Source Skills Flashcards
What is a primary source?
A first hand account of an event or topic e.g. a diary entry.
It is not always better than secondary sources.
What is a secondary source?
A source created after an event by someone who did not experience or participate in the events they are writing about e.g. a newspaper article
Nature
What is the source? Is it a primary or a secondary source?
Origin
Who wrote the source? When did they write it? Where was it produced/found?
Purpose
Why was the source produced/made?
Motive
What experiences, attitudes and values may influence the person in the creation of the source?
Audience
Who was the source intended for?
Context
Where was the source found? Were other sources found with it? What was going on when the source was created?
Reliability
Can you trust the information in the source? Does the information match information in other sources? Is the source complete?
Perspective
From who’s point of view was the source created?
Value
Does the source provide useful and reliable information to the historian?
Limitations
What are the problems with the source? What are the aspects of the source which might make it hard to trust the information in the source? What is missing from the source?
Usefulness
Usefulness is a judgement about how relevant or helpful a particular source is in providing information about your topic.
How do you compare sources?
Provide features of each and make a judgement on which is more reliable.
How do I answer a usefulness question?
How much information the source gives about the event/topic (content)
Author and purpose of source - subjective/objective
Reliability should be included
Make a judgement on usefulness
