MODULE III:
EVALUATING AND USING INFORMATION EFFECTIVELY

EVALUATING INFORMATION

INTRODUCTION

"If I read it in a book or in a journal at the Library it must be good enough to use it in my paper. Isn't that right?" Wrong! You cannot always assume that this is correct. If you have asked yourself this question and felt confused about the proper answer, you are not alone. Being able to determine effectively what information is appropriate, accurate, relevant, or authoritative is a very important skill in information literacy. With the help of the readings and exercises of this module, you are going to learn how to determine what information you need and how to evaluate the information you find.

HOW DO I DETERMINE WHAT INFORMATION IS APPROPRIATE OR USEFUL?

These days, everyone is confronted with enormous amounts of information of all types and on a very wide variety of subjects. You are no exception. This abundance of data may make your choice more difficult. When writing a paper or researching a topic, you will generally find more information than you can use in your project. If you cannot utilize all the sources you find, you will need to select the best and most relevant ones. How do you do that? There are a few general guidelines that can make your selection process easier and more effective. Let's look at these points.

STEP 1: REVIEW YOUR INFORMATION NEED.

Module 2 of this program provided an overview of what you needed to do before you started searching for information and what strategies you should follow to find the information required by your project. Look at the pieces of information you found and start evaluating them on the basis of the guidelines you started with. Ask yourself the question: "Did the information I found match the intended purpose and scope of the paper?"

STEP 2: REVIEW AND SORT OUT THE BIBLIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION OF THE SOURCES YOU FOUND.

The initial evaluation should take place as you peruse the bibliographic citations. As you recall from Module 1, bibliographic citations contain all the data you need to distinguish one publication from another. This information is generally combined into three main components: author, title, and publication information. A close examination of these elements can help you determine how useful or appropriate this source will be in the context of your research project. You will need to be able to distinguish books from journal articles. Here is an example of what a citation of a journal article looks like: Teel, Charles, Jr. "Missionaries, Visionaries, and Revolutionaries; Logging a Passage in Search of Fernando and Ana Stahl." Adventist Heritage 12 (Summer 1988): 3-14.

Components of the Journal Citation
Author	Teel, Charles, Jr.
Title of the article	Missionaries, Visionaries, and Revolutionaries; Logging a Passage in Search of Fernando and Ana Stahl.
Name of the Journal	Adventist Heritage
Volume number and publication date	12 (Summer 1988). Note that an issue number or a month may be given instead of a season.
Pages	3-14.

BOOK CITATIONS:

Example: Rice, Richard. The Reign of God. Berrien Springs, MI: Andrews University Press, 1985.

Components of the Book Citation
Author	Rice, Richard
Title of the book	The Reign of God
Place of publication	Berrien Springs, MI
Publisher	Andrews University Press
Publication date	1985

Differences between the citations of a journal article and of a book:Notice that in the journal citation, the title of the article occurs BEFORE the name of the journal. Furthermore, the journal's name is followed by a volume number and additional information about the publication date of that issue. A book citation usually contains the place of publication followed by the name of the publisher and the year of publication. It does not include the volume and issue number. Book citations do not contain the beginning and ending pages of the book.

STEP 3: EVALUATE THE BOOKS YOU HAVE IN YOUR SOURCE LIST.

This step can be carried out in three phases: the initial appraisal, the content analysis and the examination of the reviews the book has received. Let's look at each one of them.

INITIAL APPRAISAL: Your search of the online catalog has probably turned up more books than you can use for your project. How do you decide which ones are worth a closer look? Let's examine the criteria that may help you to make a good initial selection.

