Kingsborough Community College
www.kbcc.cuny.edu DR. LORETTA KASPER'S
ESL 91 ON THE WEB
Welcome to 
ESL 91 on the Web
Dr. Loretta Kasper
lkasper@kingsborough.edu
Today is

SEARCHING FOR INFORMATION


This page provides you with:


LEARN HOW TO SEARCH EFFECTIVELY

To become familiar with effective Internet search techniques, read


CRITERIA FOR EVALUTING WEB RESOURCES
courtesy of Jim Kapoun, reference and instruction librarian at Southwest State University, © 2000

Five criteria for evaluating Web pages
Evaluation of Web documents
How to interpret the basics
1. Accuracy of Web Documents
  • Who wrote the page and can you contact him or her?
  • What is the purpose of the document and why was it produced?
  • Is this person qualified to write this document?
Accuracy
  • Make sure author provides e-mail or a contact address/phone number.
  • Know the distinction between author and Webmaster.
2. Authority of Web Documents
  • Who published the document and is it separate from the "Webmaster?"
  • Check the domain of the document, what institution publishes this document?
  • Does the publisher list his or her qualifications?
Authority
  • What credentials are listed for the author(s)?
  • Where is the document published? Check URL domain.
3. Objectivity of Web Documents
  • What goals/objectives does this page meet?
  • How detailed is the information?
  • What opinions (if any) are expressed by the author?
Objectivity
  • Determine if page is a mask for advertising; if so information might be biased.
  • View any Web page as you would an infommercial on television. Ask yourself why was this written and for whom?
4. Currency of Web Documents
  • When was it produced?
  • When was it updated?
  • How up-to-date are the links (if any)?
Currency
  • How many dead links are on the page?
  • Are the links current or updated regularly?
  • Is the information on the page outdated?
5. Coverage of the Web Documents
  • Are the links (if any) evaluated and do they complement the documents theme?
  • Is it all images or a balance of text and images?
  • Is the information presented cited correctly?
Coverage
  • If page requires special software to view the information, how much are you missing if you don’t have the software?
  • Is it free, or is there a fee, to obtain the information?
  • Is there an option for text only, or frames, or a suggested browser for better viewing?
Putting it all together
  • Accuracy. If your page lists the author and institution that published the page and provides a way of contacting him/her, and . . .
  • Authority. If your page lists the author credentials and its domain is preferred (.edu, .gov, .org, or .net), and . . .
  • Objectivity. If your page provides accurate information with limited advertising and it is objective in presenting the information, and . . .
  • Currency. If your page is current and updated regularly (as stated on the page) and the links (if any) are also up-to-date, and . . .
  • Coverage. If you can view the information properly—not limited to fees, browser technology, or software requirement, then . . .
You may have a higher quality Web page that could be of value to your research!


ROAD MAP TO THE WEB FROM T.H.E. JOURNAL

Follow this link to access web sites and information on a variety of different subject areas


REFERENCE: The Best Source for Facts on the Web--This is a wonderful site that contains links to virtually any topic imaginable


LINKS TO SEARCH ENGINES

The following links allow you to search The CUNY Library System:


Go to Vivisimo.com

for a form of meta-search engine that clusters the results of queries to various search engines and directories. Vivisimo is very useful because the results are grouped based on title, URL, and brief descriptions found on the Web sites. This search engine is best used for getting a general overview of what is available.


Search Yahoo

[ Yahoo! ] options


Search AltaVista

altavista:   
 
Find this:      
  Tip: Use quotes for multi-word phrases.
Find Results on: The Web   News   Discussion Groups   Products 



Search Google

Google

To search for other ESL resources on the Web, type in your request in the search engine below.

Then hit the "Search" button

Be sure to check out the "Daily Page for Students" everyday.

You can find a variety of quizzes, puzzles, and other useful resources

at the "Links for Students" page.

To find other ESL sources on the Web use the search engine below. Click on the links provided or enter a term to describe what you want to find:


TESL/TEFL/TESOL/ESL/EFL/ESOL Links



Browse:
Links for Students
,
Links for Teachers
,
What's New
or
Daily Page for Students of English


MOUSEOVER THE LINKS FOR A DESCRIPTION OF PAGE CONTENT

Course Materials

Online Tools

Learning Resources

Searching for Information

Content-Based Internet Project

Site Map

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Loretta Kasper, Ph.D.
Professor of English
Kingsborough/CUNY
2001 Oriental Boulevard
Brooklyn, NY 11235

Contact:

Phone: 718-368-5849
Fax: 718-368-4786
Email: esl91@yahoo.com

https://kccesl.tripod.com/search.html
© 2000-2004-- Loretta F. Kasper, Ph.D.--All Rights Reserved

Page last modified on March 8, 2004