ITEC2360

Bridget Gegg-October 7, 2012 Overview The purpose of the Boston Tea Party Historical Society is to provide information, media, and studies on the Boston Tea Party. The intended audience is anyone interested in learning more about the event, but it may be difficult for a younger audience to comprehend the material without help. This website provides an overview of the event, participants, pictures, documents, descriptions, and a case study of the event with links leading to other sources of information. This website provides a place to gain information on all aspects of the historical event and it gives the viewer resources to further their research with a case study of the event and a link to the case study in its entirety. Content The basic content of the site is very clearly represented as soon as the viewer is quickly taken to the webpage. The website is created by the Boston Tea Party Historical Society which is a non-profit organization and they provide an area containing contact information. This website is designed to preserve the history of the Boston Tea Party so it can be trusted that the information contains no bias. The content is not being updated frequently because it is about an event in history, but it gives a great deal of information that any viewer might need concerning the event. Design The website does not have a very strong eye-appeal, but it does appear to be professionally created and it doesn't have the feel of being randomly made as some webpages do. It is easy to navigate and the navigation bar at the top of the page is clearly emphasized and it is not hard to understand. The links and graphics are of good quality and are related to the topic of the webpage. The format is consistent throughout the whole site and it is very well designed and easy to use.

Oct. 7th 2012 Overview: This site is focused on free K-5 curriculum. Based on the content and design it is obviously intended for a teachers use. There are a boatload of resources on this site for teachers to use in their classrooms and incorporate into their curriculum. The site includes lesson plans, activites, games, and planning tools available to teachers. Content: The site is pretty restricted if you do not have an account. For the sake of this review I got a free account. The site is broke up into categories and even includes a teachers chat room. The main focus of this website is to offer tons of planning resources to teachers across the globe in all subjects grade levels K-5. Design: The design of this site is less flashy than the others I have reviewed, but that fits the audience. The site is straightforward, loads fast, and is not cluttered. It is also very easy to navigate. The site is also broken up into Classroom, Homeschool, and After School categories.

Trevor Santy Sept 14 2011 Overview: This site covers a multitude of subjects for varying grade levels. It is extremely user friendly and very easy to navigate. The main page has links going to individual subjects matters such as history. This site is very presentable with almost no ads, except for a few educational ones, on it and nothing to really distract students while on the site. My overall opinion is that it would be great for teaching as it also has a few recreational activities as well giving the site a multipurpose function; to teach and to be used as an extra activity if the time arises. Content: This site contains different activities for different subject matters such as history, math, science, and a few others. It also has a games tab that contains learning games for all ages ranging from the easy to some that are very challenging. Design: This websites design is extremely user friendly. With tabs to each subject and then banners to different activities. On top of that it has reference pages to other sites as well as a parents area and a preschool area. It also has contact info in its own tab. However, this site may be too flashy and distracting for some of the younger students so supervision while using this site is advised.

Oct. 7th 2012 Overview: This site is designed for educational entertainment and gaming. The content and design of this site make it evident that it was designed for children. This site offers many different resources for kids to access and use. The site includes games, pictures, polls, and even a parent teacher section. Content: While the site is obviously designed for children it contains many different categories and levels of learning. I would say the content ranges from a Pre-K to a fifth grade level. Although there is no clear indication of what game or program was designed for what level of student it is clear that some games are meant for the older elementary student. The site is also packed with seasonal games and activities, for example all of the Halloween games are broadcasted on the homepage right now. Design: This website is very eye appealing. The background is not just plain white and there are tons of interactive pictures posted on the homepage leading you to games and activities. All the designs are age appropriate for students in elementary although the load time could be faster.

Oct. 7th 2012 Overview: The purpose of this site is to engage young children, while teaching them about opposites. This site achieves this through use of educational games. Based on content and design it is obvious this site is intended for children. Although the site is designed for children, there are many different resources available for parents as well. This site includes games, videos, and pictures appealing to children. Content: As mentioned earlier this site is intended to entertain children while having them learn opposites. Although through further exploration of the site there are many other topics discussed. All of the material provided on this site is educational but also entertaining. Design: The website is very appealing at first glance. A fun graphic spans the top, but upon further exploring it is evident that that is the only picture on the home page, leaving a blank white screen with words. The categories are all written in the same bland font and color. Each category is geared towards Pre-K students, and is very age appropriate.

Overall This site is for children age k-8, and it is supposed to help them with math and reading. The resources are for many games and activities that have to do with math, reading, and just plain fun. I think it is a very good site overall, based on its functionality and appeal. Criteria The site clearly states that it is provided by Pearson Education, and it is all very justified. The information is all current, of good quality and relevant to the purpose of the site. Design This site does not take very long to download, and it is able to function with multiple different browsers. The media is all relevant and serves a purpose; the site also is easy to navigate through.