• AUTHOR: Find out something about the author(s). What are the author's credentials? These include academic training and practice, professional qualifications, research experience, work done on the field of the book, and past writings. This information is typically provided by the publisher. Places to look for it include: the book jacket, foreword, and preface. Has your instructor mentioned this author? Have you seen the author's name cited in other sources or bibliographies? Remember that respected authors are frequently cited by other scholars. What is the author's purpose for writing the book?
• DATE OF PUBLICATION:When was the book published? This date is significant because areas of knowledge such as the sciences and the social sciences require time-sensitive information. Scientific research is incremental. This means that it builds upon knowledge published previously. Therefore, the most current information is the most complete and the most valuable. In areas of continuing and rapid development, such as the sciences, five years after publication the work is generally outdated. On the other hand, topics in the humanities may require original material written many years ago. How important is currency for your topic? Is the information you are looking for time-sensitive? Is the book already outdated?
• EDITION:Has more than one edition been published? A book that has gone through several printings or editions, usually has been well received and may have become a very important source in its field. Furthermore, additional editions indicate that the book has been revised, updated with the most recent research, and has become an even more reliable source.
• PUBLISHER: Who is the publisher of the book? Books published by university presses, major commercial publishers and well known research centers are more likely to be grounded in research rather than opinion. If the volume you are examining was published by a university press, it is likely to be scholarly.

CONTENT ANALYSIS:If you decide the book is worth a closer look, you should analyze the content.

• SCOPE AND PURPOSE: Read the preface and the introduction to determine the author's thesis. Examine the table of contents and the index to get a an overview of the subject matter(s) it covers. Remember that while the entire book may not be pertinent to your topic, part of it may be very relevant. If the subject you are researching is mentioned in the table of contents and/or the index, the book may be useful to you.
• INTENDED AUDIENCE: What type of audience is the author addressing? Is the publication aimed at the general reader, at students, at professionals, or at the specialists in the field?
• LEVEL OF SCHOLARSHIP: Is the work you are examining a scholarly book? Scholarly journals and books differ from other sources in at least three ways:
  • Documentation: as a rule, scholarly sources require much more detailed information and documentation about the data, methods and authorities cited. This documentation is generally provided through footnotes, appendices, detailed bibliographies, descriptions of any methodology used and additional explanations of the research conducted such as statistics, graphs and charts. In contrast, popular books rarely contain footnotes or detailed documentation.
  • Depth of Coverage of Topic: Scholarly books tend to examine well defined topics in great depth. They are specialized and technical in nature. A book that describes broad areas of knowledge in a superficial way is generally a popular work.
  • Intent: Scholarly books are written with the purpose of communicating the findings of recent research on a topic. The focus is on accuracy and full coverage of the topic discussed. Popular books on the other hand tend to be more geared to entertaining the readers than on providing the most comprehensive and accurate account of the latest scholarship.
• PRIMARY OR SECONDARY SOURCE:Does the book represent a primary or a secondary source? Remember that "Primary Sources" are the raw material of the research process. In the sciences and social sciences they represent the original reports of the research the authors have conducted. In history they are the original writings of eye witnesses of events or participants in significant occurrences. In literature and humanities, primary sources are usually the original writings of the authors being studied. "Secondary Sources" are writings based on primary sources. At the college level, a good research paper should include not just secondary sources but primary sources as well.
• IDENTITY AND AUTHORITY OF THE AUTHOR:You should examine the information about the author in greater depth and more detail than in your initial appraisal of the book. You may have to look for external sources such as book reviews, biographical reference sources and in a variety of other references sources. By now you have already answered the question: "Who is the author(s)?" You can move on to issues such as: What credentials or experience does the author have? Is the author affiliated with a university, a research institute or other knowledge based organization? Does the author's affiliation indicate a specific agenda or bias? Has the author produced other pieces on this subject? Is the author considered to be an expert in the field? Do other authors quote this one as an authority? How have his or her works been received? What specialized knowledge does he or she have on the topic addressed?
• OBJECTIVITY AND BIASES OF THE AUTHOR:Is the information factual or just a matter of opinion? Does the information appear to be valid, reliable, and well researched? Or is it questionable and unsupported by evidence? Is the tone of the text objective? Are the conclusions of the author supported by the evidence presented? Are there evidences of bias in the handling of the material covered? Can the book be associated with any school of thought? Does it appear that the publication was written for propaganda purposes, that is to be a vehicle for a philosophical or ideological viewpoint? Does the author refer to different or opposing viewpoints? Or does he/she ignore their existence? If the work is argumentative in nature, how complete or open is the discussion?
• WRITING STYLE:What type of rhetorical style is employed? Is it objective, analytical and detached? Or does it seem emotional? Does the author present his/her main points clearly? Is the text easy to read? Can the language used be understood by any college level student? Is it appropriate to your level of understanding? Or is it so complex and so filled with jargon that only a specialist can understand it? Is the entire book well organized? Do you find that the different chapters have the text and the main points arranged in a logical and well defined sequence?
• DOCUMENTATION: What method of obtaining data or conducting research was used by the author? Does he or she describe the methodology used? What supporting evidence is provided? Does the book include documentation such as footnotes, charts, graphs, and if appropriate, illustrations and drawings? Is there a bibliography? Are other features provided which amplify the material, such as appendices?
• RELEVANCE AND USEFULNESS:Is the book you found too specific, too general, too simple, too technical, too complex, or just right for your information needs? Does the work update, substantiate or complement other materials you have already examined? Does it contain new information? How does it relate to your thesis? Do you agree with the analysis of the data, the interpretations, and the conclusions of the author? Does the arrangement of the book make it easy to find the information you need? Is the book going to help you to gain a better understanding of the subject of your research? How is the content of this work going to relate to your goals and your information needs? Is the information presented in the most appropriate format for your research objectives? Is the time period covered in the book appropriate for your project?
• EVALUATIVE REVIEWS:No matter how well you perform the content analysis of the book using the steps listed above, you may need to complement your efforts with the work of other reviewers. To do so, consult book reviews. Click here to go to the Book Review Web Page. This Web page will provide you with a list of sources for book reviews on a variety of subjects. After locating and reading a couple of reviews for the book you are examining, ask yourself the following questions: Are the reviews positive? Is the book considered a valuable contribution to the field? What are the good points? What are the weaknesses? Does the reviewer mention other books that might be better?

