Evaluating Sources

1. Evaluating Sources This presentation was created using information from Teaching Information Literacy: 35 Practical, Standards-Based Exercises for College Students.

2. Types of Resources to Evaluate • Books • Periodicals • Web Sites

3. Evaluating Books

4. Criteria for Evaluating Books • Authorship • Currency • Purpose • Relevance • Coverage

5. Questions to Ask When Evaluating Books

6. Authorship • What are the author’s or authors’ qualifications? (This can be determined by examining information on the title page, a list of contributors, the introduction or another introductory part of the book. Information usually includes educational background and occupational information. Note: Don’t confuse authors with editors).

7. Currency • When was the book published? (This information can be found on the front or back of the title page of a book. When doing a research paper on a topic that is time-sensitive, or when you are using time-sensitive information or data, you will need current resources).

8. Purpose • Why was this book written? • Who is the intended audience? (The answer to these questions can typically be found in the Preface or Introduction of a book)

9. Relevance • Does this book cover the same general subject as your paper? (For example, if the topic of your research paper is “tuberculosis and vaccination,” does the whole book deal with the topic, or does a chapter or two discuss the topic? You can determine this by examining the table of contents or index)

10. Coverage (Related to Relevance) • How much coverage does the book provide for your topic? (A book may give only a few paragraphs of information on your topic. On the other hand, a book may provide several pages of information pertaining to your topic. In addition to reading the relevant parts of the book, you can also check the table of contents and index).

11. Evaluating Periodicals

12. Criteria for Evaluating Periodicals • Title • Frequency of Publication • Authorship • Length of Articles • Article Titles • Intended Audience • Purpose • Availability of Abstracts • Availability of References

13. Important: Before you can evaluate a periodical, you need to know what type of periodical you’re using.

14. 3 Major Categories of Periodicals • Popular Magazines and Newspapers • Professional, Trade, and Industry Periodicals • Scholarly Journals

15. Evaluating Popular Magazines and Newspapers

16. Magazines and Newspapers

17. Magazines and Newspapers (continued)

18. Evaluating Professional, Trade, and Industry Periodicals

19. Professional, Trade, and Industry Periodicals

20. Professional, Trade, and Industry Periodicals (continued)

21. Evaluating Scholarly Journals

22. Scholarly Journals

23. Scholarly Journals (continued)

24. Examples of Periodicals • Popular • Time • Professional, Trade or Industry • Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration News • Scholarly • JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association

25. Evaluating Web Sites

26. Important: Evaluation is especially important when it comes to Web sites. Many Web sites do not go through the editorial process like books and periodicals do. Thus, many Web sites are not checked for quality prior to being uploaded to the Web.

27. Criteria for Evaluating Web Sites • Purpose/Intended Audience • Authorship • Accuracy/Reliability • Currency • Objectivity • Ease of Use

28. Questions To Ask When Evaluating Web Sites

29. Purpose/Intended Audience • Why was this Web site created? (Purpose) (This information may be found on the Web site’s home page or on the “About this site” page, if available) • For whom was this Web site created? (You may find out who is the intended audience by going to the home page or “About this site” page. Also, check URL suffix, .com, .edu, .gov, .org, etc.)

30. Authorship • Is the author qualified to write publicly about the topic or subject? • Look for the author’s name. (May be on the home page) • Look for information regarding author’s qualifications (Educational background, occupation. This may be found on the Web site, then you could check another site to verify).

31. Accuracy/Reliability • Are there spelling or grammatical errors on this Web site? • Does the Web site have a list of works cited or links to other resources that would verify the information on the Web site? • Would books and/or periodicals confirm the information or data on this Web site?

32. Currency • When was the Web site created? • When was the Web site last updated? (The answer to the first two questions should be found at the bottom of the home page of the Web site). • Are there any dead-end links on the Web site?

33. Objectivity • Is the Web site mostly factual or mostly opinionated? • Is the subject of the Web site a controversial subject? • Is there hateful or inflammatory language used? • Is the Web site part of or sponsored by a company or organization? (This can affect what is stated).

34. Ease of Use • Can you navigate the site easily? (In other words, can you go from one part of the site to another easily?) • Is there a search box on the home page? • Is the Web site organized? (Some Web sites have a table of contents for organizing topics).