|
How to Evaluate Information |
| WHAT
DO I LOOK FOR? |
| IS THE
INFORMATION RELEVANT? |
|
WILL IT HELP ME
WITH MY Question or problem? |
|
How can I tell if information is RELEVANT? |
Is information related to the
topic?
|
LOOK AT THE TITLE
LOOK AT the summary
LOOK AT THE CHAPTERS
LOOK AT THE INDEX
LOOK AT THE HEADINGS
LOOK AT THE AUTHOR
(Has he written other things on same topic?)
LOOK AT THE SITE |
|
PROBING
DEEPER INTO THE INFORMATION
 |
|
What do I look for? |
| IS THE
INFORMATION ACCURATE? |
|
Are the Facts correct?
Are the opinions based on sound
facts and research? |
|
How can I tell if information is ACCURATE? |
|
what do I know
about the topic?
what do other sources say
about the same thing?
What
do Teachers, Parents, Librarians Say?
What
does a Dictionary, an Encyclopedia or other reference
source say?
How
old is the information?
How
new is the Information?
What sources do the
authors use to support
their statements? |
| What do I look for? |
| IS THE
INFORMATION CURRENT? |
|
HOW RECENTLY
WAS THE PUBLICATION PRODUCED? |
|
HOW DO I TELL if the information is CURRENT? |
|
WHAT IS THE
DATE OF THE PUBLICATION?
HAS ANY NEW INFORMATION
BECOME AVAILABLE SINCE THEN?
What other
sources can i check?
What do Other sources
say? |
| What do I look for? |
|
What about bias AND
INCONSISTENCIES
 |
| What do I look for? |
| DOES
THE INFORMATION
SHOW Evidence of BIAS |
|
Is the author trying to take
one side or support just one idea? |
|
SHOW Evidence of BIAS
|
CAN I TELL IF
THE AUTHOR HAS A POINT OF VIEW?
DOES THE AUTHOR PROVIDE
ONLY ONE POINT OF VIEW?
DOES THE AUTHOR PROVIDE
THE POINT OF VIEW OF OTHERS AS WELL AS HIS/HER OWN? |
IS THE WRITING
PERSUASIVE?
IS THE WRITING EXPOSITORY?
IS THE WRITING NARRATIVE?
does the author mention
other people? other ideas? how RELIABLE are the other
ideas? |
| What do I look for? |
|
Does THE INFORMATION SHOW
EVIDENCE OF Inconsistency with other sources? |
WHICH MEANS
|
DOES The information haVE errors and mistakes? |
| HOW DO I TELL?
|
TWO SOURCES
GIVE DIFFERENT INFORMATION ABOUT THE SAME TOPIC
TWO SOURCES SAY THINGS
THAT CANNOT BOTH BE TRUE |
I can:
CHECK A THIRD SOURCE
RELY ON THE MOST
TRUSTWORTHY SOURCE
IF I AM TELLING SOMEONE
ELSE WHAT I LEARNED, I can
 | TELL ABOUT THE two
ideas AND/OR |
| GIVE THE SOURCE OF THE
MOST RELIABLE INFORMATION |
|
|
who
says this is good information? |
|
What Do I Look FOR? |
| What do I look for? |
|
Is the information
Reliable? |
Which
means
|
Can the information be trusted? |
|
How Do I Tell if the
information is RELIABLE? |
CAN
I TRUST THE INFORMATION PRESENTED?
What are the
qualifications of the author? or the publisher?
|
does the information agree
or disagree with what I already know?
do other sources say the
same or different things?
What does the
book jacket or the introduction say about the work?
What does the librarian or
the teacher say about the work?
What does the site say
about the work?
Is there any award
attached to the work?
Is it a relevant award?
Are there any reviews of
the work available? |
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