D. Composition: Expressing Ideas and Creating Texts · Composing Complex Texts: Research, Story, Argument, Analysis and Media

Research: Currency, Credibility and Curated Content

D1.3 A2.3 A2.1 A2.2About 55 minutes

Learning goals

I can evaluate the currency, quality, bias and accuracy of information.
I can verify the reliability of a source using the SIFT moves: Stop, Investigate the source, Find better coverage, Trace claims.
I can explain how curated content, such as feeds and search results chosen by algorithms, shapes what I see.
I can recognize signs of misinformation and disinformation, including edited or AI-generated images, and respond responsibly.

Words to know

currency
How up to date information is. Look for the date it was published or last updated.

credibility
How much a source deserves to be trusted, based on who made it, their expertise and their track record.

verify
To check that something is true or that a source is what it claims to be.

SIFT
Four moves for checking information: Stop, Investigate the source, Find better coverage, Trace claims to the original context.

curated content
Content that has been selected and arranged for you, by people (an editor) or by computer programs (an algorithm).

algorithm
A set of instructions a computer follows. Social media and search algorithms decide what to show you, often based on what you have clicked before.

filter bubble
When curated feeds keep showing you similar views, so you see less of other perspectives.

context
The surrounding information (when, where, who, why) that gives something its meaning.

Remember from Grade 7

In Grade 7 you evaluated sources for quality, bias and accuracy, used lateral reading (leaving a site to check it from the outside), and learned the difference between misinformation (false, maybe shared by mistake) and disinformation (false, shared on purpose).

The Grade 8 curriculum adds currency (how up to date information is) and asks you to verify the reliability of sources. It also asks you to think about curated content: the feeds, recommendations and search results that decide what you see in the first place.

Four questions for every piece of information

Currency: When was it published or updated? Does the topic change quickly (technology, health advice, sports records) or slowly (how glaciers shaped the land)?
Quality and credibility: Who made it? What is their expertise? Do they show evidence?
Bias: What is the purpose: to inform, sell, persuade or get clicks? Whose perspectives are missing?
Accuracy: Do other reliable sources agree? Can you find the original?

Verify with SIFT

The SIFT method was developed by a digital literacy researcher, Mike Caulfield, to help people check information quickly:

S: Stop. Notice your reaction. If a post makes you feel shocked, angry or thrilled, slow down before you believe or share it.
I: Investigate the source. Leave the page and search for who made it. What do others say about them?
F: Find better coverage. Search for the claim itself. Do trusted news outlets, experts or official organizations report it?
T: Trace claims, quotes and media to the original context. Find the original study, full video or first photo. Was something cut, edited or taken out of context?

The four SIFT moves, in order.

Curated content: who chose what you see?

You don't see the whole internet. You see what has been curated for you.

Search results are ranked by a search engine's algorithm. The top result isn't automatically the most reliable; some top results are ads (look for the word Sponsored).
Social media feeds and video recommendations are chosen by algorithms, often based on what you've watched, liked and lingered on. They are often designed to keep you scrolling.
Human curation happens too: a news editor chooses which stories go on the front page; a teacher chooses readings.

Curation is useful, but it can create a filter bubble: if you watch one kind of video, you may be shown more and more of the same view, and less of others. A researcher steps outside the bubble on purpose by searching for other perspectives.

A filter bubble: the algorithm keeps showing more of what you clicked, so other views (dashed boxes) stay outside your feed unless you search for them on purpose.

Three pretend sources for one research question

Research question: Should our school allow phones at lunch? (All sources are invented for this lesson.)

Source A: a web page from a provincial education organization, last updated 2025, summarizing several studies and the current school rules, with links to the studies.
Source B: a 2014 blog post titled Phones in Class: The Future Is Here!, written by a company that sells classroom tablets.
Source C: a viral video clip in which a principal appears to say We will take every phone and never give it back! The clip is 6 seconds long and the account that posted it was created last month.

Worked example

Let's SIFT source C

Should you use the viral principal clip in your research?

Stop: The clip makes people angry, and it's spreading fast. That's a reason to slow down, not to share.
Investigate the source: The account is one month old, has no name and posts only angry clips. Low credibility.
Find better coverage: Search the school name and phone policy. A local news site reports the real policy: phones are collected at the start of class and returned at the end of the day.
Trace to the original: The full 3-minute video from the school's information evening shows the principal saying, Some people worry we'll take every phone and never give it back. That's not what we're doing. The 6-second clip cut off the context and flipped the meaning.

