Evaluating Websites Critically

I will effectively search for information by evaluating websites critically. I will first evaluate to make sure the source is a credible and trusted source that publishes articles and websites from scholarly sources. I will also search for credible information by taking into account the sites url, whether the site is a .com, .gov, .edu, or .org and examine whether the information is credible. For example, a .org can be from an organization that has extremist views such as extremist religious groups or hate group organizations that may have .org websites. Although .edu tends to be the most credible source in my opinion, as a researcher you must also evaluate who is sponsoring the research being published. For example, if it is a pharmaceutical study proving the effectiveness of a certain drug, as a researcher I want to evaluate and make sure the study wasn't sponsored by a pharmaceutical company or organization that is supported by a pharmaceutical company. This will ensure the study is unbiased and not skewed to the satisfaction of the sponsors. Some tips to evaluate the sources credibility are to:

• Check the dates of the publication to make sure information is up to date
• Check the websites url to examine the source of the information
• Examine the content of the site 
• Examine the organizations views or the sponsors of an educational study

Overall, I will try to effectively search for information through evaluating the trustworthiness and credibility of the sources and examining the content and information of the site to make sure I am using relevant and credible information in my research.