Analyzing the Sources

Analyzing the Sources (hereinafter, the Session) is a hands-on session designed to get its participants started analyzing the data relevant to WorldOpp. The Session is the seventh of ten sessions of WorldOpp Placement Seminar (hereinafter, the Seminar).

Outline

Discovering the Data is the predecessor session.

How to verify data sources

Verification of data sources in this case refers to determining whether the source of the data presented is credible or not. This is very important in cases where the learner is using external sources of information in their learning path.

Data is divided into primary and secondary sources. 

Primary sources refer to data in its raw form. This means that the researcher went to the field and collected this data and as such it is not available elsewhere. Secondary sources of data refer to books, periodicals or other forms that have been used to store and preserve the data collected. A researcher will only go to the field to collect primary data if the available secondary data cannot be used in the research .

CNM wiki makes use of secondary sources of data to explain concepts to the learners. This is captured in lectures, videos and other learning materials.

To verify a data source, the candidate needs to the source of the data in question and determine if it is an authoritative source before consuming the data as 'gospel truth'. for instance, if one wanted to get information about Michael Jackson, he or she would get more credible information form hi s biography or website rather than from sensational media which normally exaggerate issues to make a sensational story.

How to analyze data sources

There are 6 ways to evaluate the credibility of a data source

1. Author - When reviewing data found online, it is important to find out who the author of the resource is. While peer reviewed journals and scholarly articles will clearly show this, some sites shy away from attributing the content to a specific writer. Users should use sources without author details carefully and get second sources to confirm the data. In analyzing the author details, the user should also determine whether the author is a subject expert in that field their academic qualifications and whether they are biased or not.
2. Citation of the primary sources of data used. For a source to be considered credible, it should cite the origin of the data contained therein. Sources such as books should contain information on other sources that collaborate the data and provide links that he user can go to to confirm this information.
3. In the case where the user is using the web for research, priority should be given to domain names in the following order

1. Education: .edu
2. Academic: .ac
3. Government: .gov
4. Organisation: .org
5. Commercial: .com
6. Network: .net

It is highly likely that a source with the extension '.edu' would have more credible information than one contained in a '.com' extension.

Domain – Some domains such as .com, .org, and .net can be purchased and used by any individual. However, the domain .edu is reserved for colleges and universities, while .gov denotes a government website. These two are usually credible sources for information (though occasionally a university will assign a .edu address to each of its students for personal use, in which case use caution when citing). Be careful with the domain .org, because .org is usually used by non-profit organizations which may have an agenda of persuasion rather than education. Site Design – This can be very subjective, but a well-designed site can be an indication of more reliable information. Good design helps make information more easily accessible. Writing Style – Poor spelling and grammar are an indication that the site may not be credible. In an effort to make the information presented easy to understand, credible sites watch writing style closely.

How to analyze data

Composing the Documents is the successor session.