Real or Fake?

This past week in class we talked a lot about digital literacy as well as learning about fake websites/accounts online. As we did the activity in class trying to figure out if the account was real or fake I came to realize that I really cannot tell %100 of the time if the account is real or not. I made my own thoughts and opinions about the certain account and thought they were valid enough however, that was not true. It made me re-think about how I view other accounts online and as well as informational websites.

Through my whole life with doing research, and projects for school and using google for information I thought I was being cautious and aware of the sites I was using. But now, this is making me change my mindset and to think about all the possibilities of the websites out there and conduct a reasonable response as to whether or not I can trust the information given to me. It is just very crazy to me that websites could be controlled by someone who knows absolutely nothing about what they are talking about and that they could be anyone, anywhere.

As I read through Fake news: It’s complicated it allowed me to think about the certain aspects there are into finding out if the content, or account given is real and trustworthy. Just as we discussed in class, there are certain tips and tricks to follow and check off while looking at an account if you are unsure they are real or not. Checking their profile, pictures, what they have posted or tweeted about in the past, there likes, and retweets, the list goes on. Having this understanding of what to look for as you are searching something or someone up is important to know. Below is a picture from the article explaining certain details to consider while looking at a article, or the news, etc.

I think teaching our students about finding the difference between a real website or a fake one should be considered in the classroom. With students doing projects and research for multiple classes it is possible that they will just use the first site that is made available for them because they do not fully understand the difference. This should be introduced to the students to better educate themselves on discovering whether a account/website is real or fake. This can also help them in the future if they ever come into a crossroads and are in a difficult position. In How do we teach students to identify fake new? there are multiple ways in which we the teachers can explain and make aware the strategies for students to comprehend and learn about to better their lives. very simple ways to include into our teachings to make available for our students and to protect them from the horrible things on the internet.

There is a lot of fake news and information around us all the time. As I viewed the little article named You’re not going to believe what I’m about to tell you it actually taught me a few things and I was a little surprised while I was reading it. This goes to show that we are told a variety of different facts and information throughout our lives that may not be coming from very reliable resources but we are never aware of that possibility. It is just something we do not think about. In the comic, there were a lot of facts stated given the truth behind all of them and it really did shock me because I had no idea what to believe.

Online can be very helpful when using reliable resources and understanding how to tell the difference between a real and fake account/news. This is something I will have to work on and learn more about for the future and to present to my future students!