Information Literacy Tutorial - Pre/Post Test

1. Relevance, currency and reliability are important criteria for evaluating sources of information.

True

False

True. You need to evaluate your articles to make sure that they support your topic (relevancy). The articles also need to be from authors with credentials (reliability) and should have been published within the last several years (currency).

Explanation

True. You need to evaluate your articles to make sure that they support your topic (relevancy). The articles also need to be from authors with credentials (reliability) and should have been published within the last several years (currency).

2. Which of these things is not part of a book citation?

Title of the book

Date of publication

Color of the book cover

Author's name

The book citation will include the title of the book, date of publication and the author's name. It does not include the color of the book cover.

Explanation

The book citation will include the title of the book, date of publication and the author's name. It does not include the color of the book cover.

3. The Internet always provides the most reliable information available.

True

False

Remember - anyone can put information on the Internet. Not everything you find there is reliable.

Explanation

Remember - anyone can put information on the Internet. Not everything you find there is reliable.

4. When searching for resources, adding a place name or time period to a general topic will narrow (decrease) the number of results.

True

False

True. When you add more information, such as the name of a place or time period, it will reduce the number of search results.

Explanation

True. When you add more information, such as the name of a place or time period, it will reduce the number of search results.

5. Which of the following Web addresses is most likely to take you to the U.S. Department of Education's Web site?

Www.ed.gov

Www.education.com

Www.highered.com

The .gov ending in the Web address lets you know it is a government Web site.

Explanation

The .gov ending in the Web address lets you know it is a government Web site.

6. Which of the following would be the best source of information for a research paper on the history of Medieval England?

An article from U.S. News and World Report

The book Medieval Foundations of England

The movie Braveheart

Books provide good in-depth information on this topic. The title is telling us that the book will cover the history of Medieval England.

Explanation

Books provide good in-depth information on this topic. The title is telling us that the book will cover the history of Medieval England.

7. Books are the best sources for:

Locating detailed information on a person or place

Locating information on current events

Locating pictures of famous works of art

Select a book to find extensive information on a topic.

Explanation

Select a book to find extensive information on a topic.

8. Which of these criteria is least important when evaluating an article?

Currency of information

Author of the article

Number of pages in the article

The currency of the information and the author are important pieces of information. The number of pages in the article is the least important.

Explanation

The currency of the information and the author are important pieces of information. The number of pages in the article is the least important.

9. You are searching a database for information on working mothers. Using the term "working mothers", you find more than 2,000 articles. Would you:

Type the question, "How many working mothers are there in the United States?"

Narrow (limit) your search by adding another term such as "child care".

Start reading through all 2,000 articles.

Typing a question into a database will not be effective and neither is reading through 2,000 articles. The best option is to try to narrow your search by adding additional keywords.

Explanation

Typing a question into a database will not be effective and neither is reading through 2,000 articles. The best option is to try to narrow your search by adding additional keywords.

10. What is the best way to find a journal article on a given topic?

Page through print issues of journals

Search the web using Google or Yahoo

Search a database like ProQuest or EBSCOhost

Paging through issues of print journals is not the most efficient way to find articles on your topic. Google and Yahoo will not have articles from academic sources. The best option is to search a database like ProQuest or EbscoHost to locate articles for your research paper.

Explanation

Paging through issues of print journals is not the most efficient way to find articles on your topic. Google and Yahoo will not have articles from academic sources. The best option is to search a database like ProQuest or EbscoHost to locate articles for your research paper.