Choosing Reliable Sources

Learning Resource Type

Learning Activity

Subject Area

Digital Literacy and Computer Science

Grade(s)

Overview

The lesson emphasizes the importance of locating valid online sources. Students will compare and contrast two different sources of information to determine which is the most reliable. Students will learn to identify the purpose of a website. Students will also learn the importance of evaluating sources of information for fairness and bias.

This activity was created as a result of the DLCS COS Resource Development Summit.

Phase

During/Explore/Explain

Digital Literacy and Computer Science (2018) Grade(s): 2

DLCS18.2.R3
Assess the validity and identify the purpose of digital content.

Knowledge

Students know:

how to classify information as relevant.
how to classify information as nonfiction or fiction.
how to recognize important facts.
information is created for a specific purpose.

Skills

Students are able to:

identify information and determine relevancy.
identify non-fiction information to gather facts.
identify the difference between important facts and minor details.
identify the purpose for a piece of work.

Understanding

Students understand that:

they must determine when content is relative to a project that they are working on.
sometimes they may find information that is not true.
they must distinguish the important facts in a piece of work.
people create content for various purposes such as to inform, persuade, etc.

Learning Objectives

The students will be able to:

assess online information for purpose and validity
compare and contrast two different online resources to determine if the content is reliable

Activity Details

The teacher will:

Review related vocabulary such as validity, reliable, bias, online, and source with students.

Explain and lead a group discussion with students about the fact that we can find lots of facts and information online, however, some of it might not be good reliable information.

Help students gain an understanding of the terms reliable and valid, and ask them to think about different scenarios:

Who would be a good person to ask if your bike was broken and you needed help fixing it? Why? What makes this person a reliable source for fixing a bike?
If you had a really bad stomachache and your parents weren’t sure what medicine might help you, where might they look for information or who might they ask? Why? What makes this person or source reliable for helping you feel better?
Where would you go or whom would you ask if you wanted to learn more about buildings in your neighborhood? What kinds of information might different people be able to give you? What makes some sources reliable for learning about buildings?

Tell the students that they are going to look at two different websites to determine the validity of the two sources of information. Project the two sites listed below using a digital projector. (If unavailable use paper copies of a screenshot of the two pages.)

Lead the students in a discussion about the two sites and the reliability and validity they find for both. You may use the following suggested questions.

What do you see or notice first on each webpage?
What is the same about the pages?
What is different about the pages?
How would you decide which page to use if you wanted to fix a bike?
What makes one page seem more valid than the other?

Have the students work with a partner or in small groups to complete the Venn Diagram Choosing Reliable Resources.

The student(s) will:

-Look at two different websites - projected on the screen for the class

-Answer questions and provide feedback and discussion to the teacher prompted questions.

-Work with a partner or in small groups to complete a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast the two sites (can be done as a whole group if your students are not familiar with Venn Diagrams)

Encourage students to think about and use information that is represented in both text and images.

The teacher will:

Bring students back together and ask them to discuss some of the questions that came up while they were working on their Venn Diagrams. What information did they use to determine the most reliable source?

Assessment Strategies

Teacher observation of students discussion and feedback

Student Work - completion of Venn Diagram - Did students identify the parts on each site that was different in the non-overlapping sections? In the sections that overlapped, did the students identify the parts of the two websites that were the same?

Post-activity discussion about what students discovered and what clues they used to determine website reliability with this activity.

Variation Tips

This can be done as a whole group activity or in pairs.

Background / Preparation

The provided website may be used for materials, vocabulary, and lesson overview to become more familiar with the activity if the teacher would like.

Students should have prior knowledge about some of the terms such as validity, reliable, bias, online, and source however they should be reviewed in the beginning discussions.

Arrange for projection tools to project the two sites.

Prepare questions to prompt student discussion.

Check that the two websites are available at your location (not blocked etc. )

Print a paper copy of the Venn Diagram for student pairs.

link to the document:

https://www.tolerance.org/sites/default/files/Digital-Literacy-Reliable-Sources-K-2.pdf

Teaching Tolerance: Choosing Reliable Sources

https://www.tolerance.org/classroom-resources/tolerance-lessons/choosing-reliab…

Approved Date

2018-07-09

Owner (Author)

lwoolley