VCLA Research and Information Literacy

Question 1

When evaluating the credibility of a source, which factor is MOST important to consider?

Accepted Answer

The author's qualifications and expertise

Answer

The length of the document

Answer

The number of images included

Answer

Whether the source is available online

Question 2

Which of the following is an example of a primary source?

Accepted Answer

A diary written by a Civil War soldier

Answer

A textbook chapter summarizing historical events

Answer

A magazine article reviewing a novel

Answer

An encyclopedia entry about World War II

Question 3

What does it mean for an academic article to be 'peer-reviewed'?

Accepted Answer

It was evaluated by experts in the field before publication

Answer

It was written by more than one author

Answer

It is freely available to the public

Answer

It has been cited by many other researchers

Question 4

When assessing the currency of a source, a researcher should ask:

Accepted Answer

When was this information published or last updated?

Answer

How much does this source cost to access?

Answer

Is this source popular among students?

Answer

How many pages does this source contain?

Question 5

Which of the following best defines plagiarism?

Accepted Answer

Using another person's ideas or words without proper credit

Answer

Citing too many sources in one paper

Answer

Writing a paper that is too long for the assignment

Answer

Summarizing a source using different words

Question 6

A website with a .gov domain is generally considered reliable because:

Accepted Answer

It is maintained by an official government agency

Answer

Government websites are always written by scientists

Answer

The content is verified by a private company

Answer

Government sites never contain biased information

Question 7

What is the main purpose of a bibliography or works cited page in a research paper?

Accepted Answer

To give credit to all sources used in the research

Answer

To show how long the paper is

Answer

To list the topics the writer plans to cover

Answer

To summarize the main argument of the paper