Students need to be taught how to assess the relevance, validity and bias of the information they find online.
The following websites have lessons designed for verifying information found online.
Use your RADAR (from http://library.sait.ca/evaluatinginformation.asp)
The RADAR Framework is a tool to help you remember the criteria used to evaluate the quality, credibility, and relevance of any source of information. Keep these principles in mind when considering the inclusion of any source - whether print, online or other media - in your assignment.
Relevance – How relevant is the information to your assignment?
Authority – Who/what is the source (author, publisher) of the information?
Date – When was the information first published or last updated?
Appearance – What does the source of information look like?
Reason – Why does the information exist in the first place?
RADAR is not a yes/no test, or a be-all and end-all guide. Use RADAR to consider the relative quality of information as you are searching.