Evaluation of Information

Sources

Somipam R. Shimray
Research Scholar (JRF)
Department of Library & Information Science
Pondicherry University
Pondicherry
India
 Contents
 Conceptual
 Evaluation
 How do evaluate a source?
 Characteristics of Evaluation
 Credible and Reliable Sources
 Scholarly Sources
 Website
 Conclusions
 Conceptual
 Evaluating information sources is an important part of research
process.
 Not all information is reliable or true, nor will all information be
suitable for your assignment, paper, project, etc.
 Criteria to evaluate print and web resources differ.
 Print and web resources vary widely in their authority, accuracy,
objectivity, currency, and coverage.
 Users must be able to critically evaluate the appropriateness of all
types of information sources prior to relying on the information.
 The Internet, especially the World Wide Web, has surpassed most
libraries in the quantity of information it makes available.
 Web has not surpassed libraries in the overall quality of information
it makes available.
 Evaluation
 The making of a judgement about the amount, number, or value of
something; assessment.
 Evaluation is the process of determining to what extend the
educational objectives are being realized - Ralph Tyler
 Evaluation is a systematic determination of a subject's merit, worth
and significance, using criteria governed by a set of standards i.e.
authority, scope, treatment, arrangement, format, special features,
etc.
 Assist an organization, program, or initiative to assess any aim,
realisable concept/proposal, or any alternative, to help in decision-
making; or to ascertain the degree of achievement or value in regard
to the aim and objectives and results of any such action that has been
completed.
 How do evaluate a source?
 Identify question(s).
 Explore background information.
 Find sources.
 Evaluate what you find.
 Evaluate the relevance of your search results.
 Evaluate the quality and credibility of your sources.
 Evaluate content.
 Use & cite.
 Characteristics of Evaluation
 Evaluation is a continuous process.
 Evaluation is purpose oriented.
 Evaluation is a procedure for improving the product/process.
 Discovering the needs of an individual and designing learning
experience.
 Validity - Tests what is sets out to test.
 Reliability - The reliability is a measure of the consistency with
which the question, test or examination produces the same result
under different but comparable conditions.
 Credible and Reliable Sources
 Credible sources are ones the reader can trust.
 Backed up with evidence.
 When writing an assignment, research paper, doing research, or
reading for background information, writers should always use
a credible source.
 Material such as an article, book, monograph, or research paper that
has been vetted by the scholarly community is regarded as reliable,
 Material published in reputable peer-reviewed sources or by well-
regarded academic presses.
 Scholarly sources.
 Scholarly Sources
 A scholarly publication is one in which the content is written by
experts in a particular field of study for the purpose of sharing
original research or analyzing others' findings.
 Scholarly work cited all source materials used and is usually
subject to "peer review" prior to publication.
How do know scholarly source?
 Are written by and for faculty, researchers or scholars.
 Author's ideas have merit
 Use the language of the discipline.
 Are often refereed or peer reviewed by specialists before being
accepted for publication.
 Include full citations for sources.
 Website
 It can be challenging to determine whether a website you're using
is credible.

What websites are reliable?

 Look for: Author – Information on the internet with a listed author is
one indication of a credible site.
 Make sure the website is up to date.
 Use websites that cite their sources.
 Avoid citing commercial websites (.com).
 Do not cite Wikipedia or similar user-edited sites.
 Is Wikipedia a reliable source?
 Citation of Wikipedia in research papers may be considered
unacceptable.
 Wikipedia is not considered a credible or authoritative source.
 Anyone can edit the information given at any time, and although
most errors are immediately fixed, some errors maintain unnoticed.
 Conclusions
 Criteria used to evaluate print and web resources differ.
 Print and web resources vary widely in their authority, accuracy,
objectivity, currency, and coverage.
 Evaluation is a systematic determination of a subject's merit, worth and
significance, using criteria governed by a set of standards i.e. authority,
scope, treatment, arrangement, forma, special features, etc.
 Decision making.
 References
 IWU. (2013). Critical Evaluation Checklist for Internet Websites.
Retrieved 07 23, 2017, from World wide web:
https://www2.indwes.edu/WebEvaluation.html
 ODUL. (2006). Evaluating Information Sources. Retrieved 07 25,
2017, from World wide web:
https://www.ohiodominican.edu/uploadedFiles/Library/Help/Library
_Guides/Evaluating%20Information%20Sources.pdf
 UAF. (2015, 04 24). Evaluating Information Resources. Retrieved
07 20, 2017, from World wide web: https://library.uaf.edu/ls101-
evaluation
 WSU. (2011). Evaluating Information Sources: The CAARP Test.
Retrieved 07 25, 2017, from world wide web:
http://library.wichita.edu/empower/module1/images/EvaluatingInfor
mationSources.pdf