Evaluating Resources
When searching for materials to use for your research paper, it is important to be very selective about what you choose. Look for resources that are scholarly and are from reliable sources. While you may use Wikipedia to find basic information about your topic, be sure not to use it for your citations. Instead, look at the list of references in the Wikipedia entry and try to find a reliable source of information that backs up what you found in Wikipedia. Google may also be used to find a website that will give you basic information about your research topic, but be careful about what sites you choose.
See the section below on Evaluating Websites. You may also use Google Scholar to help you find journal articles and see if they are available via the library. More importantly, use scholarly books and journal articles that are available via the library website.

Criteria for Evaluating Websites- Cornell University Library