Languages, Linguistics, and Literatures: Cite & Evaluate

Start from the following LibGuides to learn about Copyright, Citing and how you can avoid Plagiarism when writing an assignment:

Do a quick check of the resource you intent to use using the CRAAP Method: 

• Currency: is the information up to date?
• Relevancy: is the information related to the subject, purpose and level of your assignment?
• Authority: who created the information and how reliable is the source?
• Accuracy: have you checked if the claims and the data are verifiable? 
• Purpose: can you discern any bias (economic, political, ideological etc) in the text?

You can also apply the SIFT Method (Caulfield, 2019)

• Stop. Pause and ask yourself if you recognize the information source and if you know anything about the website or the claim's reputation. 
• Investigate. Take a minute to identify where the information came from and to consider the creator's expertise and agenda. 
• Find better and trusted coverage. 
• Trace claims, quotes, and media back to the original context. 

BEAM Method is also used to evaluate your sources. 

• Background - presentation of information or establishment of facts
• Exhibit - explication, interpretation, and analysis of data
• Argument - check if it affirms, disputes, refines, and extends claims and arguments
• Method - examine the key terms, theories, styles, perspectives, and discourse presented and used

Here are some links and books recommended by the library to help you with your citation formatting and bibliography list: