2. Internet Research
Internet research is an easy
way to obtain information
about your topic.
However, not everything
online is college-level
quality
Evaluating the quality of a
website involves looking at:
Credibility
Objectivity
Currency
3. Criteria for Internet Research
Credibility
Can you establish who wrote the article? Do they have
the necessary credentials?
Objectivity
Is the author presenting an objective point of view or a
biased opinion?
Currency
Is this information current? For some topics like
technology, the environment, and medical
advances, you should use only the most current
information.
4. Determining Website Credibility
We‟ll look at six websites
Try to determine if they meet the
criteria for internet research or not.
What principle of internet research
might they violate?
Note: these websites may contain
copyrighted material and are used only
for educational purposes
6. Verdict: Not Credible
Why not?
Wikipedia is a great source of general
information for personal use. However, for
college level research, you should use primary
resources where you can check the validity and
credibility of the information directly.
Shhh! Sometimes these primary sources can be
found at the bottom of the Wikipedia page! Click
on them to view!
8. Verdict: Not Objective
Why not?
Blogs can be created by anyone who wants one.
Just because someone writes something doesn‟t
mean they are qualified to do so or that they are
presenting a balanced view.
Most people use blogs to share their personal
views.
Most blogs are not research based or peer
reviewed.
10. Verdict: Not current
Why not?
There is NO DATE on this website, so it‟s
impossible to tell how current the information is.
When it comes to a scientific topic, it‟s best to
find the most current information possible, as
the information is constantly evolving.
It‟s a good rule of thumb that if you can‟t find an
author or date, don‟t use the website.
12. Verdict: Credible
Journal Articles are usually upfront about
who wrote them and the credentials of that
person.
Most journals note up front as well whether
or not they are peer-reviewed and scholarly.
If you can find all the information about the
author and date, there‟s a good chance it‟s a
credible source of information.
14. Verdict: Objective
Empirical studies tend to be objective and
contain vast amounts of information
Anything contained on a Research Network as
well will probably be peer-reviewed and
deemed scholarly as well.
16. Verdict: Current
The date is clearly stated on this document.
As I created this PowerPoint activity during
2012, one can safely assume a 2012 document
is a current source of information for Global
Warming.
Other information on this website would also
indicate that this is a scholarly source of
information.
17. Where do I find these better
sources?
Instead of going straight to Google, try Google
Scholar OR
Go to your college library‟s website
18. Works Cited
A list of sources used in a presentation
Use a uniform style
APA
MLA
Designed to enable someone else to
locate the supporting material you
used
19. Citing Sources of Information
Correctly
Bibliographic Reference
(AKA—Works Cited Entry)
Internal References
Verbal Citations
20. Which citation is which?
Harter, L. A. (2008). Human
Internal
Communication (3rd ed.).
McGraw-Hill Publications. references
“According to James Darnell, a
researcher for the Institute of
Higher Learning…” Bibliographic
Reference
At the same time, their levels
of absenteeism declined
(Oyserman, Beebe, &
Terry, 2006) Verbal Citations
21. Were you correct?
Harter, L. A. (2008). Human
Internal
Communication (3rd ed.).
McGraw-Hill Publications. references
“According to James Darnell, a
researcher for the Institute of
Higher Learning…” Bibliographic
Reference
At the same time, their levels
of absenteeism declined
(Oyserman, Beebe, & Terry,
2006) Verbal Citations
22. Help with MLA
Use these helpful websites to find out more
about citing sources for your Bibliography/
Works Cited and Internal references.
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/search.php
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/74
7/2/
http://www.easybib.com/
23. Why should I verbally cite?
Verbal citations:
Tell listeners WHO the source is and that s/he is
reliable, credible, and qualified
Verify how CURRENT the information is
Ensure that you are not PLAGIARIZING
Leave a PATH for listeners to
find your research later
24. Where are my verbal citations?
When you research for your speeches, you are
already taking down the information about
the source for your Bibliography/Works
Cited.
You‟ll also reference the source in your
outline, wherever the information is
But a verbal citation is when you say it OUT
LOUD, DURING your speech, wherever the
information is
25. Examples
Ineffective: “Margaret Brownwell writes in her
book Dieting Sensibly that fad diets telling you
„eat all you want‟ are dangerous and
misguided.” (Although the speaker cites and
author and book title, who is Margaret
Brownwell? No information is presented to
establish her authority on the topic.)
Better: “Margaret Brownwell, professor of
nutrition at the University of New Mexico , writes
in her book, Dieting Sensibly, that …” (The
author’s credentials are clearly described.)
Note: some of the above examples are quoted from:
Metcalfe, Sheldon. Building a Speech. 7th ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2010. Google Books.
Web. 17 Mar. 2012.
26. Examples
Ineffective: “An article titled „Biofuels Boom‟ from the
ProQuest database notes that Midwestern energy companies
are building new factories to convert corn to
ethanol.” (Although ProQuest is the database tool used to
retrieve the information, the name of the newspaper or
journal and publication date should be cited as the source.)
Better: “An article titled „Biofuels Boom‟ in a September
2010 issue of Journal of Environment and Development”
notes that midwestern energy companies…” (Name and date
of the source provides credibility and currency of the
information as well as giving the audience better
information to track down the source.)
Note: some of the above examples are quoted from:
Metcalfe, Sheldon. Building a Speech. 7th ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2010. Google Books.
Web. 17 Mar. 2012.
27. Examples
Ineffective: “According to
generationrescue.org, possible recovery from
autism includes dietary interventions.” (No
indication of the credibility or sponsoring
organization or author of the website is given)
Better: “According to pediatrician Jerry
Kartzinel, consultant for
generationrescue.org, an organization that
provides information about autism treatment
options, possibly recovery from autism includes
dietary interventions.” (author and purpose of
the website is clearly stated.)
Note: some of the above examples are quoted from:
Metcalfe, Sheldon. Building a Speech. 7th ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2010. Google Books.
Web. 17 Mar. 2012.
28. Help with Verbal Citations
For more help with Verbal Citations, go to
this website:
http://libguides.greenriver.edu/content.php?
pid=53310&sid=2604145