Evaluating+Online+Materials

Evaluating Online Materials
Prior to developing our own online curriculum it is extremely beneficial to have a look at what is already out there. This can serve two purposes: There are a number of sites which enable us to view examples of online materials - particularly Hotlists and WebQuests. Care needs to be taken though to evaluate the materials we find. Key questions to consider are: //**Criteria in which to assess online teaching and learning activities.**//
 * 1) Find internet sites which other educators reccommend and
 * 2) Potentially find an activity that you can use without creating your own.
 * Does it meet the needs of my students in relation to literacy skills?
 * Does it take into account the knowledge, understanding and prior experience of the students in my class?
 * Does the activity link into my curriculum program?

The following are some guidelines which could be considered when evaluating online activities. In addition the site of [|BestWebQuests] provides a detailed criteria used when evaluating WebQuests for this site.

Is the web used to it's full potential? Have a range of web sites been accessed? eg text, pictures, webmovies, sound. Does the link take the student directly to the page they need to go to or are they still required to navigate through different levels? ||
 * Introduction || Does the introduction provide an element of interest to engage the students to explore further? ||
 * //Use of the Web// ||
 * //Question/Task// ||

Are the question or tasks appropriate to the age level? Do the question/tasks link in with the aim of the different formats? click [|here]for format overview What level are the questions at? eg knowledge/comprehension or higher level thinking such as evaluation/analysis. If the activity is a WebQuest does the question provide for "open ended exploration"? ||
 * //Scaffolding// ||

If the activity is a Hotlist are the sites categorised appropriately? Is sufficient explanation provided to guide students so they can complete the task successfully? Are links made to resources such as online dictionaries, or word documents to support the processing of information (eg. data grids, tables)? || //Conclusion// || Does the conclusion link back to the introduction? ||