LMC - Web Searching

 
District LMCs > HS LMC > Research Room > Web Search

 

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  • Internet Privilege
  • Beware: Web Surfing
  • RADCAB / 5 W's
  • Links & More

 

Power of the Internet
How do you use it wisely for academic and personal research?

The access to internet at school is a privilege. Please do not abuse it! Refresh yourself on the policy you signedPDF icon.

Keep these in mind when using the internet:

1) Do NOT break the law or school policy.

2) Do NOT invade others' privacy.

3) Do NOT give out personal information.

4) We know that bad sites can be accessed accidently; inform your teacher or the LMC staff if it happens to you to avoid violation consequences.

5) Do NOT download or install software or change the look of your school account. Keep only acedemic items on this account.

6) Be as smart, skeptical, and cautious on the web as you would be in a big city.

7) Don't do anything you wouldn't do if a teacher/parent were watching. We just might be.

 

You need to be aware of the following:

Anyone can publish a webpage. You have likely created your own with facebook or myspace.

Do NOT believe everything you view on the internet. When in doubt, ask questions and verify information!

 

Searching Tips for Search Engines:

Use the Advanced Tag of any search engine for better results!

Use the limiters and syntaxes correctly to help you find information more quickly and accurately.

Advanced searches, group searches, drop down menus,
use of ( ) or " " to group terms, e.g., "prairie lake" or (prairie lake),
use of the plus sign, +, to indicate required term,
use of the minus sign, -, to indicate "not": e.g., +apple-computer,
Truncation options (wildcards) * or ?

Know your search engine - Check the help tag and learn how the search engine you prefer works and use it to your advantage.

Scan your “hit list”, or result list, for the most relevant page prior to clicking the link to the webpage.

Check the webpage’s authenticity by answering these basic questions: Who created this page (author, company, department), when was it created (copyright or updated), what is the title and the name of the home page for the site, what is the complete URL, what is today’s date? If you can answer all these questions, you can cite the information in a paper or presentation, but evaluate the information to decide if you really want to use it.

Make sure to use sources that are accurate and useful for your presentation. If the author or information sound fishy, don’t use it.

Don't be afraid to try a different search engine!

Copy important information to a word document to save for further reference. Remember to record theinformation for your Work Cited page: Author, title, URL, etc.

 

Domain Name:  (Don't always trust the web site by the code.)
.com  - commercial                                         .net - network
.gov - governmental                                        .edu - educational
.org - non profit organization

Geocities.com provides free web page publishing over the Internet .  If you see geocities.com, be aware that it is from the public domain (mainstream).

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RADCAB & 5 W's of Evaluation

RADCAB:
As you research, remember to watch for:

Relevancy

Is the information presented relevant to my topic? Does it answer the questions I need answered?

Appropriateness

Is the information presented suite my age and vocabulary level? Do I understand the information presented? Again, does it answer the questions I need answered?

Detail

Is there enough information? Does it cover the topic to my needs?

Currency

Is the publiished/posted ot updated date current?

Authority

Who is the author? What are his/her qualifications?

Bias

Why was it published on the web? Was it written to inform, persuade, or sell?

 

Be Aware of the 5 W's of Website Evaluation: (see also 10 C's at UWEC)

Who wrote the pages and are they experts in the field?

What does the author say is the purpose of the site?

Where does the information come from?

When was the site created, updated, last worked on?

Why is the information useful?

If you cannot answer these questions, do not use the website.

Links to More Information

Evaluating Web Pages: Tehniques to Apply and Questions to Ask by Berkeley University

How Web Pages Work at How Stuff Works

A Guide to the WWW at IC YOU See

 

Short List of Do's & Don'ts for Researching on the WWW

DO'S:

Do have a specific topic in mind as you search for information. You should also have alternate topics for possible use to find info. If you can't find any information on your topic, don't be afraid to try a different search engine.

Do write down on a paper source sites which contain information important to you. Addresses on the Internet are too complex to remember.
Bookmark sites for future reference.

Do copy important information to a document to save for further reference. Once you have determined exactly what you'll be using, then make a paper copy. (Do this only if it is necessary.)


DON'T:

Don't surf aimlessly in the hopes that you might strike paydirt. Use a search strategy.

Don't visit chat rooms; they are strictly forbidden at Cameron Jr/Sr High School.

Don't s save graphics if they aren't necessary. Graphics take up a tremendous amount of memory space.

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We make every effort to provide high quality web sites with information and links that facilitate
achieving our educational mission.  Because of the unpredictable nature of the Internet, we cannot
be responsible for the content of pages not directly created and supported by our school or
district nor should links to other sites be inferred as an endorsement of those sites.

Please report any broken links or page problems to .

 

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