You and your instructor are the best people to determine if a source is appropriate for your research. Remember that all sources you use should contain well-supported arguments and valid research. Since it is easy to falsify information on the Web, you should look closely at the sources you select online.
- Check how statistics and facts were collected and to whom they are attributed. All should be referenced with a source.
- Determine whether the source is an opinion piece.
- Judge whether the source is popular or scholarly. Make sure you are using the appropriate type of source for your assignment.
- Bibliographies highlight the sources that influenced the author's work. Use the bibliography at the end of your source to find other related works.
- Consider all the information you have gathered about the author, publisher, and date and determine whether the source is appropriate for your information needs.
