Internet Literacy

The website www.novemeberlearning.com has some great resources on it for creating smarter internet users. After taking the literacy quiz, I concluded that I am moderately savvy. I might even be considered "on the cusp" between that and downright nerdy. Even still, I was able to learn many new things, which is usually the case with these assignnments.

I didn't realize that a tilde or a percent sign was a clue as to whether or not you were on a personal webpage. Unless it is extremely obvious that is is personal, I always just look for clues on the page to let me know whether or not it might bve. I am glad I have some specific things to look for now. The example that was use about a university professor's page is a great one. When most people see the "edu" at the end of a website address, they assume it is a trusworthy, non-biased one, but that is not always the case.

The Literacy Resources at www.novemberlearning.com tell you how you find out who publishes a website as well as the history of that website. I was absolutely floored by their example of www.martinlutherking.org. My students have asked to take turns teaching their classmates about black history for the first few minutes of each class. I generally let the students take control of the internet and data projector. I have this vision of a student going to this website. The information on it would probably start a complete riot. This will not happen (especially now), but should we ever stumble upon a website that does not seem legit, I will know what tool to use to evaluate these websites.

I am always pleasantly surprised by the information included in articles and websites we are assigned to read. This is no exception. All internet users will do themselves a great service by visiting www.novemberlearning.com.