UPLift! is designed to work with Microsoft Office 2007. If required, a viewer can be downloaded from here . To interact with UPLift! view as a Slide Show Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills

This section of UPLift! is aimed at all students. It focuses on the core skills required to make effective use of the internet for academic purposes. For example, it will help you to locate and evaluate websites and explore the pros and cons of social networking sites.

Perhaps you know how to do some of these things already? Take the short quiz to find out. Perhaps you need to develop a particular skill? Take the link to find out more.

If you would like some more help click on the Help! button, otherwise move to the next page using the arrow icon.

Click on Q&A to link to a short quiz to see if you can do the basics of this skill.

First of all, select Slide Show, then

From the Beginning.

Tick the box when you have completed the quiz.

Click on the ? icon to find links to information, guides, video clips etc. to help you develop this skill.

Move between slides by following the navigation buttons at the bottom of the screen.

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Skill

Describe the nature of the web as an information source and when Google might be a good place to start your research Locate and navigate an important site for your subject, using the Library’s ‘My Subject’ pages Explain the importance of evaluating information from the web Identify the parts of a URL that aid online source evaluation Evaluate a web page using academic criteria, e.g. authority, purpose, bias

Can I do this? Find out more

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Skill

Explain how to conduct an advanced Search on Google Explain the pros and cons of social networking sites Describe the nature of a wiki and when to use it appropriately Locate other specialist internet resources in your subject area, e.g. maps, statistics, audio-visual Explain the concept of ‘Creative Commons’ when referring to multimedia information Identify guidance and comply with copyright law when using the internet

Can I do this?

Find out more

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Describe the nature of the web as an information source and when Google might be a good place to start your research

The Information Landscape has a section on websites, which suggests when the web might be a good starting point for research.

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Describe the nature of the web as an information source and when Google might be a good place to start your research

Your tutors and faculty librarians select good quality library resources for you, but if you use the news, information from the make selections for yourself.

What kind of information might it be necessary to find on the web?

Reveal answer

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Locate and navigate an important site for your subject, using the Library’s ‘My Subject’ pages

• • • The nature of the Internet means that web sites vary hugely in the way they are presented, however, you should be able to locate at least some of the following features: a homepage (often with a 'home' button to link to it) some sort of list of contents (though it's not often actually called 'contents') a site map • a search facility • links • contact details • sections labelled 'About...' or 'About us', as well as, 'News', 'Events' 'Resources' or 'Publications'. A website might also have a sign-in or log-in box for members.

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Locate and navigate an important site for your subject, using the Library’s ‘My Subject’ pages

The University Library’s website is important for your studies, whatever your subject.

If you are working from home and want to attempt to troubleshoot some problems you are experiencing with a resource, which of the following might be your first click on the library website? Click on the boxes below.

A) Help and Support Here you will find an option Troublshooting

problems

B) Services and Facilities C) Essentials You could arrive at ‘Troubleshooting problems’ by taking the link to Computing in the library Known problems is useful to enable you to see if it’s a problem with the resource

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Explain the importance of evaluating information from the web

Searching the internet is not usually the best place to start research for academic work. However, it may provide you with useful supplementary information. Because the internet is such an unregulated resource, unlike the University Library, you must be confident that the websites you choose are trustworthy and accurate.

Follow the link to find a useful tutorial called ‘Internet Detective’. The section ‘Wise Up’ explains why students sometimes get poor marks for assignments because they have used the internet in ways that are inappropriate for work at this level.

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Why is it so important to evaluate the stuff I find on the internet?

If you use poor quality

Click to reveal

low marks or even fail your assignment

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Identify the parts of a URL that aid online source evaluation

Checking the ‘domain names’ part of a URL might be useful in judging any bias the web site might have. Here are some common domain types: .ac

.edu

.co

.com

.gov

.org

.net

an academic (e.g. college or university) site in the UK an educational institution (outside the UK) a company or commercial organisation (normally in the UK) a company or commercial organisation (any country) a government (local or national) site a non-profit organisation originally for administrators, now more widely-used

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Identify the parts of a URL that aid online source evaluation Can you identify the parts of this URL (web address) that might help you to decide if you would trust this website?

http://ota.ahds.ac.uk/

This informs you that the ‘domain name’ is Click here to reveal the answer

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Evaluate a web page using academic criteria, e.g. authority, purpose, bias

Follow the link to find a useful guide on Evaluating Internet Sources . It explains that you need to think critically, especially when using the internet. This means you should not accept content at face value. By asking yourself questions about the authority, accuracy, objectivity and currency of the information you should be able to filter out unreliable and unsuitable material.

