Information, Reliability & Bias
Name:
IT Group:
1
In the same way that every house has a unique
address, every web page on the world-wide-web has a
There are BILLIONS of web pages on the world-wide web!
unique address...
The below definitions describe which word? [SELECT FROM THIS LIST: URL, http, www, domain]
The acronym ________ is short for the world wide web. This is part of the Internet.
The acronym ________ is short for Hyper-text transfer protocol - this is how computers can talk to each other.
The acronym ________ is short for Uniform Resource Locator (URL) is another name for a web address.
The word ___________ can be used to describe the web site name.
What do these extensions mean?
.sch
.org
.co
.tv
.com
.biz
.ed
.ac
.gov
.me
Which is most likely to be a charity?
Match the extension to the host country’s flag!
.uk
New Zealand
.fr
Canada
.nz
France
.cn
Spain
.es
China
.ca
United Kingdom
Are all web sites reliable?
How do you know?
http://www.iana.org/domains/root/db/
What is a search engine?
Find the 3 key bullet points on this web site: http://www.howstuffworks.com/search-engine.htm
1.
2.
3.
Find as many URLs (web addresses) for search engines as you can...
www.google.co.uk, www.alravista.com,
2
Searching: comparing search engines
Query the following search engines to search for ‘compulsory recycling’.
ONLY record the URLs, do not visit the sites!
Search Engine/URL
Useful
description?
What can you tell from the URL?
www.google.co.uk
1.
2.
www.ask.co.uk
1.
2.
www.clusty.com
1.
2.
www.kartoo.com
1.
2.
Are the results the same for each search engine? Why do you think this is?
Rate the search engines...
Google.co.uk
Ask.co.uk
Clusty.co.uk
Quickest
Fastest
Most Relevant
Easiest to use
Clearest results
Fun to use
3
Kartoo.com
Redzee.com
Web Quest Challenge
Find out...
What is a group of lions known as?
Which planet is nearest to the sun?
What are the two bones in your forearm called?
How many soldiers were there in a Roman legion?
“Sport of Kings” refers to which sport?
What is the name of England’s tallest (not highest!) waterfall? What distance does it reach?
- Start Choose a subject & fill out the space
A career in
_______________
A film called
A historic person:
_______________
_______________
A country:
_______________
Find 3 web relevant sites
Web site URL
Information the site
How I found it
contains
Search engine & Keywords
1.
2.
3.
4
Web Searches
Name as many search engines as you can:
What you need to know:
yahoo
“Exact phrase”
+ means include
- means exclude
OR means this OR the other
* means ‘wildcard’ or anything.
Fill in the gaps:
one or the other word
recycl (e.g. Recycle,recycling)
must
the exact phrase
must not
The + symbol means that search results ___________ contain this word.
The - symbol means that search results ____________ contain this word.
or
means that search results can contain __________________________________
Quotation marks
The
*
“ means that search results must contain
_____________________
symbol means that search results contain words starting with
______________________________________
Now have a go doing these searches using www.google.co.uk.
How do the search results differ?
+ (ADD), -(NOT) and OR are called BOOLEAN OPERATORS!
5
Put your BOOLEAN OPERATORS (-, +, AND) and “exact phrases” to the test! Write down a
query you could use to search for the following:
What to search for
Search query used
The person who made the speech
referred to as “I have a dream”.
A location map for Heathrow Airport
Ways of travelling from Glasgow to
Belfast
The habitat of the slow worm.
Area information for Milton Keynes,
for a family who would like to move
there.
A camp site in the Lake District near
to Lake Windermere
Acknowledging Sources
When using information from web sites in your work, you should ACKNOWLEDGE your source (where
you got it from. If it’s from the web, do this by including a hyperlink). Copying and pasting text and
images may be ILLEGAL (against copyright law), unless it states that it is “copyright free”.
E.g. I got this image from
NOW YOU TRY!
http://www.ferrari.co.uk:
http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk
This web site is about:
The web site is about Motor sport news,
events and what Ferrari do.
_____________________________________
Accessed: 23rd January 2008
I accessed this web site on:
_____________________________________
Extension Task: There are lots of controversial and debated issues. For example, should euthanasia be
legalised? Have aliens landed on earth? Should we grow and eat genetically-modified food? Should
hunting be allowed? Choose one of these issues, or another of your choice. Find at least ONE web site
that supports the issue, and ONE that refutes the issue. Write: A) The web site address. B) HOW you
found the web site C) How reliable you think the web site is (and WHY!).