Overall The audience for this site is for children grades k-8, and the purpose is to help families with math. The resources here are: presentations and worksheets for teachers and information for teachers. Based off the criteria and design of this site I think it is a very good and useful site. Criteria The criteria on this site is very good, I think is has good information that can help students and families with math. The site does not take too long to download, and it works on multiple browsers. I also think it is a good thing that the revision date is provided and it was last revised in 2012, and there is information on all the people that worked on it from NCTM. Design The design of this site is very appealing. The title and information is visible as soon as you open the page, which also does not take very long. The page is also easy to navigate through, and none of the links are out of date or not working.

Overview: The purpose of this site is focused on entertainment, although some educational games (especially early education) are available. Based on the content and design, it is quite clear that this site is for children. There are many different recourses that are also available for children. At the end of some games, additional links to games of the same genre are given for further entertainment. The site also includes videos, pictures, blogs, as well as a news section designed with information that would be appealing to children Content: This site is designed to entertain kids with many different options in each category provided. Each category contains many subcategories to narrow the search of entertainment. I also find that throughout the material provided, preschool category provides a majority of the educational entertainment. The remaining categories may include educational material but focuses on humor or "top news" of young celebraties. Design: This website has an appropriate amount of eye appeal. Although the background of the site is white, the many different categories and links are abundant in color and graphics. The blue "goop" encompassing the title immediately attracts the imagination of children and encourages creative thinking. Also, each category is age appropriate. I found nothing that would be unsuitable or baleful for young minds.

Overview: The purpose of this website is to give teachers tools to help engage student learning about U.S. history. The audience of this website is history teachers all the way from elementary school to high school. The available resources of this website are teaching materials for teachers, content about numerous historical topics, and a section about the best practices for teaching history. I like this website because not only does it offer history content to teach, it gives teachers tools to help engage students in the material. The quality of this material is high and is well organized and it is eye appealing to visitors. Content: At first look, visitors to the website are able to know where they are and it is made clear who the audience of the website is. The authors and sponsors of the website are made available and contact information is provided. The only negative point about this website is its information currency. There is no last revision date, only a copyright year. The quality of information is great. There are numerous links to sources about various historical events and there are links for each grade level as well. There are also quizzes on the website to help enhance student learning. Design: The speed of this website is high; the homepage downloads immediately. The main page is very appealing and the content is accessible from three different tabs on top of the page. The information regarding authors/sponsors is also accessible at the bottom of the page. The navigation of the site is good; however, there are no directions available to visitors for navigating the site. . The site is compatible with various browsers and the content of the website is well organized and is plentiful.

Overview: This website provides lesson plans about topics in English such as reading and writing, printouts, professional development information, including topics such as teaching with technology and differentiating instruction, as well as interactive activities for students. In addition, the website provides resources for parents of students from kindergarten to 12 grade. The intended audience of this site is English teachers, parents, and students of all ages. I have concluded, after completing the design and content checklists, that this is a very reliable resource to use in the classroom. Design: This website is set up so it is very user friendly. The homepage downloads very efficiently and is attractive and appealing to the eye. It is clear where you are and what the contents of the website are as soon as you reach the site. I was unable to find the date that the site was established, however, at the bottom of the page it says 2012 before the sponsor of the site. The site is easy to navigate and everything is clearly labeled. Each link contains a brief explanation about where you will be navigated. There are not any animations on the homepage. The site is compatible with other browsers. The site provides a plentiful amount of information and lesson plans for all grades. Content: As soon as you reach this site, the sponsors are clearly indentified at the top. There is a tab that provides information about each of the sponsors as well as every author that provides information for the page. Each author's credentials are stated in a paragraph about them. It is unclear to me when the information was last updated but it seems like it is very up to date. The information seems to be very accurate and seems to be supported by excellent credentials. The site provides a numerous amount of links that take you many useful resources for students, teachers, and parents.

Posted by Amber Rittenhouse on 1/23/10 Overview: Coolmath is a site that assists ages 13 and above in learning math. The site teaches a math concept with a lot of detail, and then encourages the viewer to try it themselves. Links to further pages work properly and are generally useful. It is very easy to understand and follow. Coolmath looks like it is a very useful and fun website that helps students better understand math. Content: Coolmath contains pre-algebra, algebra, and geometry lessons, with many different categories in each. It also contains many math games. Information about the author can be found through this site. The author has a master's in math and is a college math teacher, so she is well qualified to present information on math. The site is well organized and easy to understand. However, there is no date of last revision, so it is unclear about how often this website is revised. Therefore, the accuracy of the site can not be detected. There are a few ads around the outside, but they are not very distracting since the main page is more colorful and catches the eye very easily. Design: Overall, Coolmath is well designed. The homepage is very colorful, making it look very appealing. There are links to go to specific places to learn specific math problems. There are, however, numbers that follow the cursor when it moves, which is kind of distracting. The information of the site looks well organized, so you can go to exactly where you desire. There is a link to contact people in charge of this site. There are also links to other math websites for further reference.

