ASK Online Learning Resources 2.1: Evaluating Information - Six questions
Summary
TLDRThis script emphasizes the importance of critically evaluating information before incorporating it into academic work. It highlights the necessity of assessing the credibility, relevance, and accuracy of sources, given the prevalence of conflicting opinions, misinformation, and fake news. The script introduces a six-question framework—'who,' 'what,' 'when,' 'where,' 'how,' and 'why'—to guide researchers in scrutinizing sources. It underscores the value of this skill for academic integrity and employability, encouraging a discerning approach to information consumption.
Takeaways
- 🤔 Evaluate information before using it in your work.
- 🔎 There are many sources of information available online, including websites, books, journal articles, and videos.
- ⚠️ Information online may contain conflicting opinions, contradictory facts, and misinformation.
- 🧠 Learn to critically assess whether information is trustworthy, accurate, and relevant to your work.
- ❓ Use six questions to evaluate information: who, what, when, where, how, and why.
- 👤 Who: Consider the author's qualifications and intended audience.
- 📚 What: Check if the information is relevant to your topic and appropriate in depth and format.
- ⏳ When: Make sure the information is up-to-date for your needs.
- 🌍 Where: Consider if the source is scholarly or popular and whether it is credible.
- 🔬 How: Assess the reliability of the data and whether the information is objective.
- 🤔 Why: Understand the authors' motivation and whether they are trying to influence your perspective.
Q & A
Why is it important to evaluate information before using it in academic work?
-Evaluating information is crucial to ensure that the work is based on trustworthy, appropriate, accurate, and relevant sources. This helps prevent the use of conflicting opinions, inaccurate data, and misinformation.
What are the six simple questions to ask when critically evaluating sources?
-The six questions are: Who wrote the information, What exactly is the information, When was it published or last updated, Where did you find the information, How did the authors reach their conclusions, and Why did the authors write the information.
What does 'Who' refer to when evaluating a source?
-'Who' refers to the authors of the information, their affiliations, sponsors, intended audience, and their qualifications. It also includes whether the work has been cited by other writers and academics.
Why is it necessary to consider the 'What' aspect of a source?
-The 'What' aspect helps determine the relevance and quality of the information. It involves assessing how well the information relates to the topic, supports arguments, or provides alternative viewpoints, and whether the level and format of the information are appropriate.
How does the 'When' question help in evaluating a source?
-The 'When' question helps in determining the currency and up-to-date nature of the information. It's important to know when the information was last updated or published to ensure its relevance to current research or historical perspectives.
What insights does the 'Where' question provide during source evaluation?
-The 'Where' question helps in understanding the source's appropriateness by identifying where the information was found. It can reveal the publisher's credibility through the source type, such as scholarly journals, popular media, or websites with specific URLs.
Why is the 'How' question significant in the evaluation process?
-The 'How' question is significant because it examines the methodology and evidence behind the authors' conclusions. It assesses the reliability of data, the verifiability of sources, and the objectivity and inclusiveness of the work.
What does the 'Why' question reveal about a source?
-The 'Why' question reveals the authors' motivations for writing the information. It can uncover whether they are trying to sell something, persuade readers of a viewpoint, or influence them for personal gain, and assesses the emotiveness of their language.
How does evaluating information subjectively depend on the type of information you're looking for?
-Evaluating information subjectively depends on the type of information because authoritative sources like books and journal articles are key for academic research, while company reports, newspapers, or blogs might be more appropriate for other types of inquiries.
What is the importance of not taking anything for granted when evaluating sources?
-Not taking anything for granted ensures a critical approach to source evaluation, which is essential for maintaining the integrity and quality of academic work. It encourages a habit of questioning and verifying the credibility of all information encountered.
Why is the ability to quickly and effectively evaluate information valued by graduate employers?
-The ability to quickly and effectively evaluate information is valued by graduate employers because it demonstrates critical thinking, analytical skills, and the capacity to discern reliable sources, which are crucial for making informed decisions in professional settings.
