Table of Contents
How do you analyze primary source documents?
How to Analyze a Primary Source
- Look at the physical nature of your source.
- Think about the purpose of the source.
- How does the author try to get the message across?
- What do you know about the author?
- Who constituted the intended audience?
- What can a careful reading of the text (even if it is an object) tell you?
What is a source document analysis?
Document analysis is the first step in working with primary sources. Teach your students to think through primary source documents for contextual understanding and to extract information to make informed judgments.
How do you evaluate primary and secondary sources?
Consider the following when looking for reliable secondary sources:
- Who is the author?
- Was the book/ journal published by a scholarly publisher?
- What is the purpose of the text or motive for writing it?
- Does the writer have an obvious bias?
- Does the book/ article have an extensive bibliography?
How do you write a source analysis example?
Let’s jump in!
- Step 1: Figure out what the question is asking.
- Step 2: Use an analysis checklist.
- Step 3: Determine the origin of the source.
- Step 4: Determine the motive behind the source.
- Step 5: Consider what content is presented in the source.
- Step 6: Consider the intended audience of the source.
What are the advantages of document analysis?
Advantages of document analysis
- The analysis of the data does not disturb the operational sequence or only minimally.
- The effort required to prepare the analysis is much less than for field observation, interviews or the requirements workshop.
- The analysis of the data can be interrupted and continued at any time.
Why is document analysis so important?
Document analysis is useful for understanding policy content across time and geographies, documenting processes, triangulating with interviews and other sources of data, understanding how information and ideas are presented formally, and understanding issue framing, among other purposes.
What is document analysis method of data collection?
Document analysis is a method of data collection which involves analysis of content from written documents in order to make certain deductions based on the study parameters. The method is mainly used in qualitative research as a method of qualitative analysis.
What is a document analysis worksheet?
Document Analysis Worksheets. Document analysis is the first step in working with primary sources. Teach your students to think through primary source documents for contextual understanding and to extract information to make informed judgments. Use these worksheets — for photos, written documents, artifacts, posters, maps, cartoons, videos,…
Are the materials created by the National Archives and Records Administration public domain?
Materials created by the National Archives and Records Administration are in the public domain. These worksheets were revised in February, 2017. Please let us know if you have feedback. If you prefer the previous version of the worksheets, you can download them below.
How do you model careful document analysis?
The first few times you ask students to work with primary sources, and whenever you have not worked with primary sources recently, model careful document analysis using the worksheets. Point out that the steps are the same each time, for every type of primary source: Meet the document. Observe its parts. Try to make sense of it.
How to apply for a job with the National Archives?
Authorize the Office of Government Information Services to make inquiries on your behalf regarding requests for records under the Freedom of Information Act and/or Privacy Act filed with another federal government agency. Apply for a job with the National Archives. PDF files require the free Adobe Reader.