Validity? Credibility? Safety?

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There are many ways to search for information on the internet. However, these are three questions we must ask ourselves when using information found on the internet.  As educators, we also need to teach our students to ask these questions.  We live in a society today that has the belief that if they found it on the internet, it must be true.  I feel that we must work diligently to educate students how to verify the validity and credibility of information before they use it in their class work or in their lives.  I think we must also teach internet safety to our students, especially if we work with younger students.

Credibility and Validity 

According to the University of Wisconsin Green Bay, there are six ways to verify the credibility of a website.  They are as follows:

• Does it have an author?  The fact than an author is willing to stand behind the work is a good indication of a credible source.
• Is it dated?  A date allows the reader to decide if the information if the information is recent enough for their purposes.
• Does it have sources?  Credible websites will cite the source of presented information.
• What type of domain is it?  Domains such as .com, .org, and .net are can be used by anyone. Colleges and universities are usually .edu and government websites are .gov.
• How it the site designed?  A well designed site can be an indicator of reliable information.
• What is the writing style?  The writing should be grammatically correct with no spelling errors.  (Hartness Library CCV/Vermont Tech, n.d.)

Barbara Felman echoes the criteria above and adds the following:

• Look for an edition number.
• Use your instincts
• Check the sources against other available information.
• Visit the public library as they have ways to verify information.
• Check with a college professor on the topic.(Feldman, 2008)

https://youtu.be/AFEwwG7rq0E

Safety

Kidsmart.org is a valuable tool that teaches internet safety.  It is geared for educators of elementary children. The site is broken down into 2 stages. Stage one is ages 3-7 and Stage two is ages 8-11. It provides videos, lesson plans, and other activities to help teach children about internet safety.

Internet Safety for Teachers

It also have a parents section, that provides parents with information on how to keep their kids safe on various types of mobile devices. This website also provides instructions on how to use parental controls on Apple and Blackberry devices.

Internet Safety for Parents

I also found the following guide that is all inclusive four page guide that helps parents teach their children safe internet searching.

http://www.kidsmart.org.uk/

These are just a few simple tips that can help us verify the validity and credibility of sources we find on the internet. There are also many ideas on how to keep kids safe when searching on the internet.  The internet puts the world at our fingertips but we must know how control and verify the information in order to put the information we obtain to use. 

References

Feldman, B. (2008, July 5). Evaluating Online Information's Validity » Tech Tips » Surfnetkids. Retrieved from http://www.surfnetkids.com/tech/1402/evaluating-online-informations-validity/

Hartness Library CCV/Vermont Tech. (n.d.). Credible Websites? [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFEwwG7rq0E

Kidsmart: Welcome. (2009). Retrieved from http://www.kidsmart.org.uk/

University of Wisconsin Green Bay. (n.d.). How can I tell if a website is credible? Retrieved from https://uknowit.uwgb.edu/page.php?id=30276