Overview: This website is targeted for people between the ages of "13-100" its means for people who are confused, hate, or are bored with math. Cool Math is updated frequently and was created by Karen who is a teacher and has a Master's in mathematics, she made the website because she had a difficult time growing up with math and she did not want others to have the difficulty that she had. Content: There are math lessons, practice, and games all focused on math. Though this website does not cover a wide variety of math subjects, the subjects that it does focus on Karen did a wonderful job. These subjects include: pre-algebra, algebra, pre-calc, calc, and geometry. This site is definitely focused on the students and helping them. Design: The design is child friendly, very colorful and welcoming. The cursur is the numbers 1 through 6 which is a fun change, the graphics are cute and as a younger student I would have been attracted. The only negative part of this design is that it seems a little cluttered at times but I might think that because we are always taught "less is more" but a student might find this "clutter" appealing.

Overall I think that this is a very good site; I think that it would really help children that need help with math, or need help enjoying it. The author has a master's degree in math, and is a math teacher, which I think helps because she is knowledgeable about math and teaching it. This site could be a very helpful math resource. I also think it is a good idea that it is for everyone over the age of 13, not just school age children. Design The design of this site is very good, the page does not have any links that do not work or that aren't relevant to the purpose. The graphics are all relevant and appealing and they do not take too long to download. Criteria There are many different types of activities on this site that will help the audience enjoy and be better at math. The information is all relevant and the author provides a long page about herself, her qualifications and why she created the site.

Overall This site is extremely useful both content and design wise. I think that I would definitely use it in a classroom when talking about science. Content The content on this site is very good, and very useful. I think that the information good be very useful when teaching kids about science, and energy. Being energy efficient is a very important thing in today's society and children need to know how and why to be energy efficient. Design The design of this site is very appealing and functional; I think that it is very good. The children would be able to navigate through it and use it.

Overview: The purpose of this site is unclear at first, though this could be due to the fact that the site is UK based. The site is a "national grid learning" that gives various learning sites for various age groups. Because it is not US based, it does not follow the same dialect which makes it more difficult to navigate through. The home page is clearly indented for parents/teachers/adults. It lacks any sort of eye appeal and seems fairly boring. There is an abundant amount of resources for different age groups including many different languages. But again, these are difficult to follow. Content: Overall, I assume the site works well for its intended purpose. There are many different options for people, but the information is difficult to follow. For my specific purposes, the site is usable but I would not refer to this site again in the future. Design: The design of this site bores me. Even as a parent or teacher, the site doesn't give much of a reason to continue browsing when starting at the home page. The games themselves seen to be entertaining enough but could still use work on gaining the interest of a child.

Content: This website includes a large amount of content about teaching English to students that speak a different language as their first language. The content is easy to determine based on the home page. There is adequate information about the author of this site including her credentials. However, it is unclear about when the information was last revised. The site includes a tremendous number of links that takes you to websites where preschool to grade eight students can practice their English through doing a number of interactive activities. The site also includes lesson plans as well as information on how to effectively teach English as a second language. This website would be a very effective teaching tool for teachers and even parents that are trying to teach their children English. Design: The design of the website allows people to navigate it easily. It also loads very quickly and efficiently. The homepage includes clear information immediately about where you are and what the contents of the site are. There is information about how to contact the author of the site. The links listed all contain descriptions of the site that they take you too. Most of the links work properly, however, there was a couple that could not be found. The site contains a very large amount of information that can be extremely helpful resources for ESL or any teachers. I was unable to find the currency of the information, however, at the bottom the date for how long the website has been up was listed. Overview: The intended audience of this website is ESL teachers and the links provided by the website are intended for students from preschool to 8th grade because it provides interactive learning activities for them. The purpose of the site is to provide teachers with resources and information on how to effectively teach their students the English language. The site provides an abundance of helpful activities that can effectively teach students. Based on the conten

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.

This website talks about the middle east and the possible realignment of the Middle East. It discusses the possibility of the New Middle East and how that would happen.