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“Ice cream is the best food in the
world.”
ds !
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SCRAMBLED!
UNSCRABLED!
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Opinion
RUL
Reliable
pnioino
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“There are seven da
ys in a week”
Fact
eibraell
anekcegldow
Fiction
oresucs
Unreliable
blulspiea
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“All web sites are reliable”
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True
False
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“By 2012, this school wil
Totally unrealistic
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Plausible
Definite
“The PlayStation 3 is the latest
games console.” Will this always be
true?
Yes
No
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Word Search
fact
opinion
reliable
biased
persuade
mislead
up-to-date
relevant
plausible
out-of-date
“Mr James
EVER!”
is the BEST
ICT teache
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Fact
Opinion
7
How would you know if a web site was reliable or not...?
Web site
Reliable OR
How do you know this?
Unreliable?
zapatopi.net/treeoctopus
http://news.bbc.co.uk
www.petsorfood.com
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Reliable OR
Web site
How do you know this?
Unreliable?
www.arsenal.com
www.youtube.com
Find the weather forecast for the local area by typing in the school’s postcode (NN7
3QG) on this web site: www.bbc.co.uk/weather. What is the forecast for tomorrow?
Word
Definition
Fact
Opinion
Biased
Unbiased
Plagiarism
Acknowledge
Accurate
Reliable
Endorsement
ARE THEY TRYING TO TRICK YOU?
<< Have you seen an advert like this before?
Is it a con? Why do you think these adverts are
on the word-wide-web?? Why do people respond? Do you think the prize is worth claiming?
9
SOME web sites look genuine and trustworthy, but can’t always be totally trusted.
Find examples of unreliable web sites. Include at least TWO of the following.
Try to find one of your own.
http://wikipedia.org
http://www.petsorfood.com
http://www.bigredhair.com/robots/index.html
http://zapatopi.net/afdb/
http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/
http://www.dhmo.org/
http://www.improb.com/airchives/classical/cat/cat.html
http://www.dreamweaverstudios.com/moonbeam/moon.htm
http://www.brookview.karoo.net/Sellafield_Zoo/
http://uncyclopedia.org
Using a word processor (Microsoft Word), write:
The web site address (URL)
A description of the web site
Why you believe it is unreliable
Put your NAME and CLASS in the header (View->headers and footers)
You MAY work in TWOS, but EVERYONE must produce their OWN word document.
If you found a web site you think is unreliable, state how you found it. (search query and search
engine used). PRINT YOUR WORK.
•
Fact or opinion?
•
Is it backed up elsewhere?
•
Linked to other web sites?
•
Backed up by other sources?
•
Clues in the URL (official looking?)
•
Reputable author?
•
Endorsed by others?
•
Generally known fact?
•
Lots of adverts?
•
Updated recently?
•
Sources of information acknowledged?
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USE YOUR
RELIABILITY
TOOLBOX TO
HELP!
Fill in the gaps
CREATOR
COPYRIGHT
NEVER
CHECKER
HISTORY
DOWNLOAD
TRUSTED
VIRUS
VIRUSES
FAVOURITES
•
All files, images, pictures and videos belong to the _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ .
•
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _: the right to control who can make a copy of work
•
If you want to _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ anything from the Internet, you need the
permission of the copyright holder.
•
If the file has a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _, you will get it
•
Only download from _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ sources
•
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ download illegal games or software, they often contain nasty
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _.
•
Use a virus _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ to scan files.
•
Add web addresses to your _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ if you want to find them again.
•
Use your _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ to find recently visited web sites.
Have you, or has anyone you know ever had a problem with a virus?
What problems did it cause?
How To...Create hyperlinks in a
How To...Download pictures from a
word document OR PowerPoint personation:
web browser:
Select the word or picture,. Right mouse
Right mouse click image->Copy. OR
click->Hyperlink
Right mouse click on image->Save target As…
11
Podcast
In small groups (2-5), produce a podcast (radio) script that advises others what to look out for when
trying to work out if a web site is reliable or not..
Choose at least THREE of the reliability ‘tools’ and discuss how they could be ‘used’ E.g.
“Count the number of adverts. It could be that if a web site has a
lot of adverts, the owner is only interested in your cash and not
the content”
MAKE USE of the following phrases:
Sequencing
Next…
Following this…
Afterwards,
Another method is…
Then… To begin with…
Firstly...
