Learning Objectives: Sources and Information Types

Matching our information needs with the best online sources involves:

• Evaluating the credibility and relevance of sources

• Choosing the first source that appears in search results

• Relying only on social media recommendations

• Using only sources with the most advertisements

The different types of sources and information types include:

• Primary and secondary sources; factual and opinion-based information

• Only primary sources; only factual information

• Tertiary sources; only biased information

• Secondary sources; only rumors

Credibility is important when evaluating sources because:

• it ensures the information is trustworthy and reliable.

• it makes the source more entertaining.

• it guarantees the source is the most recent.

• it allows for more opinions to be included.

Evaluating the most appropriate source based on your information needs involves:

• Considering the credibility, relevance, and accuracy of the source

• Choosing the first source you find

• Relying only on popular sources

• Ignoring the publication date of the source

To learn about a new video game, you would most likely:

• look up reviews online

• ask your retired neighbor

• ask a friend who doesn't play games

• read a newspaper

To find a good movie to watch this weekend, you could ask a friend who shares your taste in movies, use an app of crowd-sourced opinions, or read what movie critics have to say. Which of the following is NOT one of these options?

• Watch a random movie without any input

• Ask a friend who shares your taste in movies

• Use an app of crowd-sourced opinions

• Read what movie critics have to say

What is the trick to picking a good online source?

• Picking a source that is popular

• Picking a source that is both credible and best matches what information we need

• Picking a source that is easy to read

• Picking a source that is free

Fill in the blank: A Wikipedia article might be great for getting a quick overview of your topic, but an academic article from a credible journal would be better for finding ________ research.

• in-depth

• basic

• outdated

• casual

• general

An academic article from a credible journal is better for finding in-depth research than a Wikipedia article.

• True

• False

What is the definition of 'Information'? Fill in the blank: Information is __________.

• the facts or details that help you learn about something or answer a question.

• a random collection of words with no meaning.

• an opinion that cannot be proven.

• a type of entertainment.