Reading and Activity 2

When evaluating information on websites I usually check if the website is well known, such as a website for a newspaper or magazine. I also look at the domain to see if the information is credible. Another factor I check for is the works cited if the information provided was obtained from another source. The same goes for publications; I check the works cited section.

Wikipedia is the fastest, easiest way to obtain information, because it is all there. However, the information is not always reliable because anybody is able to edit it. There have been times when I wanted to use Wikipedia as a means of obtaining information for an assignment that needs to be cited but, because the information can be easily changed, I couldn’t because the instructor did not permit it. I have taken to using the source of a piece of information provided on Wikipedia (with permission) instead. Having never used the Britannica website, and after reading the essay by Mark Bauerlein, I decided that I wish to regularly use it as a resource when the opportunity arises, as opposed to Wikipedia. The sources are highly credible and it will most likely not cause any issues with instructors who do not like their students using Wikipedia. I also used the UNCW library’s online catalogue for a paper once, although it was difficult for me to navigate. I will try to use it more in the future and I hope to learn my way around it eventually. As for being required to find information from non-internet sources, it is becoming more difficult. Students do not have much time to be searching for printed publications and the internet is being more heavily relied upon by those providing information. I feel that information literacy should have been practiced more when I was in elementary school. We had a “library” class in my school and the extent of understanding and obtaining information that we were taught was tests library vocabulary and reading aloud paragraphs from a book that explains how to write a research paper during class. We were not engaged and the teacher was clearly not interested in making sure we understood. When I reached high school, I had no idea how to research for or write research papers, let alone citation without the instruction of my English teacher. Despite this, I find it incredibly helpful that information literacy is emphasized more today in college. Hopefully I can catch up.