EVALUATE YOUR SOURCES

All sources are not equal and the choice and quality of the resources you select to include in your research paper are as important as your grammar and organization. Therefore, it is always necessary to use your judgement or critical thinking skills to evaluate the information you are gathering during the research process. This is especially important when using material from the World Wide Web.

Books, magazines and other materials available in the library or from online databases have been chosen and purchased by trained professionals. These resources have been through the publication process where they are reviewed by editors and fact-checkers before they are published. There are no such standards for publication on the Web. With a minimum of knowledge and equipment literally anyone can publish anything on the Web - and they do!

There are, however, a number of strategies that can be employed to make sure you collect only reliable, quality material for inclusion in your paper.

1. Begin by using Web pages that have been pre-selected by libraries or other entities that are skilled in information evaluation.

SJRCC students can link to Web sites selected by SJRCC librarians, organized by subject from our library Web site. In addition to the SJRCC library site, the following sites offer quality resources:



• Digital Librarian - A librarian's choice of the "best of the Web." Pre-selected sites arranged by topic.
• Best Information on the Net - Pre-selected resources from the O'Keefe Library at St. Ambrose University, Davenport Iowa. Also includes suggested research paper topics.
• The Internet Public Library - Pre-selected resources listed by discipline. Newly added Pathfinders by topic. Also includes resources for Native American Authors, Literary Criticism on the Web, and a comprehensive site on the American Presidency.
• Librarian's Index to the Internet - A searchable, annotated subject directory of more than 7,900 Internet resources selected and evaluated by librarians. It's meant to be used by both librarians and non-librarians as a reliable and efficient guide to described and evaluated Internet resources.
• Infomine - Sponsored by the University of California system, INFOMINE is intended for the introduction and use of Internet resources of relevance to faculty, students and research staff at the university level. It is being offered as a virtual library and reference tool containing highly useful Internet resources including databases, electronic journals, electronic books and more.
• About.com - The About network consists of over 700 Guide sites neatly organized into 36 channels. The sites cover more than 50,000 subjects with over 1 million links to the best resources on the Net and the fastest-growing archive of high quality original content. Qualifications of site "guides" are provided.

2. Apply traditional evaluation criteria

Long before the Internet, standards for evaluating the reliability of information were developed. These traditional standards can be adapted to any resource and include the following:

• Accuracy
  Can the information given be verified by other sources? Are there spelling or other obvious errors that indicate less than scrupulous standards of publication?
  
  
• Authority
  Who is the author of the information? What are this person's qualifications for writing on this subject? Is the Web site sponsored by a reputable organization?
  
  
• Objectivity
  What are the aims and goals of the author? Is the material biased or presented to persuade the reader to adopt the writer's point of view? If the site is sponsored by a particular organization, are the goals and views of that organization presented clearly?
  
  
• Currency
  How up-to-date is the material presented? Is this important? Is the publication date or dates of subsequent updates easily determined?
  
  
• Coverage
  To what depth are the issues explored? If some aspects of the subject are not discussed is the reader told?

  These standards should be used by the researcher only as a guide to the reliability of the information presented. A "No" answer to a single criterion does automatically render the information unreliable. Used in an overall context, however, these criteria can be good indicators of quality sources.

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