Don't use it as evidence of the policy. It's an example of disinformation (it was edited on purpose to mislead). You could mention it in an essay about misinformation, describing it honestly.

Source	Currency	Credibility and quality	Bias	Accuracy	Verdict
A. Education organization	Updated 2025: current	Expert organization; links to studies	Low; purpose is to inform	Matches the studies it links to	Use for facts
B. 2014 tablet-company blog	Over ten years old; phones and school rules have changed	No studies named	High; the company sells tablets	Predictions, not facts	Don't use for facts; maybe as an example of how views have changed
C. 6-second clip	Recent, but out of context	Anonymous new account	Made to provoke	Edited to flip the meaning	Don't use as evidence

Evaluating each source for currency, credibility, bias and accuracy.

Images, video and AI

Reverse image search (most search engines offer one) can show where a photo first appeared.
AI tools can create realistic images, voices and video. Clues include odd hands or text, unnatural lighting, or no other coverage of a dramatic event. But clues aren't proof: tracing to the original is the real check.
AI chatbots can be wrong and can invent sources. Treat what they say as a lead to check, never as a source to cite, unless your teacher gives different instructions.
Protect your privacy while researching: don't sign up for sites or give personal information to read an article, and ask an adult before downloading anything.

Just for fun

Q: Why did the 2014 blog post get kicked out of the research project?

A: It had no currency. (It couldn't pay its way.)

Hands-on activity

Bubble-check your feed (with a grown-up)

You need: a device with a search engine, a grown-up, paper and a pencil.

With your grown-up, search the same question (for example are electric cars good for winter?) on two different search engines, or on one search engine and one video site. Write down the top five results for each.
Mark each result: Ad/Sponsored, company, news, expert or government organization, personal opinion.
Compare: Are the lists the same? Which source types appear most?
Pick one surprising claim from the results and SIFT it. Write one sentence for each move.
Discuss with your grown-up: How might a filter bubble change what a person believes about this topic?

Safety: don't log in to accounts, click ads or download anything during this activity.

Your turn

What does currency mean when you evaluate a source?

What do the letters in SIFT stand for?

Why is the Stop move important?

What is curated content? Give one example.

Is the top search result always the most reliable? Explain.

For which topic does currency matter more: the newest cellphone safety features or how the Canadian Shield was shaped by glaciers? Why?

What is a filter bubble?

More practice: warm-up

What is an algorithm?

What does verify mean?

Name one word that shows a search result is an ad.

Misinformation or disinformation: a video edited on purpose to mislead?

What tool can show where a photo first appeared online?

More practice: on your own

A quotation is shared as "Never give up on your dreams!" (Albert Einstein) on a poster, with no source. How do you check it, and what should you do if you can't confirm it?

A website called Ontario Healthy Kids Facts has no About page, no author names and sells vitamins on every page. Investigate the source: what would you search for, and what is your verdict?

Explain how a video app might create a filter bubble about a topic like hunting.

A 2010 news article from a respected newspaper reports a town's population. Is it reliable for your 2026 report on the town's population today? Explain.

Give two ways to protect your privacy while doing online research.

Challenge

A post shows a photo of a huge flood on your town's main street with the caption TODAY!!!. Walk through all four SIFT moves.

Explain why curated content is not automatically bad, and how a researcher should use it responsibly.

Your teacher allows AI chatbots for brainstorming only. A chatbot tells you a statistic about youth sports in Canada and names a report. What do you do before using the statistic?

Check your understanding

Quiz

Which question checks a source's currency?

In SIFT, what does T stand for?

Which is an example of curated content?

A clip is cut so that a speaker seems to say the opposite of what they meant. This is a problem of…

Which source is likely the most current and credible for school phone rules in Ontario in 2026?

What is the best way to use a fact a chatbot gives you?

For parents and teachers

Big ideas (D1.3, A2.3): Grade 8 students gather information and evaluate its currency, quality, bias and accuracy, verify the reliability of sources, and consider misinformation, disinformation and curated content when doing research. Safe and private online research connects to A2.1 and A2.2.

How to help at home:

When a surprising post or headline comes up at home, model the Stop move out loud: Let's check that before we believe it.
Compare results on two search engines together, and point out sponsored results.
Talk about your own feeds: Why do you think the app shows me this?

Common difficulties:

Trusting the top result or a professional-looking design. Looks are not credibility.
Assuming old means wrong or new means right. Currency matters more for fast-changing topics.
Treating chatbot answers as sources. They are leads to verify.

Safety: Supervise online searches. The sources and clip in this lesson are invented for teaching; Mike Caulfield is the real researcher who developed SIFT.