If, at some point during your research, you decide to look for sources not included on the research guide:
- Try searching only using (search term)+site:.edu OR (search term)+site:.org OR .gov
- Google also offers an "advanced search" option
- Try Google Scholar
- Consider the source: a USA Today article does not carry the same weight as a New York Times article
- Can you answer the following questions?
- Who are the authors/publishers, and why do you believe they are reliable?
- What is the relevance of this information to my topic?
- When was this information published? Is there more current information available?
- Where does this source gets its information, does it have a bibliography of sources?
- Why does this source exist? What is the point of view I should be aware of?
These are a few of the questions we use when selecting a resource for this guide, and you are expected to adhere to these same high standards.
Keep in mind that your teacher can quickly form an opinion about your work based on the sources you used.
