What to do:
Make sure you read carefully read through the pages in the W6.2 – The C.R.A.P. Method (attached)
Follow these steps:
Go to Google or any search engine
Type in some keywords for your Problem Solution Essay topic – put in what you would actually write when doing research for this paper.
Find the first three results, whatever they may be (if there are ads, sponsored links, or Wikipedia links, skip those)
Conduct CRAP research on the three links
For your discussion post, write down:
Your topic
The exact words you typed into Google
Then, repeat the following for each website that you found:
Write the name of the page/article and the link on which you clicked
Write a 2-4 sentence answer for each letter in CRAP. (Note: Not a 2-4 sentence reply for each question – just 1-4 sentences for each letter in CRAP)
Then, for each link, give it a CRAP+ or CRAP- rating, and provide a 2-4 sentence explanation for each as to why you gave it this rating.
C: Currency
Is this the most recent material you can find?
Is the material recent enough to accurately represent your topic?
Has it been updated recently?
For electronic sites, does the site appear modern and up to date?
R: Reliability
Is the material objective?
Can you detect any obvious bias or loaded language?
Are sources available to back up the piece?
Is it well written and free of errors?
A: Authority
Does the author have degrees, experience, or other expertise in the topic area?
Is the host source reliable, i.e., a respected newspaper versus an individual blog?
Is the publisher reputable and well known?
Do you have a sense of trust for the author?
P: Purpose and Point of View
What is the material’s creator trying to accomplish? Are they trying to inform? Persuade? Push their own agenda? Convince you to buy something?
Does the site include advertising or click-bait?
Does the article seemed aimed at a specific audience?
Example/Sample Post:
Topic: Social Media Effect on Mental Health
Search Words: social media affecting mental health
1. Link #1: Online Social Networking and Mental Health – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4183915/
CRAP:
Currency: This article was published in 2014. All of the links work, and connect to references. It could be updated, as social media has changed considerably in the last 6 years.
Reliability: The information that is included is all from additional research projects. These projects include research from professional/credible medical and academic organizations.
Authority: The article is written by Igor Pantic, MD, PhD. He is a professor at University of Belgrade, Serbia and University of Haifa, Israel. It was published in Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, a peer reviewed, professional journal. It is hosted online by the NCBI, the National Center for Biotechonlogy Information.
Purpose/POV: It’s purpose is to look at the current research on the topic of social media and mental health, and inform the reader what the current research says. It is fact based. There does not seem to be any obvious bias. The intended audience are academics, researchers, and scientists.
Rating: CRAP+: This is clearly a professional article written by a real doctor, researcher, and professor. It is published in a peer reviewed journal and hosted on the website of a professional organization. It is a research project that should be repeated, however, as social media and how people interact with social media has changed.
2. Link #2…
REPEAT PROCESS ABOVE TWO MORE TIMES!