STEP 4: EVALUATE THE JOURNAL ARTICLES ON YOUR LIST.

In module 1, you got acquainted with periodicals, the publications whose issues appear at fixed or periodic intervals. Because they are published more frequently and rapidly than books, periodicals are excellent for current information. Although there are several different categories of periodicals, we will focus on two major types: popular magazines and scholarly journals. Your teacher are likely to ask you to find and use in your papers articles published in scholarly journals. Therefore, you need to be able to distinguish between these two kinds of publications. The chart provided below defines the characteristics that differentiate scholarly journals from popular magazines.

Differences between Popular Periodicals and Scholarly Journals
	Popular Periodicals	Scholarly Journals
Focus and intent	Communicate general interest topics. Are easy to understand. Cater to a wide audience.	Report the results of original research or advances in a particular field of knowledge.
Intended audience	General public. For the more specialized magazines, people with an interest in a field but not involved in research in that particular area.	Scholars, researchers, experts in a particular field, or people who want to acquire expertise in that field
Authors and contributors	Employees or staff of the publisher and freelance writers. Rarely scholars.	Scholars, researchers, leading experts in the field.
Publisher	Commercial entities. Non-academic associations or entities.	Universities, learned societies, scholarly associations, academic, research entities, or scientific organizations.
Editors	Professional writers and full-time staff of the publisher.	Scholars or leading experts in the field who continue to perform research or teaching of a particular field while editing the journal.
Review process	Articles submitted are reviewed by the editorial staff.	Articles are reviewed by experts in the field. In most cases, a list of reviewers is included in the journal.
Footnotes and bibliographies	Rare references to other articles or publications. No footnotes and no bibliographies.	Careful, detailed and frequent citations of other published works in the form of footnotes and/or bibliographies.
Layout, design and appearance	Numerous illustrations other than graphs, charts or scientific photos. Glossy paper. Emphasis on pleasant and attractive appearance.	Fewer and less glamorous illustrations which in most cases are tables, charts, or photos documenting research.
Assumptions in relation to the intended audience	The authors do not assume that the readers have expertise on the subject of the article.	Authors assume that the readers have substantial knowledge of the discipline that the journal belongs to.
Type of language used	General language intended to be easily understood by the general public.	The language used reflects the terminology of the field and assumes that readers are familiar with technical jargon. It is intended to be understood by people with good knowledge of the discipline.
Abstracts	There are no abstracts of the articles included in the publication.	Abstracts are frequently included, preceding the text of the article itself. However, in some disciplines such as history, abstracts are not common.
Advertising	General ads geared to broad sections of the public.	Few or non-existent ads. Those which are included are related to the field of knowledge of the publication.
Examples	Newsweek	Genetics

