Evaluate sources using the 4 credibility criteria — author expertise, publication, date, bias (CCSS W.6.8)
Exercise Difficulty 3 ~6 min eng.g6.f.ex_07

Evaluate Source Credibility

Prompt

Evaluate this source on the 4 credibility criteria: 'Authors: J. Smith, B. Lee. Title: "Effects of Recess on Middle-School Attention." Publication: Journal of Educational Psychology, 2021, pp. 234-251. The authors are professors of educational psychology at Stanford with 15+ publications on adolescent cognition. The study was funded by the National Science Foundation.'

M-6-F-RES-EX-07-A Interactive Physical / non-image

Source-evaluation card with 4 quadrants for the Smith/Lee study. Each quadrant has 3 lines + STRONG/MEDIUM/WEAK circle. Reverse has model evaluation for self-check.

Answer criteria
type rubric
rubric
All 4 criteria evaluated with specific evidence + overall verdict = 4; 3 of 4 criteria = 3; 2 = 2; 1 or vague = 1
Hints
  1. AUTHOR EXPERTISE — what makes them credible on THIS topic?
  2. BIAS — does the funder or institution shape the perspective?
Misconceptions to watch
  • Treats bias as automatic disqualifier (a source can be credible AND biased).
  • Confuses publication reputation with author expertise (different criteria).
Used in lessons