Unit 9: Evaluating the Internet

Lesson 5: Purpose

Consider the purpose of the website you have accessed. Ask yourself the following questions to determine why the site was created.

1. Why did the author create the site? Websites have a wide range of purposes. Is the site’s main goal to advertise, advocate, persuade, entertain, share an opinion, make announcements, or publish scholarship? Is the author trying to convince you to believe something, or objectively explain a concept or idea?
2. Does the site have more than one purpose? Some sites have more than one purpose. A website can be simultaneously commercial, informative, educational, entertaining, persuasive, personal, and institutional.
3. Who is the intended audience? Is the site geared towards a general audience, students, scholars, or a particular age or cultural group? Websites written for a general audience have simple vocabulary and avoid subject specific terms. Scholarly sites contain subject specific language.
4. What is the reading level of the site? Is the site easy or challenging to read? Is the information technical or basic? Does the author assume subject knowledge?
5. What is the design of the site? Is the site professionally designed and logically organized? Was it created by an individual or a team of professionals? Does the site contain many ads or images, or does it primarily contain text?
   
   
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