Nursing 587 Week 3
Navigating the World Wide Web: Using Search Tools and Evaluating Resources

Web Assignment, to be done in the Library Teaching Lab in the Health Sciences Library on October 13. Due to be handed in October 20.

This assignment builds on the site evaluation questions developed by Janet Schnall and included in the lab tutorial you will do. In addition to her questions, I ask you to make some judgements given the answers to her questions.

Part 1. Search for a web site that provides useful information on a particular approach in science or knowledge generation such as hermeneutics or deconstructionism. These are only examples; choose one that you are curious about or interested in. Give the address so I can go to the site. After placing the address on your paper double check on whether it is correct by seeing if you can find the site by entering the address.

1. Author:
   a. Is the author clearly identified?
   b. What are the credentials of the author?
   c. Institutional affiliation?
   d. What authority does the author have to write about the subject?
   e. Based on the answers to these questions about authorship, what is your judgement about the appropriateness of the author?
2. Content:
   a. In your opinion how accurate is the information included?
   b. Is the information objectively presented?
   c. How comprehensive is the coverage of the topic?
   d. How does information compare with other sources on the topic?
   e. Based on your answers to these questions, what is you judgment about the quality of the content?
3. Currency:
   a. How current is the information?
   b. Is the information dated?
   c. In your judgment, is the information current enough?
4. Structure:
   a. How is the site organized?
   b. Does a large site have an internal search engine?
   c. In your judgment, is the structure useful?
5. Stability
   a. How accessible is the site?
   b. Is the server reliable?
   c. In your judgment, how good is the accessibility?
6. What is your overall evaluation of this site?

Part 2. Find a site that is a source for information about a person who represents a particular approach or opinion about knowledge generation.
Give the address and check it for accuracy.
Repeat questions 1 - 6 above for this site.