Derek Peil 10/7/2012 Overview The Purpose of the website Six Minutes Speaking and Presentation Skills is to provide definitions and historical background to Aristotle's three main argument types: Logos, Pathos, and Ethos. Targeting students and public speaking enthusiasts, this website gives first-hand knowledge from award winning public speaker Andrew Dlugan, as well as a wide range of informational book resources. Overall, my content and design guides convince me that this source is authentic, appealing, and applicable for an educational setting. Content This site contains accurate and well organized information. All of the links work properly and load just as efficiently as the home page itself. Upon arriving at the site, the purpose of the site is clearly noted by the titles, headings, and sub-headings. The author visibly identifies himself immediately at the top of the page. The author's credentials and contact information are also given. External sources granted by this site appear sound. One of the only weaknesses to this site is that is last update was January 24th, 2010. Given the didactic mission of this website however, such a disparity in revision is acceptable as the knowledge of Aristotle's argument types is common and highly referenced. Design Appealing to the eye, this website strongly reflects the positive aspects of the design evaluation form. The site loads quickly with no glitches in displaying graphics or text. All of the sites webpages are outlined along the top of the homepage, allowing for easy navigation throughout. Appropriate pictures are used to convey meaning and bring the site to life. For example, on the Delivery Techniques page, the website shows a picture of a speaker covering his face with a mask to convey that section's topic of conquering the emotional fear of public speaking. Throughout the site, links are helpfully placed within the text to further benefit the user in navigating to other useful sites and

Derek Peil 10/7/2012 Overview The informational website tculibrary is designed to set forth a substantial amount of resources for an audience of communication students. Many of these resources are internal and are intended to instruct students on the arts of creating an effective public speech. The external resources guide students to rich websites full of vast databases on rhetoric. With high marks on the evaluation guide, I recommend this site to educators as a source of information on topics related to communication. Content Credible information is strongly used throughout the website, and is indicated via highly organized titles. All of the links load quickly, and are up-to-date. The last revision of the site was on August 27th, 2012, indicating its accuracy and relevance for modern educational settings. Contained within the site are many links to library databases. The website provides lucid instructions on navigating through these databases, making the process of acquiring research extremely hassle free. A single weakness, or rather an inconvenience, is seemingly all the error to be found within this website. When following the link to Opposing Viewpoints, the audience is required to login using Texas Christian University credentials. This limits the usage of this site to TCU audiences only. In light of the overpowering strengths of this site, a small confinement of audience such as this is more than acceptable. Design This website appeals to a modern audience with its clean colors and organized display of information. Copyright and authorship claims are easy to spot at the top and bottom of the sites. Along the top of the homepage, a list of tabs provides simple traversing to and from links. Also, the website is full of external sources that carry the same standard of credibility as the home site. Although the website contains some graphics, it may lack the number to create a completely attractive website. Nonetheless, the pictures the site do

Derek Peil 10/7/2012 Overview Purdue University Press is a substantial source of poetry and literature for educated audiences. The website's purpose is to offer intellectual texts for educators and students to incorporate into their curriculum. Carrying a simple, pleasant tone this website lists suggested poems and literature. Although the website lacks clearly stated dates of revision, it still scores high on the evaluation guides; and I recommend this site to those who are looking for some rich pieces of literary work. Content The University of Purdue's sound reputation of information precision is exemplified throughout the course of the website. This site contains sound organization and easy navigation. With genre listings and a friendly search engine, users can find what they need quickly. This allows for Educators and Students to spend less time searching for the material and more time studying it. In contrast to these strengths, the website is weak in terms of its currency. The site fails to display a revision date. But since the site is always uploaded with new inventories and sales, one can assume the site is fairly current. Design This site's display style is definitely suitable for an educational setting. The modest, yet contrasting colors make the site enjoyable to navigate. Also, the pictures of the book covers are very useful in helping to identify one from the others. Waiting for links to load is nonexistent, and this site is multi-browser friendly. Yet, this website lacks external sources from which users can broaden their findings. All of the links are internal. Do to the fact that this site is both education and profit oriented, this weakness is easily overlooked by the benefits of a deep library of texts that this site easily lays out for the user.

This website gives facts, maps, and other details about all of the battles during the US Civil War.

Casey KarchOctober 5, 2012Overview: The purpose of the Math Drills website is to provide a mathematics tool to instructors and parents through worksheets. They provide worksheets for elementary students to complete in grades one through six, ranging from just about anything they will need to learn to move through the district channels. Answer keys are provided as well. The intended audience is parents and teachers, helping to develop the children. The resources available to this site are links to worksheets, a tour of the website, and a link to contact the teachers and technicians that worked on the site. My impression is that it can be extremely useful for instructors and parents needing to get their students extra practice in mathematics. It is not an overwhelmingly designed site, so it is nice to navigate. Everything is in order and easy to understand. Content: The content in this site is exceptional. The main downfalls of it are the lack of hard information and varying information. It only contains worksheets, not explanations of the material. Other then that, it does not contain a date of last revision. On the plus side, the first look and information quality are excellent. The content will be very useful for teachers and parents, saving a lot of time. Design: Design is not very eye catching, but all the information is clearly labeled and easy to access. Home page is a nice touch, not too extravagant but not too boring. The use of multimedia, browser compatibility, and content presentation all appeal to multiple ages, making it an excellent source. Also, it contains an excellent link to find out further information by contacting the makers.