ITEC2360

Brianna O'Shea October 13, 2014 Overview: The purpose of this article is to talk about what the purpose of the No Child Left Behind Act was and how it has changed. Even though NCLB hasn't reached the goal it was designed to in the allotted time, the change of focusing on growth rather than test scores, has shown an improvement in schools and has seen to help students. The audience of this article is those doubting what good NCLB can offer and why it is still in effect. Overall, this article shows a side perhaps unknown about NCLB and would be good for potential teachers to read. Content: The purpose of the article and its audience is clearly identified, as well as the author yet no links are given to contact or look into the author. The article is recent and links to other sites work and provide good additional information. The purpose, informal, is clear and its purpose is achieved. There seems to be a little bias towards NCLB, yet the article does point out on critique of the Act and accepts it.  Design: The title is clear and the article is well organized with headers and good lengths of paragraphs. The sponsor and copyright are clearly identified while the site is easily maneuverable. The links to other sites are helpful to look at if confused or wish for additional information. Information is easy to find under each header. There are no additional links for the author or similar articles from this page. 

Kayla Bowie 13 October 2014 Overview: Starfall.com is a site for teachers, parents, and students for preschool. It goes over back concepts like ABC's, reading, math, calendars and holidays. It has instructional links for parents as well as games for students. There are also links to the starfall store where you can purchase curriculum activities for kindergarten phonics. Content: The links are working and it is easy to navigate around the site. The content is current and accurate and will still be useful for years to come. Design: The design is very well done. At first sight it is kind of in your face with colors, but other than that is very easy to navigate. With a little help, younger children could easily use it.

Overview Paragraph: The purpose of this site is to provide different kinds of activities to use when teaching math. The audience is mostly teachers but parents would benefit as well. There is all kinds of math worksheets and games and such that are available for grades preschool through high school. Overall this site looks very useful and helpful if you're in a pinch for an activity for a lesson plan. Content Paragraph: The content of this webpage is up to date and current according to the copyright. Also, the authors of the site are all listed and described and have degrees in the content that they are discussing. The sponsors are clearly displayed. All of the links that are displayed are working and fully functional. The content is well organized and easy to use. Design Paragraph: It was very clear as to where I was when I clicked on the link as to where I was on the internet and what the content of the website was. There is a decent amount of viable information to make this site worth visiting. The graphics are very useful and aid in the navigation of the website. There is a link that is available to click on to contact a person for more information and other websites are available to for use.

Overview Paragraph: The purpose of this site is to provide different kinds of activities to use when teaching math. The audience is mostly teachers but parents would benefit as well. There is all kinds of math worksheets and games and such that are available for grades preschool through high school. Overall this site looks very useful and helpful if you're in a pinch for an activity for a lesson plan. Content Paragraph: The content of this webpage is up to date and current according to the copyright. Also, the authors of the site are all listed and described and have degrees in the content that they are discussing. The sponsors are clearly displayed. All of the links that are displayed are working and fully functional. The content is well organized and easy to use. Design Paragraph: It was very clear as to where I was when I clicked on the link as to where I was on the internet and what the content of the website was. There is a decent amount of viable information to make this site worth visiting. The graphics are very useful and aid in the navigation of the website. There is a link that is available to click on to contact a person for more information and other websites are available to for use.

Kayla Bowie 13 October 2014 Overview: Preschooleducation.com is a site for preschool teachers. It isn't very professional looking but all of the content on it is useful. There are links for theme days, calendar time, games (inside and outside), and holidays. If you're in need for a quick idea, this is a good site to use. Content: There is a lot to go through on this site. If you knew a topic of interest, it would be pretty easy to search for something. Because there is so much on here, it can be a little slow find things though. Design: It is pretty organized with about twenty tabs on the side to narrow down searches. However, there is an add that will pop up whenever you go to a new page which makes it a little irritating to look around on the site.

Overview: This essay is intended for High School students studying literature or as a resource for teachers teaching literature. It concisely covers all the themes of the poem "Blackberry Picking," and accurately describes literary devices used. The author has been editor approved and the site is updated. Content: The essay covers the content of the poem very well. It deeply describes the poem and goes over all the different meanings the poem has. It gives accurate information of the poem and dissects it line by line, thoroughly describing it. Design: Aesthetically, the site is nice looking and looks and sounds accurate. All the links work, and there is lots of information available. The only bad thing is that you must create an account to read the entire essay.

