GQS: Guide : Choosing the Best Sources

It was the best of sources, it was the worst of sources...

The Internet is a fantastic place to find great sources, but it's also a fantastic place to find not so great sources.

Learning how to evaluate information is one of the most important skills you will learn at ACC. Anyone can publish on the web - you have to be proactive about deciding if the information is reliable or contains bad information.

Tips:

• The author may be listed at the bottom of the webpage
• Domains like .edu or .org can be purchased - just looking at the URL is not enough
• News websites, like newspapers, may not be fact-checked
• A website setup to make money may have misleading information

For more about evaluating your sources and the CRAAP criteria, see the Evaluating Information tutorial.

What is CRAAP?

CRAAP is a set of criteria designed by California State University, Chico to help you find the best sources for your school work. It is a good starting point for evaluating sources for academic purposes like papers, reports, and speeches.

It it CRAAP?

Use the following rubric to help you choose sources for your paper or other school work.

	No!	Maybe...	Top Quality!
Currency	The source is out of date/too old.	The source is not out of date, but it doesn’t reflect the latest advances or ideas.	The source is recent, and has information about the latest advances and ideas.
Relevance	The source is unrelated to your topic or doesn’t help you make your argument.	The source has a small amount of information about your topic, but not enough to clearly support your case.	The source is directly related to your topic, and clearly helps to support your argument.
Authority	The author is unknown, or not an expert in the topic.	The author is known, but not an expert in the topic.	The author is known and is an expert in the topic.
Accuracy	Facts seem incorrect or are not supported by other sources or citations.	Facts seem correct but are not cited.	Facts are correct and backed up by citations and other sources
Purpose	The source is intended to sell something or seems to only focus on one side of an argument or issue.	The source is intended to provide information and discusses multiple views of an argument or issue.	The source is intended to provide information and it presents multiple views of an argument or issue, or makes a strong case for one-side supported by many citations from other sources.

TL/DR:

Be skeptical of all sources that you find whether online or in print. Use CRAAP or your own personal criteria to find sources that are appropriate for your purpose. Your criteria for sources for academic work may be very different than your criteria for sources for personal use. It all depends on the situation.