Evaluate Sources
Why Evaluate Sources?
Researchers and students need to carefully consider the sources they use when conducting research for a paper or project. By critically evaluating any information resource you consider (especially open web sources and media sources), you are more likely to find materials that are both relevant and credible (or even authoritative). If a source lacks relevancy, then the content will not fit into your topic or be pertinent to your research goals. If a source lacks credibility, then your work may lack logic, persuasion, evidence, and/or facts. The 2 easiest methods for evaluating resources are the "ABC Method" and the "How? + 5W Method". Using these methods when accessing a resource can help you clarify, verify, and guide further inquiry.
The ABC Method is an inquisitive strategy best used as a guide for lateral reading and cross-referencing when you evaluate any information resource (especially open web sources and media sources).
Author - Audience: consider the author's credentials; have they established authorship on the subject? Can you verify their authority on the subject? Can you determine the intended audience? How might the intended audience influence the way the information is presented and selected?
Bias: consider the apparent and hidden biases within the resource; can you determine the author's aim, agenda, or affiliations? Consider the context of the work, as well as it's style. Are they writing on behalf of a specific institution or cause? Does the resource rely more on opinion and emotional appeal OR facts, data, analysis, and analogy? What could be influencing the topic's interpretation?
Credibility: consider the content; use critical thinking to evaluate the ideas and claims; use citations/references to track the trajectory and reception of the ideas and claims; pay attention to the source's currency, terminology, and container (format/content type). Is it a primary source or a peer reviewed secondary source?
Meditating on these points when accessing a resource can help you clarify, verify, and guide further inquiry.
The SMART Method is an inquisitive strategy best used as a guide for lateral reading and cross-referencing when you evaluate any information resource (especially open web sources and media sources).
S (Scope) - What is the scope of the article? Does it cover the subject with enough depth and detail?
M (Motivation) - What is the aim of the article? To sell you an idea or to inform?
A (Authority/Accuracy) - Who created the article, and what are the author's credentials? Can the information be verified?
R (Relevancy/Reliability) - Is the content suitable for your needs? Are scholarly sources required?
T (Timely) - How current is the content?
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JSTOR Tutorial: Establishing Credibility
You'll learn what elements to examine in order to find out whether a publication is scholarly. Then, you'll find out how to tell the difference between these scholarly sources and popular sources. You will also learn how to evaluate websites to see whether they're credible sources for your research.
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JSTOR Daily: Media Literacy & Fake News (A Syllabus)
Ten lessons from the past and steps we can take now to educate ourselves and our students about how to be a thoughtful consumer of information. In some ways, the entire mission of JSTOR Daily is about media literacy. Their goal is to provide scholarly context to the news using the methodical thinking that goes into careful research.
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MLA: Student Guide to AI Literacy
Ethical and effective use of GenAI technologies is emerging as an essential skill that students must develop in order to live, learn, and work. Yet GenAI comes with potential pitfalls for students–from the risk of being accused of academic misconduct to missing out on foundational skills in reading, writing, research, and learning. Developing literacy with a tool means becoming a more skilled and thoughtful user of that tool.