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Posted by Kelsey Potter on January 24, 2010 This website was designed for teachers and schools. Content: Entering into School World it was evident who the audience and what the content was intended for. The content of the website accomplishes the purpose clearly. There was no specific author for the website although the group that published the site was reliable and easy contact information was access able. The website was created in 2010 so it is still a fairly new site. All of the links and content are working appropriately and appear to be complete. The links and information on each of the links are easy to understand and sufficient to the content. There is a plenty of information for each of the links and for background on the website. The website is not biased but rather informative about schools using a content management system and a center for communication and education for the teachers. Design: The website loaded promptly and the homepage was an appealing to the eye. It was clear as to what the purpose of the website is and the different index tabs were descriptive to direct the reader in the right direction. The site sponsor was clear and background about the sponsor was also clear. Contact information has easy access and a 1 800 number was clearly identified at the top of each page. Copy right was easy to find at the bottom of each page. Directions for using the website were not provided but rather self explanatory to use. Each label had more specific labels underneath. The animations were for more of a decoration than a purpose. The website as equal access through different browsers. The organized information on the website was apparent and made the website very resourceful. The same goal is visible throughout the website although nothing was repeated. Summary: Overall this website is a very resourceful place to come for a teacher or a school. School World gives valuable information for the needs of diverse schools and teachers. Teachers

CONTINUED: Teachers have access to a website with content and design for the in the classroom and outside the classroom. School World is build by three elements including: "applying Web technology best practices, proactively listening to district and school personnel, and staying abreast of the education industry's trends and happenings." The website has accomplished many different awards in the limit time it has been offered. This is a very reliable, useful and beneficial website.

Posted by Erika Jeffs on 1/24/2010 Overview: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) is website that provides updates on assessment, curriculum, and instruction for educators. The organization also has an impact on the policymakers of education. The NCTM provides updates for teachers on new research that is being conducted related to teaching mathematics. The site also provides scholarly journals and essays that teachers can purchase. Also, for an annual fee, individuals can become members of the NCTM. Content: It is evident that this site specifically for teachers and math professionals, but to fully understand the content of the website, you must read the mission statement. The authors and creators credentials are available as well as contact information. The content is updated frequently and dates are provided for each individual section that has been changed. The site has a lot of useful available material, but there's a lot of options each page making it difficult to find specific information. For teachers looking for the latest updates, this site is useful, but not appropriate for students. The links are all in working order and the advertisements are all from the NCTM. Design: The NCTM homepage is cluttered and difficult to navigate. There are clearly labeled tabs for navigation, but there is a lot of information on each page. Because of all the information, there seems to be no room for graphics or interactive tools. This site appears to have some importance in the math community, but it was very difficult to use.

Sara Scribner 1/23/10 Overview: This website called Beeswax is meant for elementary students to inform them of current events in a fun, interactive way. It is a new website so the creators are still looking for feedback to improve the site, but it is a great tool for students to learn about current happenings in the world. Currently it is only updated twice a week, but for elementary students I believe this to be sufficient. Content: Information presented on this website is high quality. Its purpose, to present news, is clear, complete, easily understood, and is interactive. Contact and sponsor information are current and available. There might be potential bias on this site however because of its sponsor, Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The amount of information offered on this site is sufficient, but the teacher would need some background knowledge about the event. An advantage to this site is that it is free of advertisements. Design: Beeswax communicates the news in a fun, interactive way and is aided by graphics that you click on to see the related story. It has a unique organization that is effective yet appealing. Sounds also accompany your actions as you navigate the site.

Caroline Wittman (Virginia) January 31, 2011 Overview Ology is a fun website that allows children to collect virtual trading cards and use them to make online projects as they learn about different science topics. The list of topics is varied, including anthropology, archeology, astronomy, biodiversity, the brain, climate change, earth science, genetics, marine biology, paleontology, water, and zoology. Each area presents a plethora of interactive applications for children to explore: games, animations, quizzes, and suggestions and guidance for completing simple offline science investigations and experiments. There are also book lists and other helpful internet sources that can be consulted for further information. Content Ology is sponsored by the American Museum of Natural History. Accordingly, information was accurate and up-to-date. It was also well organized and communicated on a level that elementary school age children can understand and relate to. Information is also in line with what is covered in the typical elementary school science curriculum. Although specific authors of articles are not usually listed, it is easy to find contact information for the sponsoring organization. Links to other internet resources were relevant and informative. Overall, the content of the site serves to ignite children's curiosity about the natural world. Design The Ology homepage, as well as its interactive applications, downloaded quickly. The overall design is appealing to elementary school children, incorporating lots bright colors and bold shapes. Navigation is simple, even for young children. The major areas of the site are located in an obvious place on the homepage. Information is easy to locate within each of these areas. Directions for games and other interactive content are very straightforward and explained clearly. Close inspection reveals that each detail of the site's design works toward enhancing children's learning.

