Foundational Learning and Engagement Librarian
Evaluate Sources
How do you evaluate sources for credibility, quality, and relevance? What is the peer review process? How do I efficiently read a peer reviewed journal article? What types of information sources might I encounter? The following resources answer these questions and more!
- Evaluate Sources for Credibility (Video) Watch this 3-minute video explore the questions: What does it mean for a source to be credible? Why is it important to use these sources? How can you tell if a source is credible?
- Evaluation Tips (Handout) Do what pro fact-checkers do to make sure the information you use and share is reliable and trustworthy.
- What is Peer Review? (Video) In this 3-minute video the following questions are explored: How do articles get peer reviewed? What role does peer review play in scholarly research and publication?
- How to Read and Comprehend Scientific Research Articles (Video) This 5-minute video discusses how to read a scientific article, how to find the main points of the article, and how to take effective notes.
- How to Read a Scientific Article (Video) Watch this 2-minute video to learn effective strategies for reading scientific articles.
- Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Sources Information sources are often categorized as primary, secondary, or tertiary sources. These classifications are based on the originality of the material and the proximity of the source or origin. Primary, secondary, and tertiary sources can all be used for your research, but they should all be evaluated for relevance and credibility and incorporated ethically into your research.
Use Civic Online Reasoning to Evaluate the Credibility of Sources
Civic Online Reasoning is a framework created by the Stanford History Education Group (SHEG) that is used to evaluate online sources for credibility. Civic Online Reasoning, according to SHEG, is the "ability to effectively search for, evaluate, and verify social and political information online. The ability to evaluate online content has become a prerequisite for thoughtful democratic participation." The following videos provide an introduction to three main questions that professional fact checkers ask when encountering information:
Are you curious about more tips? Checkout the Navigating Digital Information Crash Course playlist for more helpful videos!
In 10 episodes, John Green will teach you how to navigate the internet! We’ve partnered with MediaWise, The Poynter Institute, and The Stanford History Education Group to develop this curriculum of hands-on skills to help you evaluate the information you read online. By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Examine information using the same skills and questions as fact-checkers
- Read laterally to learn more about the authority and perspective of sources
- Evaluate different types of evidence, from videos to infographics
- Understand how search engines and social media feeds work
- Break bad internet habits like impatience and passivity, and build better ones
