Skip to Main Content

Persuasive Writing: ADV 1196

Research help for the course, ADV 1196: Persuasive Writing.

How to SIFT through Misinformation Tutorial

Click to open the How to SIFT through Misinformation tutorial in full screen

This self-paced online tutorial will offer strategies and tools for fact-checking news stories based on methods the pros use so that you too can be a savvy consumer of everyday information online.

Practice Evaluation Skills

SIFT method logo

The SIFT Method by Mike Caulfield provides four quick moves you can do when evaluating an online source. Learn more about using the SIFT method in Check, Please! Starter Course.

Reading & Interpreting Sources

Icon of individual readingAfter you have decided that a source is potentially useful, read it carefully and critically, asking yourself the following questions about how this research fits your project:

  • How relevant is this material to your research question?
  • Does the source include counterarguments that you should address?
  • How persuasive is the evidence? Does it represent opposing viewpoints fairly? Will the source be convincing to your audience?
  • Will you need to change your thesis to account for this information?
  • What quotations or paraphrases from this source might you want to use?

Adapted from Easy Writer (4th ed.)

Video Tutorials on Evaluating Sources

Evaluating Sources for Credibility

Assessing Expertise

Lateral Reading

Videos on Reading Strategies

E-reading Strategies

Understanding Academese