What are Scholarly Sources?
Many professor require scholarly sources for their assignment. What does that mean? Scholarly sources have the following characteristics:
1. They are written by experts - authors hold a Master's or PhD degree and are experts in a specific field.
2. They are written for other experts or people in academia. Think of each scholarly work as a voice in an ongoing conversation to which you will add your voice when you write a paper.
3. They use scholarly language with technical, discipline-specific vocabulary.
4. They provide verifiable and reliable evidence for claims. Even if the resource is a general history/overview it will contain well-researched information that the reader can verify.
5. They may be peer-reviewed. Many journals go through an editorial process where other experts review and assess the information.
How do you know if a journal is peer-reviewed? Some databases will let you check a box to limit to peer-reviewed articles. You can also look at the journal's website which will explain the editorial process including whether or not the journal is peer- reviewed.
