the information on them, Maya teaches people to protect themselves by using caution when visiting websites and avoiding sites that are not trustworthy.
Give me a fish and I eat for a day. Teach me to fish and I eat for a lifetime
- Chinese Proverb
Anything chocolate
Interests:Browsing bookstores, baking
August 26 2008
Finding Reliable Sites: Watch out for False Information
Sometimes even seemingly reliable Web sites can unintentionally contain false information.
News sites occasionally have false reports, either because the journalist didn’t do their homework to properly verify if something was true or not before releasing it, or they were intentionally tricked by a hoax.
Some encyclopedia sites like Wikipedia allow anyone on the Web to contribute content to them, and they rely on other users instead of experts to verify or correct the information. Since the information can be incomplete, biased, or just plain wrong, they will post disclaimers to warn people about it.
To avoid using false information in your work, you should always double check your Web research against as many sources as possible, especially information from sites that contain disclaimers about their content. Refer to the Research Tips and Finding Reliable Sites sections for more good Web research habits.
posted by Maya
topic: Finding Reliable Sites
July 22 2008
Finding Reliable Sites: Library Research Databases
When you sign up for a library card, you are gaining access not just to all of the resources in the library building, but also all of the library's online research databases.
Libraries subscribe to countless online databases of magazine and newspaper articles, financial information, investment reports, medical pamphlets, encyclopedia articles, biographies, and full-text books, and then make these databases available for free to their patrons. Some of them can be accessed online any time of day through the library's Web site, and some of them you must access from the library's computers.
All the work of deciphering if a resource is reliable or not has been done for you by the library, and all you need is a library card!
posted by Maya
topic: Finding Reliable Sites
June 17 2008
Finding Reliable Sites: What do others think of the site?
One way to tell if a site has reliable information is if it is recommended by many other Web sites. Many Web sites only link to sites that they consider reliable, so you can check to see how many backlinks the site has to help you determine if the site is reliable. A simple way to do this is to type "link:" followed by the full site URL into a search engine to see some of the other sites that link to it. You can also check to see if the site is included in a reliable Web directory.
Some search engines also determine a site's ranking based on how many backlinks it has, so consider how high on the list of search engine results the site shows up. Sites that are harder to locate and that no one else recommends or links to tend to be less reliable than the ones that everyone goes to.
You may also want to search for other people's opinions about the site and its author and see what they have to say about them. Try to be objective when reading other people's opinions and reviews though because some people will write nasty reviews just to be mean.
posted by Maya
topic: Finding Reliable Sites
May 20 2008
Finding Reliable Sites: What kind of domain is it?
The domain is one easy way to help you determine if a Web site has reliable information on it. The last part of the site's URL will tell you what kind of domain it is. There are a number of different types, but the most common are .com, .gov, .org, .edu, and .net.
Some URLs are more likely to be reliable sites because only certain types of sites are allowed to have them. For example, .gov sites are government sites, like the mayor or the White House, .edu sites are educational sites, like a school or college, and .org sites are usually non-profit organizations, like churches, museums and scout troops. These are more likely to be reliable sites because they have an official organization behind them checking their content. Other URLs like .com and .net sites could be managed by anyone, and so there are a lot more unreliable sites with these URLs.
posted by Maya
topic: Finding Reliable Sites
April 22 2008
Finding Reliable Sites: How rich is the Information?
After you've found a site that looks like it addresses the topic you are searching, you need to decide if the information is good enough for your report. You need to compare the site's information with all your other research to determine if it's useful and if it's valid.
Check to see that the author is credible. For tips on this, you can read my post Finding Reliable Sites: Who wrote this? Also check that the information is accurate and well-researched by comparing it to your other research and looking for the author's cited sources or bibliography. The richest information demonstrates that the author did extensive background research and is a very credible source, like an expert in your topic.
You also want to make sure that the information isn't fake or stolen. If you find a legitimate article from a reputable journal or other publication, it should be accompanied by a copyright statement.
posted by Maya
topic: Finding Reliable Sites
March 25 2008
Finding Reliable Sites: Is this Fact or Opinion?