Overview: This essay is intended for High School students studying literature or as a resource for teachers teaching literature. It concisely covers all the themes of the poem "Blackberry Picking," and accurately describes literary devices used. The author has been editor approved and the site is updated. Content: The essay covers the content of the poem very well. It deeply describes the poem and goes over all the different meanings the poem has. It gives accurate information of the poem and dissects it line by line, thoroughly describing it. Design: Aesthetically, the site is nice looking and looks and sounds accurate. All the links work, and there is lots of information available. The only bad thing is that you must create an account to read the entire essay.

Overview: This article is written by Dr. Michael Morales. He goes over the themes of Shakespeare's "King Lear," and effectively summarizes the play. The blog is updated, and uses current language to describe an old piece of text. This article would be intended for students of High School age. Content: The article is very descriptive with the summary of the play. He is also descriptive with the themes, and cites examples of all of his claims. The information is accurate to the plotline, and the language is correct and meaningful. Design: The website is pleasing to the eye, and has many links to different articles. All of the links work, and it is very community-based. It is scholarly without ads and all information.

Overview: This article is written by Dr. Michael Morales. He goes over the themes of Shakespeare's "King Lear," and effectively summarizes the play. The blog is updated, and uses current language to describe an old piece of text. This article would be intended for students of High School age. Content: The article is very descriptive with the summary of the play. He is also descriptive with the themes, and cites examples of all of his claims. The information is accurate to the plotline, and the language is correct and meaningful. Design: The website is pleasing to the eye, and has many links to different articles. All of the links work, and it is very community-based. It is scholarly without ads and all information.

Basic content of this site is easily accessible. The intended audience of this site is for students reading the material. The author for this site is clearly listed on the bottom of the page, he is a professor at the university of San Jose state. The website has contact information in order to reach the author. The last update on this website was late September of 2014. This site seems really consistent with all other sites as well as the book. This site is aesthetically pleasing and easy to work around. There isn't any other links on this page, but everything else seems frequent. The content achieves intended purpose of giving an overview of the main characters of the book. The content on this page is accurate consistent and free of bias remarks. Previous knowledge of the subject is apparent. There is no spelling or grammar mistakes and everything on site is working. This site offers sufficient information related to my topic. This page is easily accessible, when the url is clicked on the website pops up. The pages are aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Images, title, and description make it easy to tell exactly where you are. There is a table of contents in order to know exactly what you are going to look at. This site is easy to navigate around, and fun to use. There is limited external links on this page and there is no where you can get lost in the site. One basic format is used throughout the site, the information is labeled and organized. This site is up to date and any other information that is not to date has been removed. There is much useful information on this site, which makes it worth while for me to visit in class.

Cold War- YouTube Documentary Evaluated October 13, 2014

The purpose of this site is to give a 45 minute video tutorial of the Cold War. It is designed for upper level students, presumably high school and college. Based on the information in the video, it is a great overview and or complementary source for learning about the Cold War. The documentary was published on Oct 11, 2014. This overview begins with the United States' entry into Vietnam and goes through the fall of the Berlin Wall. Using interviews with historical experts and leaders from this period of time, the author put together an informative and engaging piece. The design of the video is put together as a standard documentary. Because we are looking at historical events, it is best to do so in chronological order. The author of the video puts it together so the students will understand how the chronological events take place and affect each other.

The intended purpose of this website is to provide teachers with background information and resources when teaching about energy resources to all different age levels. On the website there are different lesson plans and activities to incorporate into the classroom for all grades. The website overall is easy to navigate and understandable. The purpose of this site is clear: to inform. The author is not clearly identified, but the website is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and the information is consistent with similar information and appears to be accurate based on my prior knowledge. It gives many facts not only just about energy and lesson plans/activities, but information specifically about the federal government energy department. Links to other sites are current and working properly. Overall, the website is friendly. The author and when it was recently updated is not provided, but the information appears to be accurate. It is easy to navigate and offers sufficient information. Also, the links are up to date on the website.

