Evaluating Information: The C'R'A'A'P' Test

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Evaluating InformationThe C.R.A.A.P. Test
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Why Evaluate Information?

• Large amounts of information available
• Need to determine essential from irrelevant
• Need to determine good from bad

Information books, journals, newspapers,
Internet, etc.
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Possible Dangers of Not Evaluating the
Information You Use

• None
• Inconvenience
• Bad grades
• Loss of money
• Loss of job
• Loss of life

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The C.R.A.A.P Acronym

• Currency
• Relevance
• Authority
• Accuracy
• Purpose

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How to Determine Currency

• Check for date of publication or posting
• Check for revision dates
• Check links are they functional and up to
  date (current)?
• Check references (bibliography) to see if
  up-to-date for your topic
• Is the information current or out of date for
  your topic?

Sample Topic Current U.S. AIDS
Statistics Example 1 Example 2
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How to Determine Relevance

• Does this information fit your needs?
• Is the information essential or irrelevant?
• Look for information about the intended audience
  determine the intellectual level of the
  information
• Look at other sources / compare content
• Would you feel comfortable showing this source
  to your professor and defending why you chose to
  use it?

Sample Topic State of Mad Cow disease in U.S.
Example 1 Example 2
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How to Determine Authority

• Look for About Us or background link
• Look for author and credentials
• Look for contact information
• Look at the domain name to determine ownership
  Ex .edu .com .gov .org

Sample Topic Martin Luther King Jr. Example
1 Example 2
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How to Determine Accuracy

• Look for a bibliography or references
• Check to see if the content has been reviewed or
  edited
• Verify information in another source or against
  your personal knowledge (never depend on one
  source)
• Look for balanced writing
• Are their speling or gremmatical erors?
• Use common sense When in doubt, doubt!

Sample Topic Effects of second-hand smoke
Example 1 Example 2
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How to Determine Purpose

• Identify the purpose of the source
• Sell?
• Entertain?
• Persuade
• Inform?
• Teach?
• Think about how the purpose might influence the
  accuracy of the information

Sample Topic Illegal Immigration Example
1 Example 2
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Once AgainWhy Evaluate Information?

• Quality of your sources
• Quality of your overall insights
• Quality of your final paper or project

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Reflection

• I DID Think about how youve evaluated
  information in the past
• I SHOULD Think about better ways to evaluate
  information in the future
• I WILL What are you really going to do?

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Additional Criteria for Selecting Articles from
Library Databases
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Periodicals You May Find in the Academic Search
Database
Publication Names People Fortune
Nation Business Week Wall Street
Journal Social Science Medicine Science News
Christian Century New Statesman
Women's Health Weekly Blood Weekly
Journal of Advanced Nursing Sample Search
AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome)
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Scholarly, Trade, Popular? How do you Tell?
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Distinguishing Characteristics of a Scholarly
Journal

• The articles will have bibliographies
• Articles are generally lengthy
• Authors name and credentials are given
• Very few colorful photographs
• Written in the language of the discipline
• Generally guaranteed to put you to sleep
  especially when read late at night in bed
• PURPOSE To inform and teach and to add to the
  body of knowledge, not to entertain