Lynnsey Patterson January 23, 2011 Overview: The purpose of this site is to give information to potential students about the Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design. Overall it is a very nice site for its intended purpose. It is easy to navigate and the design appears very professionally done. I personally, like the orange, white, and grey color scheme complete with the pictorial layout. It makes the school look very inviting and fun. Content: The content of this site is very well organized and achieves its intended purpose effectively. Everything needed is accessible on the right side bar of the homepage including admissions information, degree programs, and a place to apply. I also like the footer of the page where it contains links to both community and school events. This could serve as a great way for students to become involved with the school before attending. Design: All information I clearly labeled and organized on this site and it is very easy to navigate. The homepage is very attractive and all links, pictures, and graphic serve a clear purpose. This site is a great starting point for finding information and applying for this college.

Overview- This site is intended for older elementary students and well as 7th and 8th grade students. This site communicates civics in a very exciting way. There are selections and choices to pick from on the opening page. These choices range from categories such as quizzes, independence, the constitution, legislative, executive, and judicial braches and well as elections, and citizenship. Following your selection of the topic of your choice, one is given additional categories to explore. Content- I like this website because it is very simplistic, but very informative for educational purposes. It is clear and detailed. As an elementary or middle school child this type of website would be an excellent way of establishing ones first book report or learning about government. It is very easy to access all areas of the site. Design- The design is very colorful and eye catching.

Gary Allen May 18, 2011 Overview: I found this site in the community library here on Diigo and thought I would check it out. As the title suggests, it contains accounts of many different events in American History. This site also appears to be geared more towards an older audience. Content: This site contains plenty of information, including some illustrations, and is navigated using either a search box or a list of links on the left sidebar. The information SEEMS to be legit, the author and copyright date are listed at the bottom of the page, with a link to the author's own website, however there are no sources listed on any of the articles. Design: Again, this site has a very simple design. There are a few ads, but that is to be expected and they're not too distracting. It almost appears as if the site is unfinished because there are many items in the sidebar that do not have links attached to them. Overall, I would probably recommend find another website to use as a resource.

Lacey Glenn September 6, 2011 Overview: I found this site through my diigo.com community library. I did not like this site. The home page is overwhelming and ads pop up and inhibit you from looking for what you want to. I wouldn't recommend this site to anyone. Content: This site gives a specific book, song, or story that they think would be helpful in teaching children. Some of the information might be reliable, but it's not a source that I would count on. Design: The site home page is very overwhelming. There are many different colors all combined together and some of the words and letters are flashing. The layout is horizontal and spread out, but it's too much to look at. I wasn't fond of this site.

Lindsey Carter 9-4-2011 Overview: Phrases.org.uk, "The Phrase Finder," is a website dedicated to providing the meanings and origins of common phrases used in everyday speech. The intended audience is individuals seeking information on these phrases. The sponsor is not clearly identifiable, making the information seem less credible. The site is interesting and informational, but I do not find it reliable Content: The overall content of the site is quickly determinable, along with the intended audience. No author or sponsor of the site is identified, but a link does give a brief history of the founder, Gary Martin. In addition, the site does provide an email contact and a Facebook and Twitter link (these links also work properly). There is no latest revision date available, so the user has no idea how frequently the site is updated. The purpose of the site is clear, and the content is clear and manageable, but the lack of credible information makes it somewhat unbelievable. There is no way to know if the information is accurate, although most of the data is extensive. Other links that exist include "The Phrase Thesaurus" (a site supported by "The Phrase Finder"), and a discussion forum for the site, and links to phrase books on amazon.com. The appropriateness of these links seems subjective to the needs of the user. Design: The appeal of the website is not strong. The homepage seems unprofessional, although it is organized somewhat effectively. The title and headings are clear and communicative, but again, no site sponsor or copyright date is provided. Moving around the site is fairly easy, due to clear directions on site categories. The amount of information the site provides is sufficient and easy to find, as the list of links is organized. Again, no date of revision is labeled, but a working link of contact information is available. The design does need to be improved to update the professional quality, but the site is usable.

