Attempts

Attempts	Search Terms and Operators Used	Number of Hits	Quality of the Hits The majority of hits in this search appear to be…
1. Subject search	"Education"-> "Geography"	208 hits	The hits appeared to be discussing mostly college geography or graduate geography programs.
2. I had to carry out a Keyword search to narrow my hits	"geography projects"	21,143 hits	Although I found one of the first hits to be a good one, there are far too many to explore.
3. Keyword search	"teaching geography"	4 hits (determined by user selection traffic)	These hits were very useful and contained the information I was looking for. I used one of the sites for my evaluation.
4. Keyword search	"teaching and geography and K-12 grades"	2 hits found	These hits were alright, but were not as good as the 4 hits I found with the keywords, "teaching geography". They didn’t cover all of the information I was looking for.

Type of search: I started with a Subject search like we were supposed to. I was then forced to do a word search because I had to narrow down the number of hits I was getting and because the subject search didn’t get specific enough information.

Search Engine: Lycos

EVALUATION OF SITE

WWW CyberGuide Ratings for Content Evaluation

Title of site:_The Teaching Geography Page_______________________________________________

Subject of site:_Teaching Geograpy_______________________________________________

URL (address):_http://easyweb.easynet.co.uk/~rwilliams_________________________________________________

Considered for use with (class & grade level):_Geography K-12 grades_______________________________

Specific objective for using this site: I wanted this site to give me different teaching ideas for geography lessons and projects that could be done with students from grades K-12. ______________________________________

Notes on possible uses of this site and URL's for individual site pages:

In this site there are many other educational resources for teachers to use. Besides other geography sites and links, there can be found resources in other subject areas that teachers may be interested in.

Evaluate the Web site you are considering for instructional use according tothe criteria described below. Circle the number which you feel the site deserves for each category: 5 = Excellent and 1 = Poor.

1. Speed

-The home page downloads efficiently enough to 5 4 3 2 1

use during whole class instruction.

-The home page downloads efficiently enough to 5 4 3 2 1

keep students on task during independent/small

group study.

2. First impression - general appearance

-The home page is designed attractively and will 5 4 3 2 1

entice my students to further exploration.

-The home page is designed clearly enough to be 5 4 3 2 1

successfully manipulated by my intended users.

3. Ease of site navigation

-My students will be able to move from page to 5 4 3 2 1

page, link to link, item to item with ease,

without getting lost or confused.

-All links are clearly labeled and serve an 5 4 3 2 1

easily identified purpose.

-Links provided to other pages and sites operate 5 4 3 2 1

efficiently enough to keep my students on task.

4. Use of graphics/sounds/videos

-The graphics/sounds/videos are clearly labeled, 5 4 3 2 1

clearly identified.

-The graphics/sounds/videos serve a clear purpose 5 4 3 2 1

appropriate for my intended audience.

-The graphics/sounds/videos will aid my students in 5 4 3 2 1

reaching the desired objectives for using this site.

5. Content/Information

-This site offers a wealth of information related 5 4 3 2 1

to my stated objectives.

-The information is clearly labeled and organized, 5 4 3 2 1

and will be easily understood by my students.

-The content of linked sites is worthwhile and 5 4 3 2 1

appropriate for my intended audience.

-The content of linked sites adds to the value of 5 4 3 2 1

this site for achieving my instructional goals.

-The information providers are clearly identified. 5 4 3 2 1

-The information providers are reliable. 5 4 3 2 1

-The content is free of bias, or the bias will be 5 4 3 2 1

clearly recognized by my students.

-This site provides interactivity which increases 5 4 3 2 1

its instructional value.

6. Currency - The site was recently revised. 5 4 3 2 1

7. Availability of further information

-A contact person or address is readily available. 5 4 3 2 1

8. Add the total number of points you awarded to this site and determine your overall WWW Cyberguide rating. For any specific category that did not apply to this site, deduct five points from the total possible points.

____WWWWW's = (100-91 points) - This site is so well-designed, and so effectively meets my instructional goals, that I can provide my students with general instructions and allow free exploration.

77pts. (88pts.- 5pts)___WWWW's = (90-76 points) - This site contains good material but a site map with specific directions will assist my students in reaching the stated objectives.

____WWW's = (75-61 points) This site contains information that will make stops at designated points worthwhile, but students will need more structured guidance to reach my instructional goals. A list of bookmarks to specific pages and/or links is advisable, as is frequent discussion of student progress.

____WW's = (60-46 points) Although useful information exists at this site, its most effective contribution to my objectives will be in whole-class instruction where I can guide exploration and keep students on task.