STEP 5: EVALUATE THE WEB RESOURCES YOU FOUND

The techniques to evaluate Web sites are still in development. However, there are already some general guidelines available. Below you will find a list of questions and general criteria you can use when evaluating Web sites.

· Did this site receive good reviews from the Web community? To answer this question you need to look at the reviews of Web sites. Some good places to find out about these ratings include:

• Excite Reviews
• iGuide Net Reviews
• Lycos Point Web Reviews (Descriptions and ratings of the top 5% or 10% of all World Wide Web sites)
• Magellan
• NetGuide's Best of the Web
• Webcrawler Select

· Is this site listed in a major Internet directory? Internet directories are lists of sites arranged by subject. Generally they do not contain evaluations of the sites mentioned but the simple fact that a particular Web resource is listed indicates that the compilers of the directory believe that it is useful and credible. So, if you can determine that a specific Web site appears in a major Internet directory, you will know that some of the members of the Internet community have looked that site and found it valuable enough to recommend to the world. Here are some of the major Internet directories:

• A2Z Directory
• The Clearinghouse
• EINet Galaxy
• i-Explorer
• Infoseek
• Magellan
• Planet Earth Home Page
• Starting Point
• WebCrawler
• The WWW Virtual Library
• Yahoo!

· Is the site mentioned in subject Internet guide or collection of specialized links? These are Web sites or printed sources that list the major or most significant Internet resources on a particular subject. For example: as you look for information on specific area of knowledge, you will find Web pages that will have a list of links to other pages on the same subject. If you the source you are looking at appears in one or several of these list, it means that someone with an interest and some knowledge on the subject has examined your source and decided that it was significant enough to recommend it to other users. This adds some credibility to the source you are examining.

· Who is the entity responsible for this Internet site? Is it a university, a research center, a government agency, a company, a well-known and respectable organization, or just an individual? When an organization stands behind an Internet source, the reputation of the sponsoring entity will reflect on the credibility of the source. For example, information provided by a university, a major publisher or a leading international research organization, is much more likely to be accurate and reliable than a page created by a high school student.

· Is the source likely to be biased? Does the information you find on a particular site favor one view over another? Is the sponsor of the site trying to promote a cause, a product, an ideology, a religion, a philosophy, a political party, an interest group, or a scientific current? Does the sponsor and/or the author have a vested interest in the information provided by the source? For example, if you want objective and impartial information about problems created by a certain product, you are not likely to find in the Web site of the manufacturer of that product. Can you determine if there is an agenda behind the information you find in that site? Do the links provided in the source reveal something about the bias or the point of view of the author and the sponsor?

· What is the primary purpose of the site you are examining? Ask yourself the reason why that information is online. Does it represent a form of advertising or promotion of an idea, product or service? Was there another motive to publish that information on the Internet? If so what was it?

· Is the information current? The fact that you found information online does not necessarily mean that the source is current. Look for the date when the source was produced or updated.

· What is the intended audience? What level of user (general public, student, teacher, scholar) is the information geared to? If you are looking for scientific information and you find a source that appears to be relevant in terms of the subject coverage, but it is intended to elementary school students, you should not use it in a college paper.

· Is there a print equivalent to the source you found online? If so, what can you find out about the value, reliability, and accuracy of the printed version?

· How does the information you found in the online source relate to printed works and other Internet sources you found? Does it seem to confirm what you found so far? Or does it take your research in a totally different direction? Can you find corroboration for the information you found online?

· Is the source you found well documented? Online sources, just like the printed sources require documentation to be fully accepted in academic or scientific circles. Examine the source carefully and look for documentation for the assertions of the authors.

