EVALUATING ONLINE RESOURCES PLAN

LESSON SAMPLE

LESSON TITLE

Evaluating Online Resources For Validity and Bias

ISTE STANDARDS FOR STUDENTS

1.3a. Students plan and employ effective research strategies to locate information and
other resources for their intellectual or creative pursuits.

1.3b Students evaluate the accuracy, perspective, credibility and relevance of information,
media, data, or other resources

1.3c. Students curate information from digital resources using a variety of tools and methods
to create collections of artifacts that demonstrate meaningful connections or conclusions.

FOCUS QUESTION

What method can we use to determine if an online resource is reliable, accurate, and free of bias?

RELATED QUESTIONS

What can we use to determine the validity of online resources?

How do we recognize bias in online resources?

Why is it important to check and consider the date of publication for the online resource?

OBJECTIVE

Students will understand the importance of evaluating online resources for validity, accuracy, and bias.
 RESOURCES NEEDED

Internet access

Chromebooks for each student

Interactive board for presentation

Slideshow

Printed checklist

Printed list of websites.

ACTIVITY DESCRIPTION

Lesson setup: Start with a short discussion about the internet and where students typically find their
research information. Allow students to write their thoughts on notebook paper and then share them
with their table partners.

Lesson: Presentation on the importance of evaluating online resources. Define validity, accuracy,
relevance, and bias. Have students create a digital flyer with the vocabulary on Canva. Provide pairs of
students with a list of five online resources. Have students evaluate the resources using this checklist.

Closing: Review the checklist and discuss the evaluations. See if the class agrees on the evaluations of
the sources. Come to a class consensus on the evaluation of the five resources.

EXTENSION IDEAS

Have a local journalist talk to the class about their experiences with evaluating online resources.

Have students find and evaluate an online statistical resource for credibility.

TEACHING TIPS

Start the lesson with an explanation of why it is important to evaluate online resources.

Ask students about their own experiences with online resources.

Model how to use the checklist to evaluate online resources.

Provide feedback on students’ evaluations and reflections. Use

ONGOING PLAN
Lesson 2 will focus on identifying Bias in Online Resources. The objective of this lesson is to teach students
how to recognize bias in online resources. This supports ISTE standards 1.3.a, 1.3.b, 1.3.c, and 1.3.d. It
supports my ongoing plan because recognizing and analyzing bias is an essential skill in successfully
evaluating the validity of online resources.

Lesson 3 will focus on evaluating visual content. The objective will be to teach students how to analyze
the credibility of images, infographics, and other visual content found online. This supports ISTE
standards 1.3.a, 1.3.b, 1.3.c, and 1.3.d. This lesson supports my ongoing plan by providing students with
the ability to evaluate visual resources as well as written resources.

Lesson 4 will focus on evaluating online news articles and sources. The objective will be to teach how to
critically evaluate online new sources for credibility and bias. This supports ISTE standards 1.3.a, 1.3.b,
1.3.c, and 1.3.d. This supports my ongoing plan by allowing students to recognize that not everything
they read online is true or unbiased.

Lesson 5 will focus on evaluating social media content. The objective will be to teach how to critically
assess the credibility of information shared on social media, especially TikTok. This supports ISTE
standards 1.3.a, 1.3.b, 1.3.c, and 1.3.d. This lesson supports my ongoing plan by getting students to think
critically about what they see on social media.

Lesson 6 will focus on evaluating videos and other multimedia content found online. The objective will be
to teach students how to evaluate online videos and multimedia presentations for credibility and
accuracy. This supports ISTE standards 1.3.a, 1.3.b, 1.3.c, and 1.3.d. This supports my ongoing plan by
allowing students to evaluate all types of online resources not just written ones.

RATIONALE
The internet has granted widespread access to information. However, this accessibility has also ushered
in an era where misinformation, fake news, and blatant propaganda often disguise themselves as
impartial analysis (Wineburg, 2018). Teaching students how “to navigate a digital world rich in both
information and misinformation is a critical skill” (Walsh-Moorman, E.A. 2020). It is with this overarching
goal in mind that I developed a series of lessons aimed at fostering digital literacy, media fluency, and
critical thinking among my students.

Each lesson focuses on how to evaluate different types of resources. The first lesson introduces the
students to a checklist that can be used to evaluate online resources. It empowers the students with the
initial skills needed to discern trustworthy resources from unreliable ones. The second lesson builds upon
this foundation and focuses more on recognizing and analyzing bias. The next three lessons focus on
individual types of online resources and how to critically analyze each type of resource for credibility. The
ultimate aim is to provide students with a diverse skill set that enables them to critically evaluate a wide
range of online materials effectively. This allows students to navigate the digital world as discerning,
informed, and responsible consumers of online information.

REFLECTION
With so much misinformation online, it is important to teach students how to find good reliable resources
online. It is important to teach students how to evaluate online resources for relevance and credibility.

The first lesson went as well as I expected. The students were engaged. One of the strengths of this
lesson is that it is a skill that can be used in their everyday life. Students can use their new skills to
evaluate all online resources for validity, including social media posts. We will continue to use these skills
inside the classroom as well when using online resources.

EMOTIONS

When I first started this assignment, I felt a little overwhelmed. The assignment seemed complex, and I
was not sure where to start. I am a math teacher. Thus, we do not do much research in my classes. Once
I figured out where I wanted to include the lesson and what I wanted my students to learn, I felt less
overwhelmed. I felt a sense of accomplishment once I got started. I felt good about being able to
incorporate these lessons in my classroom.

PERSPECTIVES

Teacher: I designed these lessons to teach the skill of identifying reliable and secure online resources to
my students. This valuable skill is not limited to my class. It equips my students for future endeavors
both in the classroom and outside of the classroom. I will make improvements and/or reteach based on
my students’ reflections.

Student: I did not realize how much false information is on the internet. This lesson has taught me how
to evaluate online information for credibility and bias. The checklist will be a helpful tool to check
resources for credibility.

ADDRESSING DIVERSE LEARNERS

As a digital citizenship educator, I was able to use strategies for vocabulary like Quizlet Live to check for
understanding and previous knowledge. Students worked collaboratively on assignments. Students will
be given a choice in the presentation of their reflections.

POSITION

As an educator, I believe it is my job to prepare my students to the best of my ability for the real world.
Our world is inundated with information online. Thus, it is important to teach students how to be good
digital citizens and how to discern reputable resources from those that provide misinformation. Students
need to realize that everything they read or watch on social media platforms is not true. They need the
resources to discern the truth for themselves. These skills will not only help students in performing
research in their academic classes, but also in discerning truthful information that impacts their personal
lives both now and in the future.

ACTIONS

As a digital citizenship educator, I need to take into consideration that although all of my students have a
school-issued device, not all have internet access outside of school. Some live in areas where they do not
have cell service either. As a result, I will have to provide my students with time to complete assignments
in class or provide alternative paper-based assignments for students to complete outside of class.

References

Walsh-Moorman, E. A., Pytash, K. E., & Ausperk, M. (2020). Naming the moves: Using lateral
reading to support students’ evaluation of digital sources. Middle School Journal, 51(5), 29-34.

Wineburg, S., & McGrew, S. (2019). Lateral Reading and the Nature of Expertise: Reading Less
and Learning More When Evaluating Digital Information. Teachers College Record, 121(11),
n11.