____W = (45-31 points) This site contains a few pieces of information that make it a possible alternative when other sources are not readily available. Supervised student use is advised. Karen McLachlan, Media Specialist

Search Topic: Teaching Geography

Search Terms: "teaching geography", "teaching and geography", "+teaching +geography +K-12 grades", "geography and projects", "+geography +projects +K-12 grades"

Type of Search: Keyword search

Search Engine: Yahoo.com

Attempts	Search Terms and Operators Used	Number of Hits	Quality of Hits; The majority of hits in this search appear to be
1.	"teaching geography"	26 hits	The hits seemed all-right but were not specific enough to the age groups I wanted. I found some sites on college and graduate geography programs.
2.	"teaching and geography"	26 hits	The same sites came up as with the keywords, "teaching geography".
3.	"+teaching +geography +K-12 grades"	2 hits	Both of these sites were perfect. I chose one of them for my site evaluation because it incorporated information to help the teacher and information the students could obtain on their own.
4.	"geography and projects"	42 hits	These hits were a little too broad and could have used some grade specifics along with the keywords.
5.	"+geography +projects +K-12 grades"	0 hits	The number of hits would not come up for this site under these keywords. I was taken to a different web page.

EVALUATION OF SITE

Title of site:_Geographic Learning Site (US State Department

Subject of site:_Teaching Geograpy_____________________

URL (address):_http://geography.state.gov/htmls/plugin.html

Considered for use with (class & grade level):_Geography K-12 grades_______________________________

Notes on possible uses of this site and URL's for individual site pages: This is the best site I found on my web-search project. It not only included ideas that teachers could use for lesson plans, but it also contained links that my students could use themselves to dig up information on geography. These links could keep the attention of my students also and make learning geography fun for them.

Evaluate the Web site you are considering for instructional use according to the criteria described below. Circle the number which you feel the site deserves for each category: 5 = Excellent and 1 = Poor.

1. Speed

-The home page downloads efficiently enough to 5 4 3 2 1

use during whole class instruction.

-The home page downloads efficiently enough to 5 4 3 2 1

keep students on task during independent/small

group study.

2. First impression - general appearance

-The home page is designed attractively and will 5 4 3 2 1

entice my students to further exploration.

-The home page is designed clearly enough to be 5 4 3 2 1

successfully manipulated by my intended users.

3. Ease of site navigation

-My students will be able to move from page to 5 4 3 2 1

page, link to link, item to item with ease,

without getting lost or confused.

-All links are clearly labeled and serve an 5 4 3 2 1

easily identified purpose.

-Links provided to other pages and sites operate 5 4 3 2 1

efficiently enough to keep my students on task.

4. Use of graphics/sounds/videos

-The graphics/sounds/videos are clearly labeled, 5 4 3 2 1

clearly identified.

-The graphics/sounds/videos serve a clear purpose 5 4 3 2 1

appropriate for my intended audience.

-The graphics/sounds/videos will aid my students in 5 4 3 2 1

reaching the desired objectives for using this site.

5. Content/Information

-This site offers a wealth of information related 5 4 3 2 1

to my stated objectives.

-The information is clearly labeled and organized, 5 4 3 2 1

and will be easily understood by my students.

-The content of linked sites is worthwhile and 5 4 3 2 1

appropriate for my intended audience.

-The content of linked sites adds to the value of 5 4 3 2 1

this site for achieving my instructional goals.

-The information providers are clearly identified. 5 4 3 2 1

-The information providers are reliable. 5 4 3 2 1

-The content is free of bias, or the bias will be 5 4 3 2 1

clearly recognized by my students.

-This site provides interactivity which increases 5 4 3 2 1

its instructional value.

6. Currency - The site was recently revised. 5 4 3 2 1

7. Availability of further information

-A contact person or address is readily available. 5 4 3 2 1

92 pts. WWWWW's = (100-91 points) - This site is so well-designed, and so effectively meets my instructional goals, that I can provide my students with general instructions and allow free exploration.

___WWWW's = (90-76 points) - This site contains good material but a site map with specific directions will assist my students in reaching the stated objectives.

_ ___WWW's = (75-61 points) This site contains information that will make stops at designated points worthwhile, but students will need more structured guidance to reach my instructional goals. A list of bookmarks to specific pages and/or links is advisable, as is frequent discussion of student progress.

Search Topic: Teaching Geography

Search Terms: "teaching geography", "+teaching +geography +K-12 grades"

Type of Search: For this search I used a Meta Search Engine.

Search Engine: Dogpile.com

Attempts

Search Terms and Operators Used

Number of Hits and the breakdown of the results you got according to each engine searched

Quality of Hits; The majority of hits in this search appear to be...

"teaching geography"

43 hits found in LookSmart.com

The other engines had thousands of hits so I didn't see this as being the perfect search.

This search was a little broad and the 43 hits in LookSmart.com included college sources. They also covered individual geographic locations and countries, making the number of hits larger.

