While you are doing research you need to think critically about your sources of information. It is important to understand that not all sources of information are equal. Some sources are better than others. Some sources have inaccurate, incorrect or biased information. As a researcher, you need to be aware of the quality of your sources. As a result, you must evaluate your sources of information.

The best way to do this is to use the following acronym; OPVL. These letters stand for;

• Origin: who made this source?
• Purpose: why did they make it?
• Value: why is this a good source of information?
• Limitations: is there anything wrong with the source or is there something missing?

Below are some specific questions to help you evaluate your sources using OPVL.

A. Origin – who made it?

• Who is the author?
• What do you know about this person?
• Are they an expert on the subject they are writing about?
• If the source is written by an organization instead of an individual, what do you know about it?
• Is this an education organization or a business/company?

If you cannot find any information about the source’s origin than it is NOT a good source!

B. Purpose – why did they make it?

• Why did this author or organization create this source?
• Are they trying to educate you or sell you a product?
• Are they trying to inform you about factual information or persuade you with their opinions?
• If the source is a book then what is the author trying to explain in their book?
  • Is it a survey (general history) of a topic?
  • Is it a book about a specific event or issue in history?
• Try to find the About Us section of a website to find information about purpose.
• In a book, try to find the introduction, preface, or foreword to find out why the author wrote the book.

C. Value – why is this a good source?

• Why is this source useful to your research?
• Why did you choose to use this source?
• How does the origin and purpose of the source make it a good source of information?
• Is the source trustworthy?
• Is the source written by an expert?
• Does the source have good examples and details that you can use?

D. Limitations – is there anything wrong with this source?

• If you cannot find the author of the source, then this is ALWAYS a limitation.
• If the purpose of the source is not the same purpose of your research (i.e. to learn) then it is a limitation.
• Does the author present their opinion to you? If so, then this is a limitation.
• If the author presents their opinion, what is it?
• Is there information you wanted to find that this source did not provide? (e.g. not enough detail, examples, or quotations)

How should I record my OPVL?

You should write your OPVL with your research notes (see the research notes template). In addition, you should write a short 2-4 sentence evaluation of each source. In other words, you need to use the OPVL to tell me how good each of your sources are.

If you do not do this, you have not evaluated your sources and you will not reach the 5-6 achievement level for this strand!