History

Peer-Reviewed. Peer review is the evaluation of an article or book by one or more scholars. It establishes a process for editing and verifying one's research by having qualified members of the same profession review the article or book in order to maintain standards of quality and provide credibility. 

Primary Sources. A primary source is an original source or artifact that provides evidence of a person, culture, historical event, or time period. This might exist as a document, diary, oral account, manuscript, autobiography, recording, architectural structure, or work of art. These types of primary sources were created by people with direct knowledge and experience of an event, or to serve a specific purpose during their lifetime. Primary sources are typically housed in museums and archives. 

Scholarly Credibility. A scholarly article or book that contains content written by experts in a particular field of study. Some details to look for when determining whether a source is credible are as follows:

• Are all sources used thoroughly cited?
• Are the sources they cited used by other academic institutions?
• Was it peer-reviewed prior to publication? 
• Where was the source published? 
• What else has the author written?
• Is the author a reputable scholar?

For more information on source credibility, please see PPLD's LibGuide on Information and Media Literacy here.

Secondary Sources. A secondary source of information is a document or recording that was created by an individual who did not experience first-hand or participate in the historical event being discussed or in the formation of an artifact. When conducting research, secondary sources typically provide scholarly information about a select topic that has been analyzed, interpreted, and/or evaluated. Thus, this source type does not substitute an original event or artifact, but assists in learning more about them.

Anyone can publish a website or webpage without it being evaluated for accuracy or quality of information. Reviews by peers, scholars, editors, and publishers are not often applied to websites. The following evaluation criteria should be applied when viewing a website:

• Authorship. Is the author identified? What are the author's credentials? For example, does the site include the author's position and institutional or organizational affiliation? Is the URL for an educational institution (.edu) or government agency (.gov)? 
• Accuracy. Can the data be verified from other sources? Does the author have an obvious bias? Check the facts.
• Audience. Is the site intended for scholars, professionals, or students?
• Currency. Does the website include the date it was created and/or updated? Are the links current?
• Coverage. Does the site state its intended scope? Is it designed to cover an entire subject, or to give detailed information on one aspect?
• Relative Value. How does it compare to other sources of similar information? Are there other more accurate or complete sources - possibly in print format or a library database? Even with all of the useful information online, sometimes the most reliable resources are print books on the shelf at the library.

For additional information on detailed criteria that can be applied when conducting research on the internet, see PPLD's LibGuide on Information and Media Literacy here.