Evaluating a Source
When Wiki…. is not an option
Ask these simple questions to evaluate if the source is
right for you
Why do I need information
Personal Project
School / job related Project
Place a
If it’s for a school project evaluate the information and source as if
you were completing a project for your job.
You might get a promotion for having quality research from
different places
Read and answer the following questions
Each source has specific information, not only on my topic, it also
helps answer a research question.
I can understand the information in each source.
Each source has the type of information I need
Each source and the information I need from it are reliable
I can learn about the source from it’s authors or collaborators in the
“About Us” link See below
Each source will help me complete my assignment
Each source has special features I can use (photos, charts, graphs)
Place a
Evaluating a Source
Source Analysis
Read and answer the following questions
Authority
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Place a
Is there an author? Is the page signed?
Is the author(s) qualified? Expert(s)?
Who is the sponsor? Is the sponsor of the page
reputable?
Is there a link to information about the author or the
sponsor?
If the page includes neither a signature nor indicates a
sponsor, is there any other way to determine its origin
Currency
Consider whether the information is current or out-of-date
for your topic. This completely depends on your information
need.
Content
Do you consider the information to be relevant and
comprehensive? Why or why not?
Purpose
Is the information meant to be serious, or is it a joke? How
can you tell?
Objectivity
Consider whether the information is affected by bias.
Creating the Bibliography
NoodleTools
http://www.noodletools.com/login.php?group=9780&code=1293&oid=2058
Evaluating a Source
Documenting Intellectual Property
6 Steps to Citation success
1. What is your task?
 Documentation of all Intellectual property is the best policy using parenthetical
documentation and a bibliography citation
Use parenthetical citation to document:
 Information / content that is not 100% yours
 Pictures
Videos
 Music
Personal work - pictures, video etc.
2. What information do you need for parenthetical documentation?
Person or group that created the content AND Date the content was created
Ex. (Colangelo, 2009) or (Quaker Valley School District, 2008)
3. Where do you locate the information in the source?
Search for the information at the root - the Home Page - of a web site.
Go to the bottom of the source document and look at the About Us link.
4. What information do you need for a bibliography citation?
 Author or group name (not always available)
 "Title of document"
 Title of Source where you found the document.
 Title of sponsoring organization.
 Date created. Date reviewed and location of it (only if you want)
How do you use the information to create the bibliography citation?
Place on the very last slide of the PowerPoint
 Colangelo and Hollein. "Scientific Method Fortune Fish Project Wiki Page". 9th
Grade Chemistry Wikispaces. Quaker Valley School District. 2009. 16 September
2010. http://chemistry1mrscolangelo.wikispaces.com/+Scientific+Method.

Martin, Phillip. "Scientific Method Art." Scientific Method Free PowerPoints.
Philip Martin Free Power Points, 2009 17 September 2010.
http://science.pppst.com/scientificmethod.html
How do you link the bibliography to the parenthetical citation?
Example:
Place close to the intellectual property on each slide
(Colangelo, Hollein, 2009)
(Martin, 2009)
5. Do you have all of the intellectual property identified?
Examine each document to make sure you have credited every source and every person
6. Is the Bibliography done correctly?
Review the Power Point slides to make sure the bibliography matches the
parenthetical citation
 Have all group members looked for and correct errors
 Have Mr. Hollein look at the final product to make sure the parenthetical citations
match the bibliography and that the bibliography is done correctly.