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Biology Research Tutorial
Evaluating Articles: Checklist

This is a printable checklist for evaluating journal articles.

Relevance
Does the information add to or support your research? _____
Does the article provide references that are also useful? _____
Does the article provide more or less information than you need? _____
Type of Article
Does this article come from a scholarly journal? _____
Is this journal peer-reviewed? _____
Is this a research article? _____
Credibility Is there an author listed? _____
Does the author cite sources or a bibliography? _____
Does the author cite formal credentials or experience? _____
Can you contact the author? _____
Accuracy Does the article provide information that contradicts other sources? _____
Does the article include an explanation of its research methods? _____
Bias
Does the article present information in an objective manner? _____
Are all sides of an issue represented, or is this article biased? _____
Does the article provide documentation for the information provided? _____
Currency
Was the article recently published? _____
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