Cold War- Wikipedia Site Evaluated October 13, 2014

The purpose of this Wiki site is to give a general overview of the Cold War. It is designed for educational and casual learners. This page goes into great depth on many aspects to the Cold War. Although I wouldn't rely on it for specific factual information to base research on, the page is well referenced and gives factual information as well as many other sources to further the readers' knowledge. The overview begins with what the Cold War is and moves into historical significance as well as a timeline of events. There are many aspects of the Cold War and many of the topics are covered including historical significance, social aspects and historical people, events and documents that were important to the Cold War. Because it is very engaging to the reader, it is a great place to gain interest in the subject and show how large the topic is. The design of the page follows standard Wiki format. It shows a brief overview of the Cold War and moves into more specifics. Because of the stigma that comes with how much you can "trust" a Wiki site, there nearly 300 supporting resources attached to the bottom of the Wiki. From personal research on the subject, I have read many of the documents that are used to support the information throughout.

The purpose of this site is to inform visitors of what they can do to promote human rights around the world. The audience is "youth" so children of a wide range of ages and even teachers who want to introduce this resource to them. The website offers a multitude of information such as what this group is and what they do and what human rights are. The website is spread out and information is designated to different tabs. I like that if I want to scroll down I can see "Human Rights News" as well as a definition of human rights. This makes me feel as though if I were bringing a class to this site they would be drawn into the subject just by the front page and then use the tabs to research more. The page appears busy but in a well laid out way. It draws a viewer in with the color scheme and the over all layout.

Alyssa Maurer ITEC-2360 Prof. Craig E. Shepherd Web Resources Evaluation The website, Americans for the Arts (www.americansforthearts.org) is an interactive resource website that specifically dedicated to promoting, sustaining, and supporting all art education within the United States. The main intended audience of this website is educators, professors, students, and individuals interested in supporting the arts within their communities. The website includes the local, state, and advocacy for art education to precisely portray their purpose to their audience. The research for supporting the arts is included along with forums to connect to resources and alliances within communities across the nation. The website seems to be full of valuable information and ways to connect with others within your community to share and explore ways to support the arts. The content of the website is specific and to the point. The mission of the organization is easily found and the creators of the organization can be contacted directly through email. They have a newsletter section along with blogs that keeps the viewer up to date and able to comment and discuss topics online. Their research studies and publications are all uploaded to the website showing that they have dedicated research to proving the importance of the arts. There is a lot of content within this website which is almost overwhelming though when first visiting the site. It would take a lot of time to explore the entirety of this website. The design of the website is modern and nicely organized. The drop down menus allow for the design elements of the website to be consistent throughout the entire website. Important links to different parts of the website are shown in bold blocks that are in yellow and red, demanding attention. The images shown are usually of individuals allowing you to visualize the author and or the subject from a lecture that is summarized. Ways to connect to the website is shown through soci

One resource I chose to evaluate is No Fear Shakespeare. The URL for this website is http://nfs.sparknotes.com/. The purpose of this website is for students to understand Shakespearian plays. Understanding older English can be very difficult, and the purpose of this website is to use language that is more relatable to today. The author of the plays is obviously Shakespeare, and the site shows other information about the contributors at the bottom of the page. Copyright information and contact information is provided for those who need it. This website is current, and seems reliable. The website effectively fulfills its purpose. I used this as a source while studying Shakespeare, and I would use it for teaching it as well. The design of this website is very functional. This was easy to use as well as aesthetically pleasing. The website is easily navigated and presents information well. The design is very modern, so it is fun to be on this website.

The intended purpose of this website is to provide teachers with fun science lesson plans and activities for grades K-12. Lesson plans with the needed materials is provided, videos, images, quizzes, games and facts are also provided. The author is provided, along with how to contact him and a background information. Although the latest revision is not provided, the material that is shown seems accurate and up to date, based upon my knowledge. The content on this site is well organized, grammatically correct, and easy to understand. There are links that are on the website that are current and fit for the intended audience (teachers).

This website is for teachers who are teaching second or foreign languages. It consists of multiple approaches to teaching this subject. I really like the layout of this website. It has a list of all the approaches and when you scroll down it goes into detail about all of them. It also explains why each approach was selected and how it would work. I think that this website would be a great tool when one approach is not working. It would allow the teacher to look into various ways to teach and give them reasons as to why it might work. It also tells you how to approach each lesson and various do's and don'ts of the approach as well. This website is aesthetically pleasing. It has an approachable feeling and appears very helpful. It isn't negative and is rather encouraging. It also has links to other news in their bulletin section. I will definitely use this website in the future. Amanda Harrenga