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The 5W’s of Website Evaluation
Who?, What?, When?, Where? and Why?
(and how to find them!)Use your keyboard arrow keys to navigate…
The 5W’s of Website Evaluation
Who?Is it clear Who is responsible for this site?
Can you find information about the author’s profession/experience?
Is there contact information for the author/ site creator?
Evaluate the Who?
Is it clear who is responsible for this site?
Ask yourself:
Is there a name of an organization, logo, etc.?
Where should I look?On the Home page, “About Us” page, or “Our Mission” page
________________________If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
Evaluate the Who?
Can you find information about the author’s profession/experience?
Ask yourself: Do I see a school name, degree or organization for this website author?
Where should I look?On the Home page, “About Us” page, or a tab or link named “Staff” or "Experts"
________________________If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
Evaluate the Who?
Is there contact information for the author/ site creator?
Ask yourself:
Can I find a phone number or physical address (not e-mail)?
Where should I look?On the Home page, “Contact us” page, or “About Us” page ________________________
If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
STOP and complete the “Evaluate the Who?”
column on your 5W’s Checklist
The 5W’s of Website Evaluation
What?Does the content match the URL?
Is the purpose or mission of this site explained?
Do the links match the site’s content?
Evaluate the What?
Does the content match the URL?
Ask yourself: What information is found on this web site?
Is this what I expected to see?
Is it appropriate – language and pictures?
________________________If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
Evaluate the What?
Is the purpose or mission of this site explained?
Where should I look?
On the Home page, “About Us” page, or on a tab or link named “Our Mission” or "Vision"
________________________If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
Evaluate the What?
Do the links match the site’s content?
Ask yourself:
Are the links related to websites that have the same subject as the website?
Are the links pointing to advertisers or products related to the same subject as the website?
________________________If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
STOP and complete the “Evaluate the What?”
column on your 5W’s Checklist
The 5W’s of Website Evaluation
When?
Is the creation/revision date for the site current?
Are the links current?
Evaluate the When?
Is the creation/revision date for the site current?
Ask yourself: When was this website created? Has the website been created or updated in the past year?Is there a copyright date or “Last Updated” date?
Where should I look?On the bottom of the Home page, “Contact us” page, or “About Us” page. Use the most recent date in a range.
________________________If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
Evaluate the When?
Are the links current?
Ask yourself: Are there broken links?
How will I know?Click on several links from the site – are they working?
________________________If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
STOP and complete the “Evaluate the When?”
column on your 5W’s Checklist
The 5W’s of Website Evaluation
Where?
Is the source of the information listed?
Are there links to related information?
Evaluate the Where?
Is the source of the information listed?
Ask yourself:
Where does this information come from? Are there any sources listed?
Where should I look?Look for pages labeled “Sources”, “References”, “Press releases”, "Bibliography".
________________________
If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
Evaluate the Where?
Are there links to related information?
Ask yourself: Can I find any contact information or websites listed for related organizations or reading materials?
Where should I look?
On the Home page, “Contact us” page, or “About Us” page ________________________
If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
STOP and complete the “Evaluate the Where?”
column on your 5W’s Checklist
The 5W’s of Website Evaluation
Why?
Is the information based on facts rather than opinions?
Is this site free of advertisements?
Is this page useful for my purpose?
Evaluate the Why?
Is the information based on facts rather than opinions?
How will I know?
FACTS may begin with: “According to …”, or will reference the source of their information.
OPINIONS may begin with: “In my opinion…” or “I believe…”
________________________If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
Evaluate the Why?
Is this site free of advertisements?
Where should I look?
Focus on the top, bottom and sides of the Home page, but also check 2 or 3 other pages, if available.
________________________
If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
Evaluate the Why?
Is this page useful for my purpose?
Ask yourself:
Why should I use this website over another one?
Do I trust this website to provide accurate information for my research topic?
________________________If yes: Mark the “Yes?” column on your checklist for this question.
STOP and complete the “Evaluate the Why?”
column on your 5W’s Checklist
The 5W’s of Website Evaluation
Evaluation:
Is it this website…reliable, unreliable, or
questionable?
Evaluate the Website
Ask yourself:
Does the 5W’s Checklist have all the items checked?
If yes: STOP and mark your checklist reliable. You are finished!
If no: On to the next step…
Evaluate the Website
Ask yourself:Does the 5W’s Checklist have all of the items checked in the Who?, What?, and When? columns and Question 1 in Why?
If yes: STOP and mark your checklist reliable. You are finished!
If no: On to the next step…
Evaluate the Website
Ask yourself:
Does the 5W’s Checklist have Question 1 checked for the Who?, What?, When? and Why? columns?
If yes: STOP and mark your checklist reliable. You are finished!
If no: On to the next step…
Evaluate the Website
Ask yourself:
Does the 5W’s Checklist have Question 1 checked in the Who?, What?, and When? columns but NOT Question 1 in Why?
If yes: STOP and mark your checklist questionable. You are finished!
If no: On to the next step…
Evaluate the Website
Ask yourself:Does the 5W’s Checklist have Question 1 left unchecked in any of the Who?, What? or When? columns, and has one or two other items checked in each of the five categories (Who?, What?, When?, Where?, Why?)?
If yes: STOP and mark your checklist questionable. You are finished!
If no: On to the next step…
Evaluate the Website
Ask yourself:Does the 5W’s Checklist have one or more of the Who?, What?, When? columns with ALL of the items left unchecked in the column?
If yes: STOP and mark your checklist unreliable. You are finished!
Oops…still didn’t mark your sheet as reliable, unreliable or questionable? Go back and check each Evaluation question again!
Evaluate the Website
So, what do I do now?
Is this website…reliable?Use it!
Is this website…questionable?Think about it before you choose it!
Is this website…unreliable?Lose it!
The 5W’s of Website Evaluation
APA Citations:
"5W's Checklist". Kathy Schrock (2009). Retrieved on February 16, 2010, from http://consortiumlibrary.org/aml/researchaids/handouts/5ws.pdf *
*Note: While I have used the concept of the 5W's from Kathy Schrock's website, I have modified and formatted the criteria to fit the needs of my instructional unit.
Image source: Bart Simpson, Google. Retrieved on April 10, 2010, from http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2241/2285260454_aef4bf8d58.jpg
Image source: Stop sign. Retrieved on April 24, 2010, from http://i.zdnet.com/blogs/stop_sign.png
Image source: Go2Bed.com. Retrieved on April 23, 2010, from http://www.funnycorner.net/funny-pictures/4424/funny-cartoons-pictures/mouse-go-2-bed.html
Image source: Arrow keys. Retrieved on May 8, 2010, from http://wpcontent.answers.com/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Arrow_keys.jpg/200px-Arrow_keys.jpg
