Web Search Essentials

Search Engine

Search engines are specialized websites that can help you find what you're looking for.

popular ones— Google, Yahoo!, and Bing

Different search engines can yield different search results. 

Google is the most popular search engine because it's the most effective at finding what you're looking for. On average, it produces more relevant results than Yahoo! or Bing, and it's better at organizing and filtering them.

Keywords

Keywords are words or phrases that describe content.

search engines require you to enter keywords to begin the search process

But to get precise search results you must use advanced techniques to enter those keywords

Boolean Operators

Evaluating a website Search engines like Google can

find anything

Search for keywords instead of questions

You won’t always find reliable info, just because its online doesn’t mean its true

Know the difference between fact and opinion

Don’t copy and paste someone else’s work

State your findings in your own words

Activity – Evaluating A Website

In this activity, students will use the Internet to evaluate a pair of Web sites. One site is a spoof and the other is valid.

Form teams of two to four students each.

Print the worksheets on the following pages. Give each team a worksheet. Each worksheet lists a pair of Web sites about one topic. Instruct students to visit the two listed Web sites and analyze them.

Note: The first site of each pair is the spoof site. Some seem very convincing.

Teams should visit their two assigned Web sites and decide (based on their reading) which site is real and which is a spoof.

Students should evaluate information on both sites for reliability and validity. Each team should write a summary of their findings in a word-processing document.

Students should present their analyses to the class.

WRAP-UP: After each team presents its findings to the class, point out that none of these Web sites intends to exploit or defraud the reader. These sites serve the purpose of showing students that they cannot believe everything they see or read online. By honing critical thinking skills, students will become more aware of sites that are fraudulent or heavily biased. It is important to know how to evaluate a Web site for accuracy.