What: this last week Professor Reid taught us about C.R.A.A.P., which is an acronym for the process of evaluating the credibility of websites for the purpose an individual would need.  Below is each letter, and the meaning behind the letter:

Current- is the website within a credible time limit for your purposes?

Relevant- does the website cover your topic enough for your needs? During this stage you should also figure out who the intended audience is? Also, is the author have the correct credentials to talk about your subject? (TIP: the about us link will help you decide).

Authority- who published this site? (TIP: look at the contact us section of the website). What type of domain is it under? (.edu, .gov, .org websites are more credible than others). Are there external links, and do they work?

Accuracy- where are they getting their information? Is there a work cited page?

Purpose- what was the author’s purpose for publishing? Was it to: reflect, inform, persuade, or entertain?

So what: This information is vital when consulting the internet for information. Otherwise, the information gathered is useless as well as the time spent collecting it. This will also ultimately lead to knowledge failure.

Now what: I plan to use C.R.A.A.P. when evaluating any and all online sources. This will lead to success in my use of the information gathered online.

Question: How easy will it to be to find credible sources for my purposes? Will there always be a credible online source?