Sift (verb): "to examine something carefully in order to decide what is important or useful or to find something important." - Oxford Learner's Dictionary
SIFT Method, or The 4 Moves, was developed by Mike Caulfield to "help students get better at sorting the truth from fiction and everything in-between" (Caufield, 2019).
Beginning with Stop - and continuing through the remaining steps from left to right, each move defines criteria to apply to a website for evaluation.
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Stop |
What do you know about the site?
What is the site's reputation?
How are you going to use the information?
Why is the information being shared?
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Investigate |
Do you know what you are reading?
Where does the media or information originate?
Can you verify the site or it's information?
Does the URL provide any details?
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Find |
Can you find better coverage somewhere else?
Is there someone else making the same or a similar claim?
Review multiple sources, is there a consensus?
Can you find experts in the field?
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Trace Claims |
Can you locate the information origin?
Are you seeing everything about the topic?
Has the information been edited or modified?
Compare the original source to your source.
Use the SIFT method to evaluate websites prior to use for research.