Outlines
🔍 Critically Evaluating Information Sources
This paragraph discusses the importance of evaluating the credibility and relevance of information found during research. It emphasizes the need to assess whether the information is suitable for academic work such as essays or dissertations. The paragraph highlights the variety of sources available, including websites, books, journals, and videos, and acknowledges the presence of conflicting opinions, misinformation, and fake news. It introduces a set of six questions (who, what, when, where, how, and why) to help researchers critically evaluate their sources and ensure they are using trustworthy and appropriate information.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Evaluate
💡Information Overload
💡Critical Evaluation
💡Reliable Sources
💡Authoritative Sources
💡Cutting-Edge Research
💡Historical Perspective
💡URL
💡Data Verification
💡Objective Tone
Highlights
The importance of evaluating information before including it in academic work
The variety of sources available online, including websites, books, and journal articles
The potential for conflicting opinions, contradictory facts, and misinformation in online sources
The necessity for independent researchers to critically evaluate information
The six simple questions to ask when evaluating sources: who, what, when, where, how, and why
Evaluating the author's credentials and the sponsor of the work
Assessing the relevance and accuracy of the information for the specific assignment
Determining the currency and timeliness of the information
Considering the appropriateness of the source type for the research
Analyzing how authors reached their conclusions and the reliability of their data
Examining the objectivity and inclusiveness of the work's tone
Understanding the authors' motivations and the emotional language used
The subjectivity of information evaluation and the need for personal judgment
The value of authoritative sources like books and journal articles in academic research
The appropriateness of non-academic sources like company reports and blogs for certain research needs
The importance of treating each source with care and critically assessing each piece of information
The skill of quickly and effectively evaluating information as essential for personal and academic success
Practicing information evaluation to improve speed and accuracy
Transcripts
either so you found some interesting information that you want to include in your work that's great
but before you use it you first need to evaluate it and decide if it's suitable for the assignment
essay or dissertation that you're writing let's see how as you search for information online
you're gonna find a lot of different results from a lot of different sources websites books journal
articles conference proceedings videos images the list goes on and on they'll be conflicting
opinions contradictory facts unresolved arguments inaccurate data and maybe some
good old misinformation and fake news it's the world that we live in now and as an independent
researcher you're going to have to learn to deal with it so what can you do to prevent being
overwhelmed by it all and to make sure you base your work on information of the highest quality
you need to learn to critically evaluate your sources this means scanning the information in
front of you and working out if it's trustworthy appropriate accurate and relevant for the type
of work you're doing to help there's six simple questions you can ask who what when where how
and why let's look at each of these in turn who who wrote the information you're looking at who
do they work for who has sponsored the work and why who is the intended audience how qualified
are the authors and has the work been cited by other writers and academics what what exactly
is the information just because it tops your search results doesn't mean it's any good how
well does it relate to your topic does it help answer your question support your arguments or
provide an alternative viewpoint is the level and format of the information appropriate and not too
simple or in-depth for your needs when how current and up-to-date is the information when was it last
updated is there a newer version available for some subjects you'll want cutting-edge research
for others maybe a historical perspective might be better where where did you find
the information is that source appropriate for example is it a scholarly source like a journal
or something popular like a newspaper or blog if it's a website does the URL reveal anything
about its publisher is it a university charity or company how how did the authors of the information
reach their conclusions if it's a research-based publication how reliable and trustworthy are their
data results can their sources be verified and are their statements supported by evidence also
is the tone of the work objective unbiased and inclusive other people's views why why did the
authors write the information why are they sharing it what motivates them are they trying to sell you
something persuade you of a viewpoint or influence it means for their own gain how emotive is their
language of course evaluating information is highly subjective and depends on the type of
information you're looking for most of the time authoritative sources such as books and
journal articles will be your key resources at other times a company report newspaper or blog
might be more appropriate you'll need to use your own judgement treat each source with care
critically assess each piece of information you find and never take anything for granted
so there you go every time you find a new piece of information ask yourself six simple
questions who what when where how and why if the information checks out use and learn from
it if not forget about it move on being able to quickly in effectively evaluate information in
this way is an important personal and academic skill to master and a skill highly valued by
graduate employers and the more practice you get the faster and better you'll become good luck
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