Write about « how to evaluate sources» for 10 minutes. Show your partner your paper. Correct each other’s work and post it below:

If you want to find out if a source is reliable or not, there are some things you need to check before you start using it. One of the things you should check first is the publish date, which shows you how relevant the article is. The next thing you should check is if is the article has an author, and if the author is trustworthy. It is also smart to compare the article with other reliable sources and check the grammar, vocabulary and language.  

Check domain link. Credibility of the website, author, and the sources. Accuracy of the sources. Compare with other articles. Currency of the article. Purpose of the article and the target audience. Is the article formal? 

The quantity of information available is so staggering that we cannot know everything about a subject. For example, it's estimated that anyone attempting to research what's known about depression would have to read over 100,000 studies on the subject. And there's the problem of trying to decide which studies have produced reliable results.

Similarly, for information on other topics, not only is there a huge quantity available but with a very uneven level of quality. You don't want to rely on the news in the headlines of sensational tabloids near supermarket checkout counters, and it's just as hard to know how much to accept of what's in all the books, magazines, pamphlets, newspapers, journals, brochures, Web sites, and various media reports that are available. People want to convince you to buy their products, agree with their opinions, rely on their data, vote for their candidate, consider their perspective, or accept them as experts. In short, you have to sift and make decisions all the time, and you want to make responsible choices that you won't regret.

Evaluating sources is an important skill. It's been called an art as well as work—much of which is detective work. You have to decide where to look, what clues to search for, and what to accept. You may be overwhelmed with too much information or too little. The temptation is to accept whatever you find. But don't be tempted. Learning how to evaluate effectively is a skill you need both for your course papers and for your life.

When writing research papers, you will also be evaluating sources as you search for information. You will need to make decisions about what to search for, where to look, and once you've found material on your topic, if it is a valid or useful source for your writing.

First of all, look for sources that you know are credible and that the media fronts as a credible source. Ex. The Times, The Guardian, Politico, BBC. 

Currency: Is the article and information up to date? How old is it, is it reliable? 

Domain: Everyone can get acces to a .com, .org and .net-domain. .gov and .edu is therefore more reliable because the site belongs to the government or any form of education, perhaps a school or a library. 

Authority: Who wrote the article? Is the author’s name oublished with it’s article? Can you find any information about the site, organization and/or authors on the sit? 

Use multiple sources, cross-check the information. 

Look at language, vocabulary and grammar.