Learning to Evaluate Sources: Comparing Teaching Modalities and Student Outcomes

While educators and librarians have long been concerned with developing undergraduates' ability to find credible sources, the abundance of unreliable information online has exponentially complicated the situation. In developing a new curriculum for English Composition 1001 classes, a first-year writing class at the University of Cincinnati, we developed new ways of engaging with student experiences before and beyond the class sessions to address source analysis through active peer learning. Using an action research framework to position ourselves as both practitioners and researchers, we considered our own practice as teachers as much as student outcomes. We compared the use of flipped content with in-class instruction. By capturing students' research process through pre-class and post-class surveys, we could better understand the online ecosystem they must navigate and help them reflect critically on their progress. Our analysis of student survey responses allowed us to measure progress in three areas: source quality, search strategy, and topic relevance. Flipped class activities had the same result on student behavior as did in-class delivery.