Thinking Critically about Information We Create and Use

The videos about algorithmic literacy briefly mentioned filter bubbles, which is when information is tailored for us based on our past searches and demonstrated preferences. In other words, what we click on in Facebook, Google, and other places influences what types of information we see in the future. There's isn't one, quick way to determine if the information we're looking at is reliable and accurate. Instead, we must each continually practice being critical thinkers so we can be more informed researchers. Luckily, there are tools that can help us with this.

Credentials, Claims, Objectives, and Worldview (CCOW)

CCOW is a funny acronym that helps us remember these four helpful evaluation techniques. Follow the link to CCOW to learn more about using these techniques. There's even a CCOW rubric that helps you evaluate websites and other information sources.

• Credentials - Each time we look at information, we should investigate the credentials of whoever created the information. Do they know what they're talking about? Do they have experience or expertise in the subject they're discussing?
• Claims - The next step is to investigate the claims they're making. Is the information they're providing accurate? To discover this, we have to find experts and compare the results.
• Objectives - The next step is to investigate their objectives. What did they hope to accomplish by creating the information? Information is created for many purposes, good and bad. For example, academic work intends to broaden understanding, and advertisements intend to sell something.
• Worldview - We all have a worldview: a picture of reality, a certain viewpoint from which we survey life, the universe, and everything, and try to make sense of it. At its core, our worldview consists of what we believe to be real and what we believe to be important.
  • Instead of dismissing sources that disagree with us out of hand, we can ask ourselves, "Why do they see things that way?" It doesn't necessarily mean they are bad, or dishonest, or deluded. It may just mean they are looking at the information through a different lens.
  • It is important to not only consider the worldview of the source of information, but also to be conscious of our own worldview which influences how we interact with information. Why are some ideas pleasing to us, and others frightening? When we feel attracted to a piece of information, or repulsed by it, we should ask ourselves: why am I feeling that way?

There are other ways to evaluate information to help us to become critical thinkers about information, but in the end they all teach us to do the same thing. Slow down, learn more about the source of information, and compare it with other information sources as well as your own worldview.

 

Some content on this page adapted from Have a CCOW (Links to an external site.) by Anthony Tardiff (Links to an external site.).