This quasi-experimental, mixed-method study investigated the extent to which critical evaluation skills required during online reading comprehension can be improved using a three-phase instructional model designed to engage students as creators of online information. It also examined the effectiveness of this instructional model in cultivating the dispositions students need when they read online, and examined the themes and patterns that emerged as students thought critically about and constructed online content.

The study drew on multiple theoretical perspectives: critical literacy (Freire, 1970; Luke, 2000), new literacies (Leu et al., 2009, 2011), and cognitive apprenticeship (Brown, Collins, & Duguid, 1989). The instructional model was designed to teach students in an economically challenged school to use online resources and ICTs to acquire and use reliable informational sources. The study was conducted in two phases: quantitative (pre/post instrument data) and qualitative (focus group interviews, case studies).

Quantitative findings suggest that the ability to recognize and construct surface-level markers of credibility and relevance can be enhanced through content creation pedagogy. Quantitative data also suggest that the dispositions of critical stance and healthy skepticism may be enhanced. Qualitative results provide insight into the classroom context and student perspectives that shaped outcomes.