EDUC 1300 - Effective Learning: Strategies for College Success: 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 is 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.

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

Created by Austin Community College Library Services, 2017.

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.