As teachers, it is quite common to search for materials on the net, but... Do we consider the
fact that some sources may not be trustworthy? Here are some criteria to be
taken into account when selecting a website:
- PURPOSE: a page may have different objectives that are reflected in the domain name. Among them, you can find educational, commercial, institutional, personal purposes. This intention has to be easily identifed as the content has to match the purpose.
- AUTHORITY AND RESPONSIBILITY: who is in charge of the page is another important aspect as it shows credibility and enhances confidence from the readers. It is pretty valuable to have a way to contact authors in case you need it; they may provide you an e-mail account, a Facebook account, an address or a telephone number, among others. In many cases, the authors have to provide evidence that supports their knowledge (e.g. a degree or certificate) for you to rely on them.
- APPROPRIATENESS AND RELEVANCE: bear in mind that, as teachers, it is really important to adapt the content of the webpage to the singularity of each group; so pay attention to the level, the organization, and the materials in general that the page provides.
- CURRENCY: a reliable page has to be regularly updated and does not have to show dead links. Also, a page that is constantly innovating maintains the readers’ interest on it.
- CLARITY: the content of the webpage has to be organized, neat, legible and easy reading. It may not be trustful if it is full of colours, advertisements, and graphics.
We have analysed
BBC and TOOLS FOR EDUCATORS pages under these criteria, and we came to the conclusion
that, despite having some drawbacks, both pages provide teachers with useful
materials and tools to be used in the classroom. Also, the two of them offer
free materials, and activities for different levels of proficiency.
As a
conclusion, and in relation to our previous post -
in which we said that teachers and schools have to keep pace with new
generations -, we thought that a good way of taking technology to the classroom is
by employing new and interesting materials, and also stuff with which students
can work online.