"+teaching +geography +K-12 grades"

-LookSmart=0hits GoTo.com=10hitsDogpileWeb Catalog = 4 hits (perfect search)

Google=4,160hitsReal (too broad) Names=10hits (good for just lesson plans)

Yahoo= 2 hits (these were also perfect hits, but had already used one of the sites for my previous site evaluation)

AltaVista found =5,368,000 hits (way too broad)

I found these keywords and the first 3 engines searched by the meta engine to be a perfect search. I used my site evaluation on one of the sites found in the Dogpile Web Catalog. I continued to look at the other engine finds, but found them to be too broad or not containing the information I was looking for.

EVALUATION OF SITE

WWW CyberGuide Ratings for Content Evaluation

Title of site:_Internet Resources for Geography Education

Subject of site:_Teaching Geograpy_______________________________________________

URL (address):_http://www.members.carol.net/josh/geoindex.html

Considered for use with (class & grade level):_Geography K-12 grades_______________________________

Notes on possible uses of this site and URL's for individual site pages: This site has some cool ideas and different links that provide information on many geographical topics, including language. The information provided doesn't contain many pictures and may be best for lecture material or for high school students.

1. Speed

-The home page downloads efficiently enough to 5 4 3 2 1

use during whole class instruction.

-The home page downloads efficiently enough to 5 4 3 2 1

keep students on task during independent/small

group study.

2. First impression - general appearance

-The home page is designed attractively and will 5 4 3 2 1

entice my students to further exploration.

-The home page is designed clearly enough to be 5 4 3 2 1

successfully manipulated by my intended users.

3. Ease of site navigation

-My students will be able to move from page to 5 4 3 2 1

page, link to link, item to item with ease,

without getting lost or confused.

-All links are clearly labeled and serve an 5 4 3 2 1

easily identified purpose.

-Links provided to other pages and sites operate 5 4 3 2 1

efficiently enough to keep my students on task.

4. Use of graphics/sounds/videos

-The graphics/sounds/videos are clearly labeled, 5 4 3 2 1

clearly identified.

-The graphics/sounds/videos serve a clear purpose 5 4 3 2 1

appropriate for my intended audience.

-The graphics/sounds/videos will aid my students in 5 4 3 2 1

reaching the desired objectives for using this site.

5. Content/Information

-This site offers a wealth of information related 5 4 3 2 1

to my stated objectives.

-The information is clearly labeled and organized, 5 4 3 2 1

and will be easily understood by my students.

-The content of linked sites is worthwhile and 5 4 3 2 1

appropriate for my intended audience.

-The content of linked sites adds to the value of 5 4 3 2 1

this site for achieving my instructional goals.

-The information providers are clearly identified. 5 4 3 2 1

-The information providers are reliable. 5 4 3 2 1

-The content is free of bias, or the bias will be 5 4 3 2 1

clearly recognized by my students.

-This site provides interactivity which increases 5 4 3 2 1

its instructional value.

6. Currency - The site was recently revised. 5 4 3 2 1

7. Availability of further information

-A contact person or address is readily available. 5 4 3 2 1

__ __WWWWW's = (100-91 points) - This site is so well-designed, and so effectively meets my instructional goals, that I can provide my students with general instructions and allow free exploration.

__89 pts_WWWW's = (90-76 points) - This site contains good material but a site map with specific directions will assist my students in reaching the stated objectives.

After doing my web-search, I can conclude that I have really become better at narrowing down the keywords and subjects I am looking for on the different search engines. The sites given to us in order to explain the different search engines and methods of searching with each engine, were very helpful. I was able to manipulate different keywords and use abbreviations in order to produce the most perfect search. We were instructed to first conduct a subject search. I found that I could only go so far using a subject search because the hits I recovered were too broad. I was forced to use a keyword search, which greatly narrowed down my hits and gave me much better information to work with.

In my web-site evaluations, I found Yahoo.com to reveal the best site on my intended subject of teaching geography. However, I also found that Dogpile.com revealed the same source as Yahoo. I think of all the different engines I used, I liked Dogpile.com the best. This is because, as a meta-search engine, it searched a string of different engines all looking for the keywords I gave it. This is how I found a site from Yahoo, on Dogpile. A couple of different times, Dogpile also gave me the top10 most frequently picked sites at a certain search engine, according to my keywords. This was nice because the most frequently used sites are usually used for a reason. I found the web-site I evaluated in one of these top 10 used sites. Also, I found that using the "+" sign was a great way to make sure the engines included what I wanted in my searches. This was especially the case when I wanted to narrow my search down to include the teaching of geography in grades K-12. The information and knowledge I gained from this project will help me in future research for this class and for the research I need to do in my future teaching profession.