USING INFORMATION

There is more to information literacy than understanding, retrieving and evaluating information. In order for you to master this academic area, you need to use information appropriately. What is involved in this? The right use of information requires the following elements:

• Understanding of and respect for intellectual property
• Awareness of the importance of the copyright law
• Use of accurate documentation
• Selection of the appropriate form for bibliographies and footnotes

Let’s look at each one of these points

Intellectual Property

Intellectual property can be defined as the ownership of rights over any product of human intellect or creativity that has been recorded in some form and has a recognized value. This ownership can be individual or corporate, reflecting the rights of the entity that created it or that owns the authority to allow its reproduction and use. Literary works, recorded ideas, inventions, artistic creations, business or scientific methods, industrial technologies, computer programs, chemical compounds created in laboratory, and published texts are among the items that fall within the boundaries of intellectual property.

While all these forms of legal rights and of intellectual property are important, copyright is the most significant in the academic community. As a scholar, a researcher, or as a student, you will have to understand the implications of copyright in order to produce works that comply with the letter and the spirit of the copyright law.

Copyright

What is Copyright? Copyright is a legal protection granted to the creators of original literary, artistic, musical, technical (such a computer software), or other intellectual works. Copyright involves four separate areas of rights:

• 1. The right to reproduce or copy the work
• 2. The right to prepare derivative works
• 3. The right to distribute copies of the work to the public
• 4. The right to perform the work or display it publicly.

Understanding the Copyright Law

Significance and implications of the Copyright Law

To develop a better understanding of the significance and implications of the Copyright Law, check a Web site dealing with this topic, The Copyright Website, which provides a brief overview of the issue.

Fair use

Can one use portions of copyrighted works? As a student are you allowed to quote a sentence or a paragraph from a copyrighted publication? The answer is yes to both questions as long as the use of the original sources falls within the parameters of "fair use." So, what is fair use? You will find some "General Information About Fair Use" at another Web site.

Practical issues

How does copyright affect you and your academic activities? Well, it confronts you with a set of legal and ethical parameters that you should honor. Remember that the issue of copying has to do not just with text or forms of human expression. It involves software and technical processes as well. Throughout your student life and beyond, you will have to address the questions: Can I copy this? If so, to what extent and under what conditions?

Respecting intellectual property through the use of accurate documentation

Remember that the most direct way in which copyright affects you as a student is in documenting your sources. If you quote directly from a source, you must use quotation marks to show that it is a quote and document the source in either a footnote or an endnote. Furthermore, even if you do not quote directly, but you used a statement, fact, or idea from that source, you still need to give credit. Ideas which were not original with you or that are not considered to be part of general knowledge, should be properly documented. In addition, credit should be given to all the sources used in the research process by listing them in the bibliography.

In order to fulfill your responsibilities in relation to intellectual property, you need to follow at least two basic and broad guidelines: "credit check" and proper notation.

Credit check, refers to the careful examination of your sources, or of the work you produced. The objective of this process is to determine what sources you have used or are using and to give them due credit. In short, this examination determines the "what" of your documentation. More exactly, what sources you are going to mention in your footnotes and bibliography.

Selection of the appropriate form for bibliographies and footnotes

Footnotes, bibliography and style, infer the "how" of your documentation. Each discipline has its own preferred set of guidelines for documentation. These are generally called style manuals, and include extensive sets of rules on how to create footnotes, endnotes and bibliographies. These sources explain how the different elements of a citation should be organized and what punctuation to use within each citation.

Style manuals

Summary

There are four main point about this module that you should be able to understand, remember, and apply:

• The sources of information that you locate will vary in terms of quality, reliability and relevance. Therefore you need to evaluate your sources to determine which ones are the most appropriate and useful for your project.
• In evaluating publications, you need to be able to distinguish between scholarly works and popular ones.
• When using the information you selected you need to give credit to the sources.
• Within each discipline, there is a proper style to document the sources used in the research process. Therefore, you should become familiar with the style used in the disciplines you write about.