Rubric for Evaluating Web Sites

People evaluate web sites differently, depending upon their reasons for using them. For example, a web designer would look at the graphics, the page design, the use of new technology, etc. A programmer looking for an answer to a question will evaluate a site based on whether it has the information he happens to be looking for. A child looking for an interactive, shoot'em up game to play over the Internet will be evaluating sites with a different set of criteria. As educators, we have a different set of standards that a web site must meet to be educationally valid for use within the classroom.

Below you will find the rubric that I use to evaluate web sites.

1. Does it help get the information I need for my health class?	One of the primary goals for any educator is to help his/her students reach or surpass the standards or objectives. This should be of primary importance when deciding to use web resources or not.
2. Does it allow two-way interaction?	Static displays are pretty, but so are colorful books. Computers and the Internet lend themselves to two-way communication. Hands-on activities and manipulatives have been proven to be a great way to teach a wide variety of concepts. Watch for web sites that allow the students to interact in some way. It could be drawing, writing, clicking, or chatting. Whatever it is, see if the web site offers something for students to actually DO.
3. Is it visually appealing for students?	Textbooks have shown us that the media does not have to be dull and boring to be effective. Students will enjoy themselves and be more willing to put forth additional effort if the activities and pages seem appealing.
4. Is it easy to navigate?	Some sites have a lot of good information, but they need to be easy to navigate or you risk wasting too much time getting around in a site. Look for consistent navigation tools. If approrpriate, can you search the site?
5. Is it fast to load?	Let's be honest here; you cannot wait for two minutes to get each page to load. The students will find other things to occupy their time with. If your connection is a problem, there are ways around this. See the comment below.
6. Are there ways for students to publish their work? Will it lend itself to some outcome?	Computers lend themselves to publishing. Students can publish or print out materials that have been word processed or drawn. They can publish them to school Intranets or with new easy-to-use databases, publish them to the web. Just having students come into the lab and "surf" or browse to see what they can find is not a good idea. Try to construct lessons and pick sites that lend themselves to some form of outcome.
7. Is the information reliable and consistent?	It should be possible to verify facts within a good web site. Information should usually be consistent with what is already known on the topic. If the information consists of ground-breaking new material, it should be well documented.
8. Could this information be found more easily in some other medium?	Web resources are only one of many ways to find information. The Internet is useful only if it is the best way to obtain your information.