Illustration
For example…
as… for instance…
You could do this by…
To take the case of… A case in point…
Contrast and Balance
but…
whereas… However… On the other hand…
In contrast… On the contrary…
THOSE PRODUCING THE BEST SCRIPT WILL GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO RECORD THEIR
OWN PODCAST RADIO SHOW!!
WHAT MAKES A GOOD PODCAST?
WEB SITE RELIABILITY CHECKLIST
1) Valid
a) Is the author well known or has reliable
credentials?
b) Do other web sites back it up?
C) Does the web address look unusual?
4) Purpose
a) Is this site trying to persuade you? Educate you?
Market a product? For
instance, a .com site may try sell you something
whereas an .edu site is usually for education.
b) Does the information look bias, or look like it
might promote inequality?
2) Up-To-Date
a) Is it up-to-date? Updated regularly?.
5) Accurate
a) Is information precise, authoritative, and current?
b) Does the author back-up evidence and say where
they found it?
3) Content
a) Does it look plausible?
b) Is the web site linked to other relevant web sites?
Backed up by facts and books?
c) Does it look professional or homemade?
d) Does it advertise something rather than tell you
something useful?
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TASK: Presentation
Using PowerPoint, create a presentation about a ‘two-sided’ issue...
CHOOSE ONE: fox hunting, death penalty, euthanasia, have aliens landed on earth, smoking in public
places, abortion, size zero models, single-sex marriages, genetically modified food, recycling compulsory,
single sex schooling, keep animals in zoos
> It has to be FAIR (non-bias - balanced - looking at both sides of the argument ‘for’ and ‘against’).
> Plan your work first.
> Use a consistent presentation style. (all slides
should look similar)
> Include WHERE you found the
information (CHECK IT’S
RELIABLE!)
> Add your name to the MASTER
SLIDE (View->Master->Slide
master)
> Print it out in ‘handout’ format. (File->Print->Print What: Handouts)
> Record & respond to feedback
Software I’ll use
> Evaluate your work
Where to find the
How to make sure my
information
work is ‘balanced’
Plan
(considers 2 sides of an
argument)
How I’ll make sure my
How I’ll record the
information is accurate
information I find
Rate your work! 1 = poor, 5 = excellent
1
2
3
4
At least 4 slides
In order
Balanced - considers 2 sides of argument
Has a conclusion (not your opinion)
Suitable consistent theme (fonts, colours)
Good use of bullet points
Not too much or too little information
Acknowledges all sources of information
No spelling mistakes
NEARLY THERE... Reflection: Using ‘Word’ (or on paper)...answer in half a page:
1. What did you find easy?
2. What did you find difficult or frustrating?
3. What did you enjoy about doing this project?
4. What do you learn?
5. If you were to do this again, what would you do differently?
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5
Assessment Criteria
Unit Objectives
Understand web address components
Use & compare search engines
Search efficiently for information
Assess information for reliability
Select appropriate information
Create a podcast or presentation
Discuss the impact of unreliable/fraudulent web sites on society
Level 3
Used a search engine to
find information using
given keywords
Level 4
Level 5
Decided upon suitable
keywords to use when
conducting a search
Created and recorded a
podcast or web site page
as well as a word
document, explaining to
others how to evaluate
web sites for information
reliability.
Used ICT to record ideas 2 Questioned plausibility/ Reflected critically on
about information
reliability and spotted
information and made
reliability
that poor-quality
improvements to
information leads to
searches by using
unreliable results.
boolean operators.
Spotted mistakes and
unreliable information.
Shared ideas about
Combined text &
Used a range of software
information reliability with graphics in a
tools & resources
others
presentation. Or
combined sound clips a
in podcast
Refined work Accuracy: minimal
responded to feedback, spelling mistakes
corrected mistakes,
improved presentation.
Awareness of audience
Presentation or podcast
plan
Level 6
Level 7
Setting hypothesis,
validity - used complex
search criteria to locate
specific information.
Compare the types and
advantages &
disadvantages of
different search engines
Compare information
from a wide range of
sources.
Taken part in an informed
discussion about the
impact of
unreliable/fraudulent web
sites on society
Discussed the impact of
unreliable or fraudulent
web sites on society
Fit for audience and
purpose - no copying &
pasting from web web,
consistent presentation
theme
Work fully evaluated responded to feedback
Unit Level:
Teacher’s comments:
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