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Primary vs. Secondary Sources

Objective: Students will be able to identify primary and secondary sources.

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Primary Sources

Primary sources are the original sources of information recorded at the time an event occurred.

First-hand accounts

of events

Data collected for scientific

studies

Historical documents

Image found at: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/amlaw/lwjc.html

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Primary Sources

Primary sources can also be written well after events.

- memoirs

- oral histories

Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, DC 20540 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print

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Why use primary sources?

To explain how major events are related to each other in time.
To think critically and distinguish between fact and opinion.
To recognize point of view in print and visual materials.

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Why use primary sources?

To develop your own conclusions and analyze how historical events affect your life.
To recognize failures and successes in the past in order to make better decisions as a citizen.
To understand who you are by examining your roots or placing yourself in that time period or situation.

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Primary Source Examples

Diaries
Poetry
Personal Interviews
Government Documents
Autobiographies
Peer-reviewed Journal Articles
Photographs
Artifacts/Ephemera

Image taken from: http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/DeclarInd.html

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Examples of Primary Sources:

Baseball Cards
Photos
Editorial Cartoons

Image taken from: http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/images/cychas.jpg

Image taken from: http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/ppprs/00200/00200v.jpg

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Finding Primary Sources

Search online
Use the library catalog
Search Google Books

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Letter written by Thomas Jefferson to John Holmes

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Finding Primary Sources

To find primary documents on the web, try the following internet search

topic + “primary source”

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Secondary Sources

Secondary sources of information are derived from primary sources

Summaries of primary sources
Analysis or interpretations of primary sources

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Why use secondary sources?

To get expert opinions in order to evaluate what really happened.
To gain insight by examining the same event from different perspectives.
To form your own opinion.
To save time by reading information collected from a number of different sources.

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Secondary Source Examples

Dictionaries
Encyclopedias
Articles that review other sources
Textbooks
Biographies

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Examples of Secondary Sources:

Biographies
Textbooks
Encyclopedias
Historiographies

Image taken from http://www.doriskearnsgoodwin.com/

Image taken from http://sundown.afro.illinois.edu/liesmyteachertoldme.php

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Finding Secondary Sources

Use online articles
Use the library catalog
Search Google Books

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Summing Up

It is important to determine the type of information you are looking at.

Primary sources are original sources of information
Secondary sources summarize, analyze, or critique primary sources
Both primary and secondary sources can be good sources of information, but you need to critically evaluate them.