Taken directly from the University of Toronto OISE:

Criteria for Identifying Bias

When analyzing the content of [research] material, the following criteria may be employed to identify forms of bias:

1. Bias by omission: selecting information that reflects credit on only one group, frequently the writer’s group.

2. Bias by defamation: calling attention to the faults and ignoring the virtues of an individual or group.

3. Bias by disparagement: denying or belittling the contributions of an identifiable group of people in [a particular] culture.

4. Bias by cumulative implication: constantly creating the impression that only one group is responsible for positive development.

5. Bias by (lack of) validity: failing to ensure that information about issues is always accurate and unambiguous.

6. Bias by inertia: perpetuation of myths and half-truths by failure to keep abreast of historical scholarship.

7. Bias by obliteration: ignoring significant aspects of the history of a cultural or minority group in [a particular region].

8. Bias by disembodiment: referring to a casual and depersonalized way to the historical role of identifiable cultural and minority groups.

9. Bias by (lack of) concreteness: dealing with a cultural group of platitudes and generalizations (applying the shortcomings of one individual to a whole group). To be concrete, the material must be factual, objective, and realistic.

10. Bias by (lack of) comprehensiveness: failing to mention all relevant facts that may help the student to form an opinion.

 MET adapted this from The Shocking Truth About Indians in Textbooks, Manitoba Indian Brotherhood and Cultural Education Center, 1974.

Taken directly from the State Library of Victoria / Ergo:

Question the Text

Questioning what you read helps you to fully understand a text and form your own opinions about a subject. While reading through your resources, think about the following:

• Does the author have an obvious opinion about the topic?

• Have they used evidence to support their ideas?

• Do they state clear facts, or just opinions?

• Does the writer use emotive or persuasive language? - If a description of something or someone is all good or all bad, think carefully about whether the information might be biased.

• How does the text make you feel?

Identify Bias

It's important to understand bias when you are researching because it helps you see the purpose of a text, whether it's a piece of writing, a painting, a photograph - anything.

You need to be able to identify bias in every source you use. The following questions will help you work out how reliable and accurate information is.

Who created the resource?

Whether it's a book, journal article, website or photograph, sources are influenced by the ideas of the person who created them. Think about:

• • the creator's age, religion, race and occupation - If you and your teacher both had to write an essay about the importance of homework, you would probably give very different answers...

  • whether the creator is presenting the whole story – you'll need to read widely to get all perspectives

  • whether the creator is an expert on the topic.

When was the resource created?

Any type of resource you look at will reflect the society and time in which it was created.

So it's useful to think about the events, people and ideas – or historical context – that surround it. Keep in mind that:

• • the less time between the event and the time of writing, the more likely certain details – such as dates, names and locations – will be accurate

  • older documents show us what life was like in the past, and can also reveal attitudes that may be uncommon or unacceptable today

  • particular formats – such as diaries, emails, video, sms, etc – reflect the era in which they were created, so think about what the format reveals about the resource

  • even if the resource is only a few years old, it may not be the most up-to-date information, especially if it is part of an ongoing study or changing theories.

Why was the resource created?

Writers, artists, historians, photographers and other creators will sometimes use their work to persuade people about a particular viewpoint or interpretation of an idea or event. So, it's important to work out why the resource was created. Remember:

• • the creator's purpose is, more often than not, the message you remember long after you've finished reading or looking at it

  • in printed material, look for a range of opinions that are supported by different sources – this helps you make up your own mind about the information being presented

  • in secondary sources a bibliography is often a good sign of a reputable resource, but you'll need to check whether the references listed are reliable and credible.

Who was the resource created for?

Many different kinds of resources – from maps, government documents and diaries to photographs, websites and advertising materials – are created for many different audiences.

So it's important to think about how the intended audience has affected the format and overall message in the resource. Ask yourself:

• • Who is the target audience? - A teen magazine, travel website or tabloid newspaper has a very different audience to an academic journal, government annual report or a reputable broadsheet newspaper. You would expect the approach to text in each of these publications to be very different.

  • Did the creator intend for their work to be looked at by someone else? - Someone's personal diary is a great primary resource, but it's important to remember that it presents that individual's opinion. The author probably wasn't expecting their writing to be read by others, so they wouldn't necessarily have presented an objective and balanced account.

Evaluate Images

Studying images, paintings and photography gives you an insight into society and people that books and websites may not. When analysing images, think about:

• • the details, especially in the background – clothing, buildings, cars etc. whether the image matches information in written documents describing the same people or events

  • whether the image matches information in written documents describing the same people or events - In 1835, William Buckley met European settlers at Indented Head. Almost every image of the event shows John Batman at this meeting, but his diary shows he was on his way back to Tasmania at the time.

• how the subject of the picture is represented – how does this affect what you think about the person, place or event?

  • whether the image contains any symbols – if so, what do they mean and why have they been used?

  • whether an image – photograph, illustration or painting – has been manipulated so that details have been changed or left out

  • whether a portrait was completed in the subject's lifetime, or whether the artist was working from memory

  • whether an illustration is a figurative or a literal representation.

Evaluate Websites

While you always need to question the information and consider its historical context, there are some specific questions to ask when you're evaluating websites.

Because anyone can post information on the web, every search will give you a range of reliable and unreliable results. To decide whether a website is reliable, ask yourself:

• • Who made the site? You should be able to contact them through an ‘About us' or ‘Contact' section.

  • What does the domain name tell you? Has the site been made by a reputable organisation?

• • What's the purpose of the site? Is it designed purely to give information, or is it trying to sell you something?

  • Is the site well designed and easy to use? Do all the links work? When was it last updated? Reliable sites are usually fully functional and regularly updated.

Primary and Secondary Sources

Primary sources are first-hand accounts created by people who witnessed the events they've recorded. Primary sources can include documents, illustrations, photographs, maps, music, audio recordings, etc.

    The Batman Treaty, which was held up as proof that John Batman 'purchased' the land around Melbourne in 1835, is an example of primary source material.

Using primary sources in your work not only adds credibility to your argument, but it demonstrates that you are an expert researcher.

Secondary sources interpret and comment on primary sources. Primary sources are used by a wide range of people – writers, academics, students, artists and others – as part of their work. When secondary sources are created, they can potentially provide a different interpretation or alter the significance of the relevant primary source.

    A history textbook you use in class is an example of a secondary source.

"Criteria for Identifying Bias." Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. University of Toronto, n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. <http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/oise/Home/>.

"Select Resources." Research Resources Results. State Library of Victoria / Ergo, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2015. <http://ergo.slv.vic.gov.au/learn-skills/research-skills/select-resources>.