selectevaluate

=Selecting & Evaluating Instructional Materials=

//A few years ago, the term ‘instructional materials’ usually meant software – a box with a user’s manual and a floppy disk (and then eventually a CD.) Now, many instructional materials are web-based. I include both types in this list. SWQ//

Selecting Instructional Resources Evaluating Resources in General Evaluating Online Resources and Information Reviews of Instructional Materials


 * SELECTING INSTRUCTIONAL RESOURCES**

Seven Steps to Responsible Software Selection http://www.netc.org/software/eric_software.html This article is from Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory (NWREL) Northwest Educational Technology Consortium

Software Evaluation by Northwest Educational Technology Consortium (NWREL) http://www.netc.org/software/index.html This site gives information on software selection (see immediately below) and a list of links to other sites that contain software reviews.

Software Selection http://www.netc.org/software/software_selection.html

Seven Steps to Responsible Software Selection http://www.netc.org/software/eric_software.html


 * EVALUATING RESOURCES IN GENERAL**

Kathy Schrock’s Guide for Educators - Teacher Helpers: Critical Evaluation Information http://school.discovery.com/schrockguide/eval.html This page begins with evaluation tools for children, which may come in handy if you are a parent or educator, but don’t stop there. Kathy Schrock has an extensive list of links to information about this topic. She includes an area at the bottom called, “Sites to Use for Demonstrating Critical Evaluation.”

Criteria for Evaluating Information Resources http://www.usc.edu/isd/doc/library/index-by-number/ps-105.html This page is from the University of Southern California.

Critical Evaluation of Resources [University California, Berkeley] http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Evaluation.html


 * EVALUATING ONLINE RESOURCES AND INFORMATION**

Evaluating Web Sites for Educational Uses: Bibliography and Checklist http://www.unc.edu/cit/guides/irg-49.html This bibliography, from the University of North Carolina, is very good. Scroll to the bottom of the page for the ‘Checklist of Questions for Evaluating Web Sites’.

Librarian’s Internet Index http://lii.org/

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly or Why It's a Good Idea to Evaluate Web Sources http://lib.nmsu.edu/instruction/eval.html

Evaluating Quality on the Net by Hope N. Tillman http://www.hopetillman.com/findqual.html

Internet Guides and Search Tools [Librarians' Index to the Internet] http://lii.org/search/file/netsearch

Evaluating Web Resources http://www2.widener.edu/Wolfgram-Memorial-Library/webevaluation/webeval.htm

Evaluating Information Found on the Internet [Johns Hopkins University] http://www.library.jhu.edu/researchhelp/general/evaluating/

Checklist for Evaluating Web Pages http://www.sc.edu/library/lggeneral/evalweb.pdf

Site Critique http://www.sitecritique.net/ “SiteCritique.net is the first site on the web devoted to better development and design through peer collaboration.” The basic level (community) is free and allows you to submit your site for critique and critique other sites.

Evaluating Online Resources http://www.educause.edu/jobpost/jobposting.asp?ID=8150

Evaluating Web Pages: Techniques to Apply & Questions to Ask http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Evaluate.html This is a great resource from the University of California Berkeley.

Evaluating Information Found on the Internet http://www.library.jhu.edu/researchhelp/general/evaluating/index.html This is very thorough. It’s from Johns Hopkins University.

Criteria for Evaluating Information Resources http://www.usc.edu/isd/doc/library/index-by-number/ps-105.html “Before beginning to use any new information resource, whether print, online, or Web-based, take a few moments to examine it and ask yourself the following questions. You will make better use of information resources if you do so.” The list that follows, from Information Services Division at the University of Southern California, includes a series of questions to assist you when evaluating resources. Scroll down and you will find a very good list of links to other Guides for Evaluating Internet Resources.

Bare Bones Lesson 5: Evaluating Web Pages http://www.sc.edu/beaufort/library/pages/bones/lesson5.shtml This is from the University of South Carolina Beaufort Library. It is one of the twenty lessons in the Bare Bones Tutorial http://www.sc.edu/beaufort/library/pages/bones/bones.shtml which is a “basic tutorial on searching the web.”

Quick Quiz http://www.quick.org.uk/menu.htm “Here are eight ways of checking information on web sites.”

WWW CyberGuides – Web Evaluation http://www.cyberbee.com/guides.html This includes two evaluation forms: Ratings for Content Evaluation and Ratings for Web Site Design.

Evaluating Online Resources http://www.rio.maricopa.edu/services/student/support/library/tutorials/eval_online_res.shtml This page is from Rio Salado College Online’s Library and Information Center in the area for English as a Second Language. It has links to good information (that aren’t necessarily related to ESL.)

Evaluating Web Sites > Overview – Key Ideas http://gateway.lib.ohio-state.edu/tutor/les1/index.html

Checklist for Evaluating Web Pages http://www.sc.edu/library/lggeneral/evalweb.pdf

Locating and Evaluating Online Information http://www.midgefrazel.net/search.html This is a Professional Development Workshop for Educators by Midge Frazel.

Reliable Sources [Wikipedia] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Reliable_sources


 * REVIEWS OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS**

Blu Web’N http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/bluewebn “Blue Web'n is an online library of 1200+ outstanding Internet sites categorized by subject, grade level, and format (lessons, activities, projects, resources, references, & tools).“

Super Kids Educational Software Review [|www.superkids.com] SuperKids, which does not accept advertising, has been around for quite a while. It is one of the few sites in this category that has not begun to offer the information by subscription.

Way Cool Software Reviews Project [|http://www.ucc.uconn.edu/~wwwpcse/wcool.html] From the Assistive Technology Training Center at the University of Connecticut, this simple site includes many software reviews for all learners, not just those with special needs. Software Reviews [|http://www.ucc.uconn.edu/~wwwpcse/wcool2.html] Evaluation Form [|http://www.ucc.uconn.edu/~wwwpcse/wcform.html]

Way Cool Software Reviews Project [|http://www.ucc.uconn.edu/~wwwpcse/wcool.html] From the Assistive Technology Training Center at the University of Connecticut, this simple site includes many software reviews for all learners, not just those with special needs. It does not appear to have been updated in a while. There is n evaluation form, though, that may be useful (The direct link is [|http://www.ucc.uconn.edu/~wwwpcse/wcform.html] ) This site does not appear to have been updated in a while. There is n evaluation form, though, that may be useful (The direct link is [|http://www.ucc.uconn.edu/~wwwpcse/wcform.html] )

Evalutech [|http://www.evalutech.sreb.org] Evaluations on this site are offered by the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB), which uses a group of trained reviewers to evaluate a variety of instructional materials. You can also see the evaluation criteria that is used and attempts to include some correlation to curriculum standards.

Super Kids Educational Software Review [|www.superkids.com] SuperKids, which does not accept advertising, has been around for quite a while. It is one of the few sites in this category that has not begun to offer the information by subscription.

Product Reviews http://www.techlearning.com/resources/product_guide.jhtml This resource, which is part of Technology & Learning magazine’s web site, includes a searchable database of instructional products.