The CRAAP Test is a test to check the reliability of sources across academic disciplines. CRAAP is an acronym for Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose.

Be that as it may, there is a more correct method of choice if a post is reliable and helpful. We all grasp we need to be on guard when hiring life-defining documents.

Wills, real estate contracts, application forms–these documents come with warning signs: one of which is the demand that the documents be approved and initialed on each page.

What does the acronym CRAAP mean?

CRAAP is an acronym for Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose. Use CRAAP Test to estimate your sources. When was the information published or posted? What is CRAAP testing? The CRAAP Test is a test to check the reliability of sources across educational methods. Due to the vast number of sources surviving online, it can be difficult to tell whether these sources are trustworthy to use as tools for research.

Why is the CRAAP test important?

CRAAP test: Evaluating the credibility of the sources you use is of key importance to ensure the credibility and reliability of your academic research. California State University explained the CRAAP test to help assess the credibility of a source.

Currency: Current research may reinforce or repudiate prior research.

This site’s information seems to be semi-recent, the issues on the front page are relevant to 2016. It does not appear to be regularly updated, at least not the main articles. All the sections I tried are fully functional including the links to their secondary websites. The site claims to have been functional and certified since 2001.

Relevance: Does the information directly support your argument, or is it merely interesting?

If a person has a research project about current issues in the United States, this site seems to be a great start. Most of the major issues presented go into great detail. At the top of the page all the major points and statistics are listed and as the page goes on it becomes more special. The information provided does seem to be efficient and necessary and the style used is targeted at a moderate education level.

Authority: Who is the author and what are his or her credentials?

Is it written for an educational or for a common audience? The director and primary researcher is a college graduate from Brown University and is guided by an associate who graduated from the same college. The site does not enough display either of their credentials, especially the co-founder or chairman of the board of directors.

Accuracy: Is the information from a reliable study or source?

Is it verifiable? Most of the information on the site appears to be right, although as the observer scrolls further through the pages, the information could get less and less secure and we would probably not know. Most of the general information, such as the basic info on gun control, seems to be mostly accurate associated with other websites. The site does explain a lot, if not all, of the required citations in detail.

Purpose: What can you determine about the source’s purpose?

Does it have state, ideological, social, or other preferences that may tilt the information? The creators are probably trying to support and teach the public about major national issues. The sites do not appear to be pressing their own agenda, they only advertise the programs/newspapers/other websites that have supported them.

They do not appear to be developing an ideology or moving up trouble. The site does have a basic mission statement, and this is supported by their “standards of reliability”.

Enough of This CRAAP

If you use crappy sources, you’ll end up with a crappy paper (and most likely a crappy grade). Apply the CRAAP Test to assure you’re using reliable sources for all of your assignments.