Beginning Your Research
There are many factors to consider before you begin your research online or in books. You will want to make sure that the topic you are researching is one that interests you. You will also want to make sure there is enough information on your chosen topic before you spend too much time gathering information.
Before you begin your search, you must ask yourself a very important question; do all internet sites provide valid, trustworthy information? The answer to that question is no. The internet is an expanding tool containing websites created for different purposes. Because not every website provides reliable information, you must learn to evaluate websites as you conduct your research.
Using the Search Engine
As you begin your research, you have a variety of search engines to choose from. You may choose any search engine you wish; however, how you search is important. You can narrow down your search using key words. For example, if you want to be an electrician and you enter just the word electrician into a search engine, you will probably get an unending list of electricians who can wire your house, but that will not really help you find information about what a career is like for an electrician. Instead, you will want to search “electrician job growth” or “electrician salaries” to narrow your search and help you get better results. Putting quotation marks around the words will also help ensure those words are linked together in any sites you find.
Some search engines have the option of an advanced search. If the search engine you are using has the advanced search option, this can help you find the career research very quickly and easily. Just follow the directions on the screen to complete an advanced search.
Evaluating a Website
How do you evaluate a website? When you search for information online, there are some main issues you will want to remember. In this interactivity, click each of the numbers or use the previous and next buttons to view the five different criteria when you are evaluating a website's validity.
View a printable version of this interactivity.
Why Do You Need to Evaluate Internet Sources?
- Any person or group can create a website and publish any information. Be suspicious. There are no rules when it comes to who can or cannot publish information on the Internet, nor are there rules governing what can be posted. Be careful, and watch for inaccurate or unreliable information.
- Every website has an agenda, or a reason, for posting or publishing information. Make sure you understand the purpose of the website and information. For instance, is the main purpose of this website to sell you something or persuade you to do something?
- The Internet is an ever-expanding tool. Receiving hundreds or even thousands of results from a keyword search can be overwhelming, and many of those “hits” may not be relevant to the original search. It is important to carefully screen, or check, every website to make sure the information is useful and valid.
Beginning Your Research Review
In this topic, you have learned how to propely begin your research. Test your knowledge in this non-graded interactivity. In this interactivity, read each statement and decide whether it is true or false. To check your answer click SUBMIT. Click the player button to get started.