IMPORTANT!

You are about to read a lot of information about evaluating sources and deciding if they are ones that you should use for your research project. REMEMBER: Evaluating sources should be EASY. The harder it is to find the information you need to evaluate a source's suitability and reliability, the more likely it is that it is a poor source of information, and you should move on to one that is more trustworthy.

Identifying Reliable and Suitable Materials:

Your major goal when looking for research material should be to find as many reliable and suitable sources of information as possible. Do not assume that you are reading high-quality information just because it appears in print or on the Internet.

Using sources from the school library, like online databases and library print materials, takes some of the guesswork out of choosing research material. The school librarian reviewed the materials in the library collection and determined that they are reliable. But how do you know if a reliable source of information is suitable for your project? Moreover, how do you know if the results of your Google search have turned up anything useful or if the materials from another library will meet your needs? 

When you want to know if a source of information will be useful for your assignment, ask yourself:

Is it C.R.A.A.P.?

C

Current?
  • When was the information published or when was the site last updated?
  • Has the information been revised or updated recently?
  • If it is a website, do all of the links work?
  • Does your topic require current information or will older sources work as well?
Look for the publication date, copyright date or date when the site was last updated. These are usually found at the front of a print source, near the top of an article or near the bottom of a webpage.

R

Relevant?
  • Does the information relate directly to your topic or answer your question?
  • Who is the intended audience?
  • Is the information at the appropriate level for your age and for the nature of your assignment?
It helps to look at multiple sources before seriously diving into your research, so you will be more confident about judging a source's relevance.

A

Author?
  • Where does the information come from? Does someone take credit for writing it?
  • What are the author’s credentials? How do they know what they know?
  • Is it peer reviewed? 
  • Is a well-known and respected publisher, association or institution responsible for publishing it?
  • Are you able to contact the author or publisher?
Look for biographical information at the back of the book or on an ‘About’ or ‘Contact’ page on a website. Also look for information about the editors, advisory board or editorial policies that determine how material is evaluated before publication.

A

Accurate?
  • Does the author cite their sources so that their information can be verified?
  • Does it seem like the author used a variety of reliable sources? Or did the author rely heavily on only one or two sources? 
  • Have you found similar information in other sources you have consulted during your research?
  • Has the information been reviewed before publication?
  • Is the language and tone unbiased and free of emotion?
  • Are there spelling, grammar or mechanical errors?
Trust an article that is supported with accurate research and evidence. Noticeable errors of fact or even grammar show that a publication was not carefully researched and edited before publication, so look for a better source.

P

Purpose?
  • What is the purpose of this piece of writing? To inform or teach? To entertain or make a joke? To persuade or sell?
  • Does the author or publisher make their intentions clear?
  • Is the information based on fact or opinion?
  • Does the author appear objective and impartial?
  • Does the author appear to promote strong political, cultural, religious, ideological or personal views?
Many publications have strong biases and may not fairly present all the information on your research topic. Look for sources that are trying to inform or teach their audience about their topic. Try to find sources that present information in a fair and objective way, relying on facts, and not opinions, to support their claims.

Additional Considerations for Web Sources:

Anyone can publish information on the Internet, so you must be VERY CAREFUL when using web sources for your research. Try using the following acronym to help you remember what to look for when evaluating information from the Internet:

Is it R.E.A.L.?

R

Read the URL
  • Look at the URL suffix: .gov, .org and .edu are usually more trustworthy than .com sites. Looking for .ca can help when you are researching Canadian topics.
  • Look for other information in the URL that might help determine if you can trust the information on the site. For example, steer away from most blogs (unless the author cites their sources and explains why they are qualified to write about the topic).
  • The root name of the website can also be an indicator of reliability and suitability: www.explodingcarrots.com is probably not as trustworthy as www.profwilsonslecturenotes.edu.

E

Examine the content
  • What is the website's purpose? If it is designed to inform its readers, its a site you can use. If it is designed to entertain, to sell something, to spread gossip, to make a joke, etc., move on.
  • If ads take up more space than the content, find another site.
  • Is the information up-to-date? If you can't find this information or you are looking at material from many years ago, try finding a more current source.
  • If the writing contains obvious inaccuracies or does not support its claims with evidence, look elsewhere.
  • If the writing seems very biased or contains a lot of emotionally manipulative language, look for a source that provides more balanced and trustworthy information on your topic.
  • Does the writing seem very informal? Does it contain a lot of grammatical errors or slang? These are signs that the site was not written as a source of academic information, so find a different site.
  • Does the author use information that is verified by other sources? Does the writing seem formal, professional and accurate? Are multiple view points discussed in the article? If you can answer yes to these questions, you have found a good source.

A

Ask about the author
  • Has someone taken credit for this work? (Look for an author's name)
  • Can you easily find information that will help you learn more about the author?
  • What makes them qualified to write about this topic?
  • Would they be considered an expert in their field? 
  • Can you contact the author or organization responsible for the site?
  • If you can't answer these questions with confidence, try to find another site.

L

Look at the links
  • Broken links are a sign that a webpage is not well-maintained. Information could be out-of-date.
  • Links to other trustworthy sites or to the original sources of information are a sign that you can trust the website.
  • Links to partner sites where you can buy items mentioned on the original site are signs that the site is set up to make money, not to accurately inform readers.
  • Links to sketchy websites are a sign you cannot trust the information on the site.

Red Flags for Web Sources (If you see a lot of this stuff, RUN!)

  • The author’s name is their username (e.g. PrincessSparkle) instead of their real name (e.g. Vivian Delgado).
  • When you read the author’s ‘About’ page, it lists things like hobbies and interests (e.g. "I love anime, drawing and soccer) instead of credentials (e.g. "I have a Ph.D. in Roman history and currently teach about ancient Mediterranean civilizations at the University of Toronto).
  • There is no information about the author or publisher of the site.
  • The domain name is not very professional (e.g.www.partyrockers.blogspot.com) or it is published by a free web hosting service (e.g. Wix, Google Sites, BlogSpot, Weebly, Wordpress, Blogger).
  • The information is posted on a school or teacher run website and appears to be from student projects posted online. Students learning how to conduct research may make serious, if unintentional, mistakes, and you don't want those mistakes ending up in your work. Elementary and high school students are also not considered experts in their field.
  • There are poor graphics, broken links and other visual indicators that the site is not actively maintained and updated.
  • The last site update was a very long time ago or there is no information about when the site was last updated.
  • The information you find on the site doesn’t match information you have already researched from sources you know to be reliable.
  • Some or all of the content is offensive. If the author seems racist, sexist, homophobic, etc., information from their site is likely extremely biased and inaccurate. Using information from such a site could make you appear equally prejudiced.
  • The website has more advertising space than information. This is a sign that the developer chose a popular topic (like WWII) and posted a minimal amount of information (possibly even plagiarized from a better site) in order to attract people using search engines to their site. They make more money if they get more views, so their focus is on creating content that fits popular search terms, not creating accurate content.​

Why is Wikipedia not a reliable source?

Sites like Wikipedia, Yahoo Answers and Answers.com are based on user-generated content. This content changes constantly, and its accuracy varies widely. Users do not need to prove that they are experts in their field to contribute content to these sites. The same entry may be written by one or many authors, but none of them will receive credit.

The short answer: You can’t use Wikipedia and sites like it because you can’t write a proper citation for the information you find there.

Your way around this issue: A good entry on one of these sites will cite its sources (usually hyperlinks within the article or at the end of the article). Go to these sources to get the information for your project (provided they are reliable).