source criticism

The students become credible sources

Working with Mobile Stories is a living working process with source criticism. Through our help texts, users learn to  understand different types of sources and how professional media work with source review. For each source the student adds, there are four lines to fill in: The name of the source, a description of the source, a link to the source and finally they need to answer the question: “Why is this source reliable?”. In the published article, the sources are displayed as clickable links and the reader can determine the credibility by following the links, much like on Wikipedia. The purpose of the question about the credibility of sources is to keep the discussion about the different sources alive in the classroom and to create routines for reflection on credibility. This mindset will eventually follow the students in all contexts when they choose to publish or share something online.

“Students get to work and practice sifting and finding the angle in image, film, sound and text to achieve a specific purpose and deliver a certain message. By producing themselves, students gain insights and understanding that no texts they encounter are neutral and that other people also creates their texts through a selection. ”

Cecilia Lindh

Teacher, Montessoriskolan Elyseum, Göteborg