Critical Evaluation of Information

One of the most important information literacy skills for students is learning how to critically evaluate information found on the Web. This page includes forms for teaching the process, articles for learning about the aspect of literacy, and a list of bogus sites to use to showcase that all things on the Web are not real.

If you find a link that is not working, please let me know the title and I will fix it! Thank you!
BOOKS ON THE TOPIC
Critical Evaluation Surveys
PDF format that can be printed and saved
  1. Critical Evaluation Survey : Elementary School Level
  2. Critical Evaluation Survey : Middle School Level
  3. Critical Evaluation Survey : Secondary School Level
  4. Critical Evaluation Survey : Teacher Sites
  5. Critical Evaluation Survey : Virtual Tours
  6. Critical Evaluation Survey: iPod/iPad Content App
  7. Critical Evaluation Survey: iPod/iPad Creation App
  8. Critical Evaluation Survey: Android Content App
  9. Critical Evaluation Survey: Android Creation App
  10. Critical Evaluation Survey: Online Creation Tool 
  11. Critical Evaluation Survey : Blogs (Spanish)
  12. Critical Evaluation Survey : Podcasts
  13. Critical Evaluation Survey : Online Videos
  14. Critical Evaluation Survey: Digital Stories


Critical Evaluation Information and Lesson Plans
  1. 21CIF Lesson Plan and Action Research Repository
    ...links to lesson plans dealing with information fluency
  2. All about explorers ​...fictional biographies of explorers
  3. But I found it on the Internet! (archived here)
    ...an article about the need to teach critical evaluation skills
  4. Checklist for Evaluating Web Resources
    ...a one-page, nicely presented checklist of criteria
  5. Common Sense Media: K-12 Scope and Sequence
  6. Critically Analyzing Information Sources
    ...a well-done overview of the critical analysis of sites
  7. Evaluating Internet Sources and Sites
    ...a common-sense guide to critical evaluation of online info
  8. Evaluating Internet-Based Info: A Goals-Based Approach...an interesting essay and evaluation form by David Warlick from 1998
  9. Evaluating Web Content: Social Networking Sites
    ...an quick overview of the things to look for to determine credibility (for all types of online sites)
  10. Evaluating Web Resources
    ...a great site which looks at the different types of pages
  11. Five Criteria for Evaluating Web Pages
    ...a well-done handout with questions for students to consider
  12. IMSE Science Web Site Evaluation
    ...questions for the specialized evaluation of science sites    ​
  13. Information Skills Rating Scale
    ...a sample rubric that may be used to assess students' research skills
  14. Purdue OWL: Preventing Plagiarism Lessons 
  15. Steps to Web Evaluation posters: A B C D E F G
  16. Teaching Zack to Think
    ...a seminal article by Alan November
  17. Ten C's for Evaluating Internet Resources
    ...a narrative evaluation sheet with useful information
  18. Thinkfinity "plagiarism" keyword search
  19. Thinking Critically about Web 2.0 and Beyond
    ...items to consider for Web 2.0 tools
  20. Thinking Critically about World Wide Web Resources
    ...a well-done critical evaluation essay
  21. 2Learn 'Net Know-How: Evaluation Tools
    ...interactive tools for grades K-3 & 4-6
  22. UC Berkeley: Critical Evaluation Worksheet
    ...another quality evaluation form to use with students
  23. UC Berkeley: Evaluating Web Pages- Why it is Important
    ...an evaluation activity including a lesson, slideshow, and more
  24. Web Site Investigator
    ...a 21st century skills site about "information forensics"
  25. Multnomah County Public Library Homework Center poster​
Information by Kathy Schrock
  1. The 5 W's of Web Site Evaluation
    ...a summary handout for students and an example handout
  2. The ABC's of Web Site Evaluation (1999)
  3. The ABC's of Web Site Evaluation (2002)
  4. Evaluating the Web: Questions to Ask Yourself
  5. Internet Curriculum : Critical Evaluation Lesson Plan
  6. Separating the Wheat from the Chaff
  7. Teacher Web Evaluation Rating Sheet
the_five_w_bookmark.pdf
File Size: 81 kb
File Type: pdf
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schrock_5ws.pdf
File Size: 51 kb
File Type: pdf
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5ws-french.pdf
File Size: 118 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File
Sites to Use for Demonstrating Critical Evaluation
  1. All About Explorers: Christopher Columbus
  2. Aluminum Foil Deflector Beanies
  3. Ban Dihydrogen Monoxide
  4. Boilerplate: Mechanical Marvel of the 19th Century
  5. Burmese Mountain Dog
  6. Burmese Mountain Dog 2
  7. Buy an Ancestor Online
  8. California's Velcro Crop Under Challenge
  9. Case Analysis of a Historic Killer Tornado
  10. Dihydrogen Monoxide Research Division
  11. Feline Reactions to Bearded Men
  12. Google Job Opportunities
  13. Google Technology
  14. Jacopo di Poggibonsi
  15. Mankato (MN) Home Page
  16. MoonBeam Enterprises and Lunar Travel Agency
  17. History of the Fisher-Price Airplane
  18. OvaPrima Foundation
  19. Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus
  20. Target Field Collapses
  21. Taxonomy of Barney
  22. Visit Exciting Fredericton

​Fake news fact-checking sites
  1. AllSides
  2. Fact Check
  3. Snopes
  4. Google Reverse Image Search
  5. Media Bias / Fact Check
  6. Hoax-Slayer
  7. Rate My Source
  8. Glenn Wiebe Wakelet on fake news

Fake news tips and lesson plans​
  1. Fake News Self-Assessment (student lesson)
  2. The honest truth about fake news (lesson plan)​
  3. LMU Hannon Library: ​Tips for evaluating fake news
  4. ​Cornell University Library: How to spot fake news
  5. 6 strategies students can use to combat fake news
Copyright: Kathy Schrock. All rights reserved.
Republishing of these lists of links or this author's original content without express and written permission from this site's author is not allowed. 

Links to this page  may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kathy Schrock and Kathy Schrock's Guide to Everything with appropriate and specific direction (via the URL) to the original compilation of information on this page.

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Page created: 05/01/2012
Last updated: 01/18/2021
Kathy Schrock (kathy@kathyschrock.net)
URL of this page:
http://schrockguide.net/critical-evaluation.html