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Evaluate a web page using academic criteria, e.g. authority, purpose, bias Link to this website and consider the following questions

http://ota.ahds.ac.uk/

Who ‘owns’ the site?

What is the purpose of the site?

Do you think there is any bias to be concerned about?

Do the links work?

Can you contact the owner of the site?

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Explain how to conduct an advanced Search on Google

Advanced searching is often misconceived as a more difficult way of searching the Internet, in fact it is often easier because you are prompted to consider your search more fully. You should get fewer, but more relevant, search results. Advanced Search on Google is a guide which will help you search effectively.

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Explain how to conduct an advanced Search on Google

There are 2 ways of conducting an advanced search on Google; you can go to the ‘Advanced search’ option or you can use some simple commands along with your keywords.

C)

Can you match the commands ( in blue in the statements below ) to the advanced search options on Google?

A) Portsmouth dockyard

-

historic A) B) Library catalogue

:

port.ac.uk

C)

“

planet of the apes

”

Reveal answers B)

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Explain the pros and cons of social networking sites

The following guides from the Tangled in the Web series are useful both for academic and social purposes: Tangled in the Web: Sharing introduces a range of shared content resources on the web including sites for photos, video, essays, presentations and podcasts Tangled in the Web: Web 2.0 introduces some sites which actively encourage social networking and interaction Tangled in the Web: Social Bookmarking introduces some tools to enable you to save and share your internet ‘favourites’ Tangled in the Web: Blogs provides some examples of blogs and some things to consider before starting your own All of the above guides look at the pros and cons of such resources.

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Explain the pros and cons of social networking sites

You can find the University Library’s social media icons at the bottom of the Library web pages . Click on the icons below to have a look at what we include on each. Why not choose your favourite and follow us.

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Describe the nature of a wiki and when to use it appropriately

The Oxford English Dictionary ( OED Online ) defines ‘wiki’ as:

“A type of web page designed so that its content can be edited by anyone who accesses it, using a simplified markup language.”

The most well known wiki is Wikipedia, a free collaborative encyclopedia that anyone can author or edit. It is often deemed unacceptable to use it for academic purposes. However, visit the guide, Wikipedia to see why and find out how you can make effective use of this resource, through careful evaluation.

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Describe the nature of a wiki and when to use it appropriately

True or false? Click on the correct answers

Anyone, even you, can contribute to Wikipedia On Wikipedia, you can see when an article has been updated and who by

True



False



True

 Plounsbury CC Flickr

False



Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Locate other specialist internet resources in your subject area, e.g. maps, statistics, audio-visual

‘

My Subject

’ is a good place to find specialist internet resources, including non textual sources.

Follow the links to any of the guides that might interest you. Market Data Legal Information Mediascape: interactive guide to image video and sound Box of Broadcasts for TV and radio programmes : Digimap : map data

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Locate other internet resources in your subject area, e.g. maps, statistics On the screenshot below, click on the link that might enable you to find recommend internet resources in your subject area. You will know when you have clicked on the correct link as an example will appear. Visit the Library homepage to explore.

Try again

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Locate other specialist internet resources in your subject area, e.g. maps, statistics, audio-visual

Click the screenshot below to watch a short video clip: http://screencast.com/t/mYFrB9vjJJyK

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Explain the concept of ‘Creative Commons’ when referring to multimedia information

All rights reserved Full copyright Creative Commons A range of licenses in between Public domain No copyright From: www.vts.intute.ac.uk/tutorial/imagesearching

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Explain the concept of ‘Creative Commons’ when referring to multimedia information

I’ve found this useful image on a photo -sharing website. Would it be okay to use it on my own website? I checked out the license and it said it was available under ‘Creative Commons’

Read the license Do you think he can use the image on his website? Click on the correct answer.



Yes Providing he gives the original author credit No

 Volcano types diagram CC. by Alan Levine, Flickr

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Identify guidance and comply with copyright law when using the internet

Staffordshire University has created a web page with useful information on copyright, aimed specifically at students, which includes information about copyright on the web: A student's guide to copyright. Visit their website and follow the link to ‘The Web’. http://www.staffs.ac.uk/legal/copyright/students_guide/index.jsp

Using the Internet for Academic Purposes

Core Skills Identify guidance and comply with copyright law when using the internet

Visit the BBC’s homepage – www.bbc.co.uk

Locate the Terms of Use for this website and find out it the statement below is true or false.

“I can watch TV programmes as they are being broadcast using BBC online services on my mobile device. I don’t need a TV licence, as long as it is for personal use.”

Click on the correct answer Link to section 3 from this part of the BBC’s Terms of Use page:



True

3.2.2 If you do not have a valid television licence

False

