Selecting Primary Sources: Criteria for Classroom Use

Last Updated on January 14, 2022

Primary source analysis promotes information literacy, a vital skill for competent citizens. When selecting primary sources to use with students, keep the criteria listed below in mind to ensure valuable learning experiences.

KNOW YOUR STUDENTS

Engagement

• Will your students want to dig deep, ask questions, and learn more about the primary source?
• Is the source interesting?
• Is the source relevant to a current unit or theme?
• What primary source type(s) will best engage students?

Student Identity

• Does the primary source reflect students’ cultures and lived experiences?
• Does the source encourage students to reflect on their own or another’s culture?
• Does the source allow your students to see themselves in the history?
• Does the source reinforce stereotypes that might cause harm to your students?

Appropriateness

• Is the content of the primary source suitable for your students?
• Is the source too simple or too complex?

Length

• Will the length of the primary source affect student comprehension?
• Would an excerpt be more appropriate than the source in its entirety?

Vocabulary

• Is the vocabulary used in the primary source at an appropriate level?
• Will your students be able to decode the text or decipher the audio?
• Will outdated terms need to be defined?

CONSIDER HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Background knowledge

• Will students be familiar with any of the people or personal, social, cultural, or political events happening around the time the primary source was created?
• Will students need to be introduced to certain information in order to interact successfully with the source?

Contextual clues

• Are there clues within the primary source (not the bibliographic record) that will help students place the source into historical context?
• Will students be able to identify clothing or technology from a certain time period?

Creator & creation date

• Are the creator’s name and creation date available on the primary source or in the bibliographic record?
• Would additional information about the creator be useful when analyzing this source?
• Was the source created close to the time that it represents?

Additional bibliographic information

• How detailed is the bibliographic record?
• Does the bibliographic record provide historical context?
• When and what bibliographic information should you reveal to students?
• Will Library catalog notes or other markings distract students or interfere with their ability to place the source into historical context?
• Do your students need a source with a more descriptive bibliographic record to help with further research?

THINK ABOUT PERSPECTIVE

Audience, purpose & bias

• Does the primary source provide enough clues to identify the intended audience and purpose (idea, agenda, etc.)?
• Is there evidence of a particular bias?

Personal bias

• Consider your own beliefs about a historical event or issue. By selecting a particular primary source, are you inadvertently presenting one point of view over another?
• If you plan to use an excerpt of a source, is the meaning of the entire source preserved?

Variety

• When using more than one primary source, have you selected items that present different perspectives?
• What types of sources will best help students construct knowledge?

EVALUATE SOURCE QUALITY & FORMAT

Source quality

• Is text legible?
• Will handwriting impact your students’ understanding?
• Is the image sharp and bright enough?
• Is the audio loud and clear enough?
• Does background noise interfere with spoken words?
• Will students understand accents?
• Is there a transcript?

Physical format

• Are you able to zoom into details on the digitized primary source?
• Can your print out these details or is the primary source best used in its digital format?

File format

• Are you using the highest quality primary source available on the Library’s website?
• Is the source clear enough for students to locate important details and make reflections about what’s happening?

PLAN FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Instructional goal

• What is the overall primary source activity or project goal?
• What questions are you trying to answer?
• What problem are students trying to solve or what product are they trying to create?

Activity types

• How will the primary source(s) be used (as the basis for class discussion, written reports, in-class presentations, role playing, etc.)?

Classroom management

• Are the primary sources best used in individual, small group, or class activities?

Time

• How much time must I allocate for this primary source activity or project?

Assessment

• What output(s) will this primary source activity or project generate?
• Will the activity or project be assessed quantitatively, qualitatively, or both?

RELATED RESOURCES

PSN blog posts

• Considering Historical Context
• Learning Activity Criteria
• Point of View & Perspective
• Selecting Primary Sources That Deal with Difficult Issues
• Selecting, Excerpting & Modifying Primary Sources
• Selecting Primary Sources for Research Projects
• Tertiary, Secondary, Primary

Teaching with the Library of Congress blog posts

• Selecting Primary Sources, Part I: Knowing your Students
• Selecting Primary Sources, Part II: Considering Historical Context
• Selecting Primary Sources, Part III: Thinking about Perspective
• Selecting Primary Sources, Part IV: Considering Quality
• Selecting Primary Sources for the Classroom: Considering Moment of Use
• Selecting Primary Sources for the Classroom: Supporting Student Research Skills
• Selecting and Using Primary Sources with Difficult Topics: Civil Rights and Current Events