First-year Student Source Evaluation: Methods, Misunderstandings, and Madness

Abstract

This poster shares the results of a study about the source evaluation practices of first-year college students: how students describe source types and the criteria they apply when evaluating the usefulness and credibility of scholarly and popular sources. Results indicate that students relied on surface-level indicators. Student voices showed misconceptions about the creation of scholarly information, confusion around the peer review process, and difficulty identifying source types. Results help justify the need for librarians to work with faculty to develop lessons toward in-depth discussion of information creation, types of information designations, and evaluation strategies that go beyond a single source.