Website Evaluation

For this assignment, we have to evaluate five different websites on immigration and whether or not they would be credible sources for classroom use.


Website #1: FAIR

The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) is a national, nonprofit, public-interest organization whose members believe that immigration policies must be reformed to serve national interest. Due to the fact that this website is a .org website, I find it to be a non-credible source. A .org ending to a website means that this website is made by an organization, which therefore means that the website is not credible. This is not a credible resource because it only shows the negative side of immigration, while a credible resource would show both sides of immigration. Lastly, this website was updated in 2005. Due to the fact that it is 2011, I would say that this is not credible information because it is not consistently updated.
When debating to use this in a classroom, I would have to say yes. The only reason I would show this in my classroom would be to show the students a type of website to NOT use.

Website #2: Immigration Blog

Immigration Blog is a Blog done by a man named Bradley Maged. He blogs about immigration and policies that are adopted through immigration. Due to the fact that this website is based on only the opinions of one man, I would deem this website not credible. Maged even states that his blog is from a "liberal" viewpoint. Along with having a biased opinion, Maged states in his blog that "None of the attorneys listed in this Web site is certified as an “expert” or “specialist” pursuant to any authority governing the practice of law in any state". If the lawyers are not certified, then clearly this is not a credible source. Once again, I would not use this as an example website for students to gain credible information. The only reason I would use this website would be to show my students where to NOT get credible information.

Website #3: Amercia.gov

America.gov is a government website about Immigration and U.S. History. The article on the website is written by Hasia Diner, a professor at NYU in New York. I would find this source to be credible because it is a .gov website. We know that the government has all the facts about what goes on in this country, so we know the information that they give us has to be true. Another reason I would view this source as credible is because it is written by a college professor. To be a professor and teach students, one has to be knowledgeable and credited in a subject. The government wouldn't throw any random person on their website if their information was not un-biased and credible. I would definitely use this in my classroom because this would show students what a credible resource is and how to maneuver a credible resource website.

Website #4: US Citizenship and Immigration Service

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is the government agency that oversees lawful immigration to the United States. In their mission statement, it says, " the USCIS will secure America’s promise as a nation of immigrants by providing accurate and useful information to our customers, granting immigration and citizenship benefits, promoting an awareness and understanding of citizenship, and ensuring the integrity of our immigration system". Because this is a .gov website and because of the statement "providing accurate and useful information to our customers", I would find this to be a credible resource. This website gives information on green cards, citizenship, adoption, anything that an immigrant would need to know. I would definitely show this to my students as a credible resource. They could use this website to find un-biased information about immigration and also learn about the government as they do so!

website #5: News from the Onions

This would in no way be appropriate for classroom use, and I would find this resource not credible just by looking at the website. There are multiple uses of inappropriate language and is defiantly not for the use of children. It even says in the disclaimer that this is not appropriate for children under 13 years of age. I believe that this is not a credible resource because it is a .com website and .com means this is a commercial site, meaning that anymore can make one. Also, I believe that this website is for a comedic purpose, and not for an educational standpoint. In conclusion, I would for sure not be showing this website to my students.