Anyone can put information on the Internet, and many people use their Web sites to express their opinions on certain matters. When you're considering using a Web site as a resource, you need to determine if it is stating facts or someone's opinion. Let's go back to my report on presidents. Here's an example of a fact versus an opinion:
Fact: George Washington was the first president of the United States.
Opinion: George Washington was the greatest president of the United States
Facts are known to be true and can be used to prove a point. Opinions are what someone thinks about a topic. Instead of proving a point, they can only agree or disagree with it. Once you've determined that a site has a credible author (See Finding Reliable Sites: Who wrote this?), a few things can help you to decide if it is fact or opinion. A site's information could be opinion if:
- It only presents one side of the story, or key information about the topic is left out
- It is paid for by an organization that has a specific position on the topic, or the author has something to gain by only presenting one side of the story
- It does not cite other resources for the information presented
- It presents an extreme view of the topic
- It does not state the reasons for why it is presenting information on the topic
Reports, like my report on presidents, usually focus on facts, but sometimes it's necessary to research opinions on a topic as well. If you're unsure whether you should be researching facts or opinions about your topic, check with your teacher.
posted by Maya
topic: Finding Reliable Sites
February 19 2008
Finding Reliable Sites: Ask your Librarian
If you're at a complete loss as to where to start when researching a topic, it never hurts to ask someone else for help. Ask your librarian, your teacher, your parents, even an older sibling, anyone who might know more about your topic than you do. Find out what they know or if they have any resources or Web sites they would recommend.
You may find out something interesting about your topic that you'd like to pursue, and you may even discover a shortcut to finding some reliable resources.
posted by Maya
topic: Finding Reliable Sites
January 22 2008
Finding Reliable Sites: Does it look professional?
Reliable sites often have teams of people working on them, so they are usually up-to-date and look very professional. If a site is full of errors such as typos and broken links and inconsistencies such as images and advertisements that don't relate to the content, it is much less likely to be a reliable site.
The more Web research you do, the easier it will become to tell the difference between a site that a team of designers and content experts built (which is much more likely to have reliable content) and a site that someone who knows very little about the Internet put together in their spare time. Also, to be on the safe side, no matter what the site looks like, you should always double-check the information on it against a trusted source.
posted by Maya
topic: Finding Reliable Sites
December 18 2007
Finding Reliable Sites: How old is This?
A resource is a lot more likely to be useful if it is up-to-date. Sometimes old information can be incorrect, especially if it is related to current events.
When you're trying to determine if a Web site is reliable, try to find out when it was created and when it was last
updated. You can also check to see if all the links on the Web site still work. Broken links can mean that a site has not been updated in a long time.
posted by Maya
topic: Finding Reliable Sites
November 20 2007
Finding Reliable Sites: Who wrote this?
When doing Web research, it can be time-consuming trying to find Web sites that have useful information. Some sites can have false or old information so you should always try and find credible and reliable sites for your research.
One of the things you can look for to determine if a site is credible and reliable is an author or an organization. Real news articles or other publications usually have the author's name listed. Sites belonging to a real organization like National Geographic or NASA are likely to be more reliable than mystery sites. It's also a good idea to check for the authors' sources. If they list real, valid sources, it shows they did their homework, too!
posted by Maya
topic: Finding Reliable Sites
July 23 2007
Credentials
I've had to get on Alexi to check a Web site's credentials before using her research in her scavenger hunt. There are many Web sites out there that have nobody checking on the accuracy of their information and it's important to get good information when you are doing your research.
Basically you can determine a Web site's credentials by how professional it looks, whether the author leaves his real name and a date when the information was last updated. Also if the Web site is related to a larger organization outside the Web (like the Discovery Channel or the Encyclopedia Britannica) it is likely to be accurate. If you are still unsure, ask your teacher about it.
Always remember to check your sources.