Differentiating Primary and Secondary Sources

What is the main purpose of this tutorial?

• To teach how to write essays

• To understand the history of literature

• To distinguish between primary and secondary sources

• To learn about different research methods

Which of the following is a primary source in literature?

• An article analyzing Hamlet

• A biography of Shakespeare

• Shakespeare's play, Hamlet

• A review of Hamlet

Which of these is an example of a primary source in history?

• A book discussing the Civil War

• A newsreel footage of World War II

• An article analyzing Queen Elizabeth I's speech

• A documentary on World War II

When should you use primary sources?

• To see what has been reported about a topic

• To learn from experts' analysis

• To verify claims made in secondary sources

• To gather background information

What is a characteristic of secondary sources?

• They are first-hand accounts

• They are original documents

• They interpret or analyze primary sources

• They are usually unpublished

Which of the following is a secondary source in natural sciences?

• Field data collected by an environmental organization

• Biology study results

• An article on the environmental impact of pollution

• Population data and figures

When should you use secondary sources?

• To read eyewitness accounts

• To interpret data yourself

• To reflect on works of literature

• To gather background information on a subject

Which of these is a primary source for a paper about Oregon salmon populations?

• A book discussing fishery trends

• An article analyzing salmon populations

• A documentary on Oregon's wildlife

• Raw, unanalyzed numeric data of salmon counts

What is a secondary source for a paper about web communication?

• An article analyzing web communication

• Direct transcripts of published blogs

• A collection of web communication data

• A blog post about web trends

Which of these is a primary source for a paper about Shakespeare's play, Hamlet?

• The actual play, Hamlet

• A review of Hamlet

• A biography of Shakespeare

• An article analyzing Hamlet