Foundations of Education

Overview

Introduces the CRAAP test for evaluating sources of information.

Key Concepts

  • CRAAP test

Graded Tasks

  • contribute to the LMS forums

Evaluating Sources of Information

There are no right or wrong answers to the forum questions on the two previous topic pages (only well worded answers that are backed up by well reasoned arguments). One could cast doubt on the veracity of the video solely based on the number of comments which argue for its inaccuracy. One could also make the case that YouTube comments themselves don't have a lot of veracity. For example, YouTube comments are rarely sourced or backed up by direct evidence.

The activity you have just completed underscores both the complexities and importance of evaluating sources of information, whether they be YouTube videos, online comments, blogs, newspaper editorials, infographics, or academic articles etc.

One helpful tool for evaluating sources of information is the CRAAP test.

The CRAAP Test

Currency

  • How current is the resource?
  • When was the resource published or posted?
  • Is this the most current version of this information available?
  • Has the information been revised/updated? Is there proof of a last update or publication date?
  • Is currency of information a concern for your topic?

Relevance

  • Does the resource meet your needs?
  • Is the information related to your topic?
  • Does the resource support your viewpoint or provide an alternate one?
  • Is the information and discussion at an appropriate level?
  • Who is the intended audience (general population, scholars, practitioners etc.)?

Accuracy

  • Is the information in the resource reliable?
  • Are the author’s claims supported by evidence?
  • Has the content been reviewed by other experts? Is it a peer-reviewed resource?
  • Are the language and tone unbiased?
  • Are there spelling or grammatical errors?

Authority

  • Who wrote/produced/published the resource?
  • Is the source published by an academic publisher or a reputable organization?
  • Is an author clearly identified? What are the author’s credentials or organizational affiliations?
  • Are the author(s) qualified to write on the topic? (Degrees, professional designations, professional accomplishments and experience are indicators of qualifications.)
  • If it is a website, does the url reveal anything about the source (e.g., .com, .gov, .edu, .org)?

Purpose

  • Why does this resource exist?
  • What is the purpose of the resource? Is it to teach, sell, promote, and/or entertain?
  • Do the author(s) make their intentions clear? Are there political, ideological, cultural, religious, or personal biases?
  • Is the information provided by the resource fact or opinion?
  • Does the resource express a variety of viewpoints and arguments?
  • Does the resource reflect the experiences of different genders, ages, ethnic groups, languages, nationalities, disciplines, etc.?

CREDIT: This text above is adapted from a resource available at the Ryerson University Library. License: Creative Commons Attribution International 4.0 License. URL: https://learn.library.ryerson.ca/Research/evaluate
📌 Think about the online information sources you relied on for last week's seminar question which asked you to write a summary about another country's educational system. Would the information sources you relied on pass the CRAAP test?
Log into the LMS and answer the following forum question which is a graded task:
Q3.4: Choose a country other than Canada and search for online sources of information about that country's elementary and/or secondary educational system. (If you wish, you can choose the same country you focused on last week.) Provide the web address for an online information source that passes the CRAAP test. Provide the web address for another online information source which fails the CRAAP test. Provide specific reasons for both of your choices. (Actions: Post (Mon-Sun) | 150 - 200 words total)
LMS Forum Question
📌 The remaining videos for this week were all produced by Edutopia, a widely respected U.S.-based organization which develops professional development content for K-12 teachers. One concern in terms of the CRAAP test: The videos are more than five years old which dates them somewhat. Nevertheless, on balance, they are still good sources of information - well produced from a respected information source.