Health Website Detective Challenge

Students complete a “Health Website Detective Challenge” in which they act as health information detectives to compare two health websites on the same topic and decide which source is more trustworthy, using Chapter 15 concepts such as health literacy, evidence, bias, privacy, and health fraud. Students first select a consumer health or aging topic, such as healthy aging, dementia, Medicare, stress and aging, or health fraud, and identify two websites on that topic, with at least one that appears trustworthy and a second that may be trustworthy, questionable, or clearly biased.

They then complete a structured comparison chart that prompts them to analyze the author or sponsoring organization, credentials, publication or update date, purpose of the site, presence and quality of evidence, tone and language, advertising or sales elements, privacy protections, and overall trustworthiness for health decision-making.

As part of the activity, students check for “health fraud red flags,” such as miracle-cure language, broad one-product solutions, testimonial-based proof, promises of quick results, “all-natural” as proof of safety, conspiracy claims, and aggressive product promotion. They then write short, paragraph-length responses explaining which website is more reliable and why, which site shows stronger evidence, whether they observed bias or fraud indicators, why careful evaluation of online health information is especially important as people age, and what they will do differently in future health searches.

The rubric used for grading emphasizes website selection and completion, evaluation of source credibility, health fraud analysis, short response quality, and application of Chapter 15 concepts, each scored on a 10-point scale with performance levels from Exemplary to Beginning for a total of 50 points.

AI tools support this use case by helping the instructor generate and revise clear assignment prompts, example topics, guiding reflection questions, and rubric descriptors that align with course outcomes and Chapter 15 learning objectives. AI can also be used to create practice scenarios or sample websites, including fictional descriptions, that students critique in class before working independently, reinforcing cyber skepticism and informed decision-making.

When allowed by course policy, students may use AI only for preliminary brainstorming, such as generating a list of possible health topics or locating candidate websites. However, they are required to perform the actual credibility evaluation, fraud detection, and written analysis on their own and to follow course guidelines regarding appropriate AI use and citation.