1. What were your Search term(s)? What Search Tools did you use?

I searched classroom blogging.

I used: Directories Best of the Web
Search Engines Google
MetaSearch Engine Monster Crawler
Kids Search Tools Kids Click
Teacher Search Tools - MERLOT

2. How many hits did you get from each search tool?

Best of the Web 75 hits

Google 1, 340,000 hits
Monster Crawler - Number of hits not given
Kids Click 4 hits 4 different software products were given
MERLOT 6 Hits

3. List the top five sites from each search tool.

Best of the web:

o
o
o
o
o

http://blogs.scholastic.com/classroom_solutions/
http://www.classroomdiscipline101.com/classroom-management/
http://classblogmeister.com/blog.php?blogger_id=1337
http://specialclassroom.blogspot.com/
http://www.theorganizedclassroomblog.com

Google:
o
o
o
o
o

kidblog.org/
www.theedublogger.com/check-out-these-class-blogs/
www.lsa.umich.edu/UMICH/.../UsingBlogsintheClassroom.pdf
www.classchatter.com/
www.edutopia.org/blog/blogging-in-21st-century-classroom-michelle- lampinen

o
o
o
o
o

www.classroomblogging.com
www.glencoe.com/ingtoday/educationupclose.phtml/47
classroomblogging.wordpress.com/
Kidblog.org
www.classpress.com

o
o
o
o

Disney Pixar Learning 1st Grade

Madeline Magnificent Puppet Show
Jumpstart Kindergarten
Jumpstart Preschool

Monster Crawler:

Kids Click:

Merlot:
o
o

http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=875469&hitlist=keywords
%3Dclassroom%2Bblogging&fromUnified=true
http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=754769&hitlist=keywords
%3Dclassroom%2Bblogging&fromUnified=true

o
o
o

http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=754769&hitlist=keywords
%3Dclassroom%2Bblogging&fromUnified=true
http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=410907&hitlist=keywords
%3Dclassroom%2Bblogging&fromUnified=true
http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=739705&hitlist=keywords
%3Dclassroom%2Bblogging&fromUnified=true

4. Are they the same sites?

They are not the same sites. In fact, only one site appears using more than one search tool and that is
kidblog.org. Many sites seem similar, but they are not the same.
5. Are they in the same order?
The sites are not in the same order. The one site, kidblog, which is duplicated, appears first on one list
and fourth on another.

6. What do you attribute these finding to?

I attribute these findings to the fact that different search tools/engines use different algorithms for
finding search results matching the users request. Some sites also pay to appear on the results page for
certain search engines. I also found, through this search, that my request did not necessarily fit the
purpose of the search tool/engine and therefore would not turn up any results. For example, in the kid
search tools, Kids Click focused primarily on software. If there was no software related to classroom
blogging, my search would obviously turn up few or no results. The search tool, MERLOT, seemed to
only find resources linked directly through MERLOT. Also links provided included part of the
MERLOT url.