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Computers in the Classroom Website Evaluation Project |
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See Samples of Website Evaluations by former EDUC 570 students
jarzt@sjc.edu
online tutoring at Saint Joseph College
Last revised: 1/13/05 |
This project requires evaluating two (2) educational websites intended for students in your teaching area. Select interactive websites that function much like educational software. In that way, your project will be comparable to the software evaluation project. Also, for sites that have multiple parts, such as a math site that offers a variety of activities for different grade levels, just select one or two activities to evaluation. That is, do not try to evaluate a full, comprehensive site if it offers a variety of curricular and grade level activities.
Steps to follow:
1. Review the website evaluation form.
2. Preview several appropriate websites before making your selection on the final two sites. You want to ensure that the sites you have selected are interactive and operate similarly to computer software. (See a list of some suggested sites by former students.)
3. Review each of the websites several times. Consider the sites from the teacher's perspective as a teaching tool and the students’ perspectives as instructional material. Also, consider the range of learners found in classroom today (e.g., above-average learners, below-average learners, savvy computer users, and novice computer users). Look through the sites carefully while taking notes pertinent to the website evaluation form. These notes should serve to assist you in writing the actual review.
4. Prepare your evaluations following the form. You should not try to respond to all questions in a section and should not repeat information found in one section in another one. You want your reviews to be fluid and easy to read. You also want them to be concrete enough for a reader to picture clearly what is found on the sites and how the sites operate as an educational tool. Remember to consider details to give readers a sense of the content of the websites, their applicability to a specific student population, and their curriculum fit. Be sure your reviews are lively and informative. Revise for clarity and fluidity. Edit for usage and mechanics. Your work will be read on the Internet by other educators.
5. Exchange drafts with peers for editorial assistance, and use the
College's Center for Academic Excellence for additional assistance with
helping you achieve a lively style and error-free text. Work can be submitted
to the Center by sending an email to tutoring@sjc.edu, providing link to the
assignment instructions, and attaching your paper in doc or rtf format.
Expect 24-48 hour turnaround time.
6. Write an Overview: Once you finish your two reviews, you need to write an overview. This overview is submitted but will not be placed on your website. It is an orientation for me as I am evaluating your work. This overview needs to state your grade/curriculum focus, clarifying why you selected the software that you did, and synthesize ideas from the two evaluations. Include:
2006-2009 © All Rights Reserved. Judy Arzt Last revised: 5/13/10
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Evaluation Criteria
Warnings: (1) Writing skills are a critical component. Work must be proofread. (2) Be sure your description of the program is thorough and detailed enough to help teachers understand the program’s content and use in the classroom setting. Extra credit: To enhance your project, use the Internet to locate (1) reviews of the software, (2) promotional materials from the publishers, and (3) lesson plans based on the software.
Later, when you create your website, the hyperlinks to these online resources will be readily available to your reader.
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