The purpose of this study was to investigate whether statistically significant differences existed between high school Honors Physics websites and those of Advanced Placement (AP) Physics in terms of Web-design, National Science Education Standards (NSES) Physics content, and NSES Science Process standards.

The procedure began with the selection of 152 sites comprising two groups with equal sample sizes of 76 for Honors Physics and for Advanced Placement Physics. The websites used in the study were accumulated using the Google™ search engine. To find Honors Physics websites, the search words "honors physics high school" were entered as the query into the search engine. To find sites for Advanced Placement Physics, the query, "advanced placement physics high school," was entered into the search engine. The evaluation of each website was performed using an instrument developed by the researcher based on three attributes: Web-design, NSES Physics content, and NSES Science Process standards. A "1" was scored if the website was found to have each attribute, otherwise a "0" was given. This process continued until all 76 websites were evaluated for each of the two types of physics websites, Honors and Advanced Placement. Subsequently the data were processed using Excel functions and the SPSS statistical software program. The mean and standard deviation were computed individually for the three attributes under consideration. Three, 2-tailed, independent samples t tests were performed to compare the two groups of physics websites separately on the basis of Web Design, Physics Content, and Science Process.

The results of the study indicated that there was only one statistically significant difference between high school Honors Physics websites and those of AP Physics. The only difference detected was in terms of National Science Education Standards Physics content. It was found that Advanced Placement Physics websites contained more NSES physics content than Honors Physics websites.

There was no significant difference found between the two types of high school physics websites in regards to Web-design, and NSES science process standards.

It is hoped that the results of this study may serve as a guide for researchers to explore the role of Web-Assisted Instruction (WAI) as an enhancement to traditional instruction in physics. With the first generation to grow up in the digital age now in high school, WAI may prove to be useful as method to improve critical thinking skills and provide opportunities for inquiry beyond the classroom.