LibGuides: Creating Effective Research Assignments: A Guide for Faculty: Source Currency

Source Currency: Common Problems

3 (best)	2	1	0 (worst)
Resources are current or of appropriate age for the topic (80-100%)	Most resources are current or of appropriate age for the topic (50-79%)	Some resources are current or of appropriate age for the topic (20-49%)	Resources not current or of appropriate age for the topic (under 20%)

Explain the expectations for currency/what constitutes currency within your field.
- Source currency is more important in some disciplines than others. Students from other majors may be taking your course and not be familiar with the currency expectations in your discipline, so it may be helpful to provide students with guidelines before they begin their research.
Include a relevant LibGuide in your Canvas course or link it within the assignment itself.
- LibGuides direct students to the best resources in a given subject area, including many pertinent library resources that allow them to narrow their search results based on publication date.
  - All Guides Alphabetically
Require students to hand in a source list or annotated bibliography before the final draft is due.
- Annotated bibliographies require students to describe and/or evaluate their chosen sources. By requiring students to submit a list of their sources before the final draft, you can catch and correct any problems with source currency before the students have completed the project. You can find helpful information about annotated bibliographies at the following links: