Bateman, Dayna. “Research.” Photograph. Uploaded on November 25, 2006. Flickr. https://www.flickr.com/photos/suttonhoo22/305806118/. Creative Commons licensing info.

In this module we’ll be thinking about how to evaluate the sources we find. The first step in evaluating a source is to identify what type of source it is, which can often help you to decide whether the source matches your information need. In this module, we’ll be working with some types of sources that you might find in a library database, such as newspaper articles, encyclopedia articles, journal articles, and e-books.

Here is the outline for this module. All parts of this module are due on [due date].

1. Identifying Source Types Mini Quiz (2 points)
2. Evaluating Source Types Padlet Post (1 point)
3. Matching Sources to Scenarios Group Padlet Posts (3 points)
4. Reflection on Source Types Blog Post (4 points)

Part 1 – Identifying Source Types Mini Quiz (2 points)

The first activity in this module asks you to identify types of sources based on their citations in MLA format. You may want to do these optional activities first.

Optional activities: Guides to MLA citation

If you’re not familiar with MLA citation style, or if you need a refresher, we recommend the following video from from Santiago Canyon College which breaks down how to format a citation for a journal article according to MLA style. [This video refers to the older 8th edition of MLA, but the rules in the current edition (9th) are the same for journal article citations.]

We also recommend looking at the following citation examples from Valencia College Library. We find their color-coded guide very useful and clear!

• MLA format, 9^th edition 
  • Article in a scholarly journal (accessed through a library database) [these examples are from the JSTOR database]
  • Book by one author
  • Book with no author, only an editor
  • Ebook with one author (accessed through a library database)
  • Newspaper article (accessed through a library database)

Click here for Valencia College Library’s full MLA citation guide

Required activity: mini-quiz

For 2 points, fill out the mini quiz in the embedded form below, or access the mini quiz at this link. Take note of the correct answers (=which citation corresponds to which source type). You will need that information for the next activities in this module.

If you would like to work out your answers on a worksheet before submitting the mini-quiz, you can download a copy of a worksheet below (this is optional and you will not submit this worksheet to us).

Note to instructors: You can copy our Microsoft Form template for this activity.

Part 2 – Evaluating Source Types Padlet Post (1 points)

After identifying each source type in activity 3.1, click on the links below to open and skim each source (you do not need to read them in full for this exercise). All of these sources cover the topic of caffeine, but in different ways. Think about what characteristics make each source type distinct. Below we list the citations and links to the sources and a list of aspects to consider.

Tech note: Most of these sources are behind a paywall and are available through the Hunter College Libraries. To access them, you will need to log in with your Hunter NetID.

Citations List

[Make sure you’ve correctly identified which citation corresponds to each source type. Refer back to your answers and corrections from the mini quiz in 3.1]

1) Brody, Jane E. “Scientists See Dangers in Energy Drinks.” The New York Times, 1 Feb. 2011, p. D7. Nexis Uni, https://advance-lexis-com.proxy.wexler.hunter.cuny.edu/api/document?collection=news&id=urn:contentItem:522Y-F9F1-JBG3-62BT-00000-00&context=1516831.

2) “Caffeine.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Jul. 2022, https://www.britannica.com/science/caffeine.

3) Mednick, Sara C., et al. “Comparing the Benefits of Caffeine, Naps and Placebo on Verbal, Motor and Perceptual Memory.” Behavioural Brain Research, vol. 193, no. 1, 2008, pp. 79–86. Science Direct, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbr.2008.04.028. 

4) Preedy, Victor R, editor. Caffeine: Chemistry, Analysis, Function and Effects. Royal Society of Chemistry, 2012. https://pubs-rsc-org.proxy.wexler.hunter.cuny.edu/en/content/ebook/978-1-84973-367-0.

5) Rippe, James M. “Caffeine.” Encyclopedia of Lifestyle Medicine & Health, edited by James M. Rippe, vol. 1, SAGE Reference, 2012, pp. 169-171. Gale Virtual Reference Library, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/CX1959000064/GVRL?u=cuny_hunter&sid=GVRL&xid=e00cae1a.

6) Urwin, Rosamund. “Count Me Out of This Caffeine-Addled Nightmare.” London Evening Standard [London, England], 12 July 2010, p. 15. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A231329356/ITOF?u=cuny_hunter&sid=ITOF&xid=7b1d23cb. 

Criteria to think about

• Authorship: Who writes this kind of source?
• Audience: Is this written for the general public? For students? For professionals in a given field? Someone else?
• Scope: Does the source cover the topic broadly or does it narrow the focus to 1 or 2 specific aspects?
• Depth: Does the source go into detail about the topic, or does it only give an overview?
• Originality: Does the source include original findings by the author/s, or does it report on the findings of others? Or both?
• Novelty: Does the source report new information or information that has already been established? 
• Language & Tone: Formal or informal? Impersonal or personal? Plain & simple language or jargon? Is the text understandable to a non-expert?
• Purpose: Was this written to educate? To share new information or a new argument? To entertain? To persuade? To make a political argument? As cultural commentary? Something else?

Full-class Padlet exercise – make 1 post

On the Padlet below, make 1 post, following these instructions:

• Post underneath a source type listing one characteristic of that source type (refer back to the criteria listed above for ideas). For example, under newspaper article (report), I might post “Newspaper articles are written for a general audience.”
• Discuss only one characteristic in each post. (For example, do not post “Newspaper articles are written for a general audience and usually present new information” in a single comment)
• Do not repeat something already listed in another post, unless you are disagreeing with or modifying what’s written in that post

Once everyone in class has contributed to the Padlet, we should have a full grid summing up the ways in which each source type might cover the same topic in different ways. As a researcher or information seeker, this is something that will factor into your decision when choosing an appropriate source for your information need.

Link to Part 2 Padlet.

Note to instructors: If you have a Padlet account, you can recreate this Padlet, and all the others we’ve made.

Part 3 – Matching Sources to Scenarios Group Padlet Posts (3 points)

Now that you’ve thought about how different source types might cover a topic in different ways, it’s time to match these sources to an imagined scenario or task. This activity will be done in your assigned groups.

Next, open your group’s Padlet in a new window and make 3 posts, following this instructions:

• Create a post under a scenario listing which source from this module you’d use in that scenario
• Each post should list both the title of the source and the type of source it is. (For example, “In this scenario, I would use the newspaper article ‘Scientists See Dangers in Energy Drinks’ because…”)
• Each post should say why you think that that source is the most appropriate one for the task
• Make sure to take into account not only which kind of source is useful in each scenario, but also whether this particular source is a match for the scenario. Would the information in that source really help answer your question in that scenario?

Link to Part 3 Padlet.

Note to instructors: If you have a Padlet account, you can recreate this Padlet, and all the others we’ve made.