Using Sources Correctly Lesson

Evaluating Sources

Not all sources are created equal. There was once a commercial on television in which a man asked a woman where she got her information about her recent purchase. She said, "the Internet." She then told him that no one could publish anything online that wasn't true. He again asked where she got that information, to which she replied, "the Internet." The message of the commercial was "Don't believe everything you read on the Internet."

The Internet can be a tricky place for research. Unlike the library, which has materials neatly organized into fiction, nonfiction, periodicals, etc., the Internet is like a large sandbox. It takes some sifting through to find good resources.

Review some basic guidelines for evaluating sources in the presentation below.

In-Text Citations

In-text citations are references to works used in the paper. In-text citations should be used whenever a work is paraphrased, summarized, or quoted directly. Basically, anything that does not come from your own brain should be cited. Generally, an in-text citation contains the author's last name and the page number where the information was found. However, there are some other methods of citing sources, depending on the type of information used and the number of authors. Take a look at the presentation below to learn more about how to cite sources using the in-text citation method.

The Works Cited Page

The works cited page contains a detailed list of the sources used throughout the paper. Any source that is used, whether it is paraphrased, summarized, or quoted, should appear in the works cited list.

Unlike a bibliography, a works cited list is a documentation of works actually used in the paper, rather than a list of any works consulted. Therefore, any entries on the works cited list should have an in-text citation within the paper itself.

Take a look at the presentation below to learn more about formatting the works cited page in MLA format.

Review the presentation to further review General Guidelines for Works Cited MLA pages.

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