Lyle Wiley September 10, 2011 Overview: The About.com Shakespeare site is a resource site for educators and students dedicated to the Bard. The site is intended for educators and students and would mostly benefit the novice in all things Shakespeare education. The site contains many linked brief articles with Shakespeare information, historical background, lesson plans, teaching tips/ideas, and a frequently updated blog. While the site is housed in a template web page with few interactive media features and little eye appeal, it is well organized and certainly provides some useful information and ideas for educators needing a jump start in Shakespeare studies. Content: The basic content and intended audience for the website is easily discernable. Furthermore, the author of the content along with his credentials and contact information is readily available. The content of the site appears to be frequently updated and the author looks to at least post a blog entry monthly with new or updated site information. The information is well organized and easy to access and understand. While the site is relatively free of bias, there are a number of advertisements which often distort the flow of information but not severely. There are few external links (outside of About.com) on the website and no real media interactivity tied to the information. However, the information on the site looks to be accurate and certainly provides some good information and ideas for educational approaches to the works of Shakespeare. Design: While the homepage downloads quickly and the site navigation (complete with clear indexes of site content on the front page) is easily managed upon entry to the site, the immediate feel of the site is a naked template. This may not be eye catching, but the ease of information dissemination is handy. There is essentially no multimedia in play with this informational site, but the information communicated is worthwhile, succinct, and well organized.

Elise Verley September 9, 2011 http://www.ecoliteracy.org/ Overview: This site is dedicated to schooling for sustainability, which they have branded "Smart by Nature". They offer resources to teachers to learn how to teach their students how to live sustainably. The site houses a series of essays, books, activities, lessons and resource listings to use as a basis for teaching students to live sustainably. They also offer seminars and workshops that educators may attend. This site is an excellent resource for a "Green" education Content: It was great to see a place where it was easy to find sources for Ecoliteracy. They offered resources in many different topics including: Climate change, health and nutrition, pollution, population and may others. It impressed me that they were interested in creating a relationship with educators to continue to offer them ongoing support. Design: The web design of this site is user friendly and easy to navigate. The top navigational menu made it easy to find the topic you were looking for. Then the sub-navigational menus allowed me to zoom in on essays and events on particular topics. The contact information was listed many places on the site, encouraging educators to interact with this growing community.

Ross Lindstrom - September 21, 2009 Website Evaluation #1: The American Political Science Association (APSA) The American Political Science Association's website is an aesthetically attractive website that also contains a wealth of information and additional resources. The Association brings together 15,000 members to form a community of political science study, fostering a healthy discourse and exchange of information. APSA organizes conferences, seminars, and produces publications for both students and teachers for the purpose of promoting the scholarly research of political science. My first impression of the website is a complete trust in the legitimacy of the information presented. Any student would find this website invaluable when looking for resources to do anything from simply understanding what political science is to writing a graduate dissertation or finding an internship in Washington. The website displayed efficient organization of the various areas of the site, a challenge when so much information is contained within. It had enough visual appeal to not become redundant while browsing and yet still retain the professionalism that should be inherent in such a field of study. However, a high school age student may find the website a bit dry and the content a little too advanced. Most of the publications of the website aren't available in a direct .html format, but download speeds are quick. There is significant information overlap among the publications, but in a field of study where slight opinion difference is a cornerstone of the conversation, this can only be a credit to its legitimacy. The first glance at the APSA website yields both an understanding of its purpose and a desire to explore the website's resource. The content is clearly organized based on subject matter as well as practical application. Proper credits to authors are prevalent, new content is regularly added, and old content is constantly maintained. One of the

Ross Lindstrom - September 21, 2009 Website Evaluation #3 - Politico.com This website is a flashy, attractive website that provides news stories on the American political arena in an easily digestible and easy to navigate format. The audience is pretty vast, including anyone interested in current events in politics. The purpose is to provide newsworthy political articles as well as a forum of discussion to debate content areas such as public policy, congress, lobbying, community, etc. My impression of Politico.com is that it is a well-designed, well-written conglomerate of differing opinion covering a wide array of political topics. However, at times it tends to emphasize the gossip aspect of Washington, running articles such as "Palin emerges as Facebook Phenom". Politico.com is incredibly well designed, with coherent organization of topics and content areas, relevant information regularly at the top, and an easy platform with which to navigate the many intricacies of American politics. There is a healthy balance of information and multimedia without the multimedia being too distracting and without the information being too monotonous. Loading and downloading times are quick. Gossipy stories about Washington tend to get more emphasis on the main pages, but browsing around the site and reading a few articles will tell you Politico is a heavyweight when it comes to intelligent political analysis and debate. The information is current, and links to other useful websites are prevalent. The first look at politico effectively tells you the purpose of the website, as well as the wealth of information it contains. The authors (and their legitimacy) of the various articles are all easily identifiable. The content of the website is all interesting, well-written and fresh. The website tends to lean on the liberal side of the spectrum, but still endeavors to include all dissenting viewpoints. The multimedia section contains a vast amount of information av

Posted by Lyndsey Neelands on 9/19/2009 Cool Science is an education website branched from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The purpose of this website is to inform the community about science. Content: This site clearly identifies its material and the authors. This website is authored and updated by a medical institute so its information is up to date and accurate. The information is also for many different ages and skill levels. Also, there are resources for teachers available at this site. The links to other sites are relevant and working properly. This website would be helpful to any elementary or secondary science teacher looking for up to date research. Design: This website is very easy to navigate and very appealing. The website is organized and all of the graphics add to the purpose of the site. The links are appropriate and contribute to the value of the website. The sponsor is clearly identified and is easy to get information on. This Cool Science website is an extension of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute so a lot of the links go to other resources from Howard Hughes Medical Institute. This is significant because the design of the pages is consistent, even when using a link to navigate from the homepage of Cool Science.

Overview: This a site that provides a variety of free kids books online. It is intended for all early grade school students. The site has books from a variety of genres to download in pdf form. The design and content are both exception and this site would be great in the classroom. Content: Users can tell that the site is for reading kid's books and it is appropriate for a grade school audience. No authors are identified on the site, but it site blog identifies contributors and authors. There is no link for contact on the site, but the blog has communication capabilities. Last updated information is available at the blog of the site. All links are functional. In addition, it is easy to navigate. Content is complete, organized, easy to understand, and free of bias. The site is interactive in that kids pick what to read and do so. I explored several free book sites and this one is the cleanest with the most variety. The site does have links to other books, and how to purchase them, which serve its purpose well. Design: The homepage is visually attractive and downloads quickly. Navigation is simple and content is well defined. The site sponsor information is not available except at the blog, which provides a great deal of information. The site is easy to navigate, but does not include an index. All links are active. Some multimedia is used to make the site appealing. The website is available on a variety of browsers, including Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Safari. The content of the site is extensive and fun for readers. The content is organized, easy to use, and design is consistent throughout the site. No books are outdated and new books are added regularly.

brief overview of Alexander the Great.

Overview The purpose of this website is to help parents learn about ASL and sign language with their infants and toddlers. The website also talks about the advantages of teaching your infant/toddler sign language so that they can communicate clearly what they want so that there is no confusion on what they want. Content The content is awesome on this site, it is all up to date, easy to navigate, appeals to the viewer's eye, etc. The information on this website is all completely informational and non-bias. There are other links for help for other needs on for instance how to do a particular sign in ASL for your child. So overall the content of this website is great. Design The design is also very great on this website. The speed is excellent and works very quickly with any browser, it is very easy to navigate, and there is not any use of videos on the website however the use of the images are used appropriately. The currency is also up to date.

This website takes a look at some ideological approaches towards childhood obesity. The article on the website is intended for adults who work with children in any aspect. The author, James Hamblin notes that individual poor decisions are an extreme reductionist approach. The idea is that we can come up with programs in our schools that encourage healthy active lifestyles and that these programs, if effective, will help reduce childhood obesity and promote general overall healthy outcomes for children. One of the ideas expressed and refuted is that obesity is a loosing battle. The epidemic of childhood obesity has grown, this is true. The website and article are showing that our education and government society are concerned and want to help. No one situation is to blame, as suggested by the article. Sugar and soda pops are mentioned but abolition of any of these things clearly is not targeted as a solution. While no particular solution or method is presented, the idea is to keep thinking and not to dismiss this subject. I thought this was a good read and had helpful information for me. Knowing that others still take this problem seriously helps myself and those I can influence to remain aware and able to contribute in some way. This site is good for any person that wants to stay informed of efforts being made among multiple communities.