Module 12
Evaluating Internet Sources
Evaluation Criteria

Contents:
Introduction
Module 1: How to Solve an Information Problem
Module 2: Search Techniques
Module 3: SD Library Network
Module 4: Proquest
Module 5: Infotrac
Module 6: Lexis-Nexis
Module 7: OCLC Firstsearch
Module 8: 
Module 9: 
Module 10: 
Module 11: Internet Searching
Module 13: Scholarly vs. Popular
Module 14: Citing sources
Module 15: How to Get Material Not Available Online

Module 12 Evaluating Internet Sources

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Why do you need to evaluate the information you use?

.... because the argument, information, project, etc. on which you are working is only as strong as the evidence you bring to it. Your writing takes on the "character" of your sources.

If you use unreliable sources, your own paper will be unreliable and unbelievable. In most cases, you are not an expert. So to be believable to your readers, you must bring to your paper the opinions and research of experts. Such sources are written by the experts themselves or rely on expert opinion/research for their content.

The problem with searching the Internet

... is the lack of quality control. Anyone can put anything "out there" on the Web. It is chock full of useless junk with some pearls scattered here and there, and you must be able to tell the difference.

The Internet is very different from the information services to which the library subscribes.

• The information services carefully select the databases they include.
• The database publishers carefully select the journals and other materials to be included in their databases.
• The publishers of the journals and other materials select and carefully edit the material they publish.

Because there is no mechanism for quality control of the Internet, every item you find when searching the Internet must be suspect until you find proof of its reliability.

The Internet does have pearls -- excellent and valuable material -- and you can pick them out by using 5 criteria.

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