A vital step in the research process is to evaluate the information sources you gather. There are important criteria to revisit and consider. Evaluating your information sources using an evaluation framework will prompt your critical thinking. 

At the core of Te Whatu Aho Rau information evaluation framework is the principle of it being an interconnected evaluation process. Two interpretations are captured in the name of the framework to demonstrate this core principle:

1. The Weaving of 100 Threads refers to the weaving of facts, ideas and intuitions that form the basis of knowledge;
2. The Eye Catching 100 Lights emphasises the overload of information available, which needs to be filtered and evaluated before it can be deemed trustworthy and acted upon. A big-picture perspective of the information source within  any discipline must be initially identified, alongside its relevance to the topic being explored.

Evaluate information sources using the guidance offered from the four pou (concepts) in the framework: Pūtaketanga, Aronga, Tātai Hononga and Māramatanga. Although the pou interrelate, not all will be met to the same degree with each source gathered. This is why it is important to consider which of these concepts are most important for a specific information need.

Read more about Te Whatu Aho Rau information evaluation framework (Feekery & Tawhai, 2024).

Click to the interactive learning tool below, to assist with evaluating information sources.

AIthough generative AI tools produce some opportunities to assist with learning, their efforts also complicate the information landscape, generating much information without any trace of its origin. Unless you can identify the Pūtaketanga, (the origins) of a source, the Te Whatu Aho Rau information evaluation framework does not endorse AI-generated information. Currently, information generated from generative AI tools must be viewed as unreliable and untrustworthy as supporting evidence for your research (Feekery, Condon and Witsel, 2025, p. 236). AI is not an information source.

References

Feekery, A., & Tawhai, R. (2024). Te Whatu Aho Rau: He Anga Arotake. An information evaluation framework. Dr Angela Feekery. https://sites.google.com/view/angela-feekery/te-whatu-aho-rau-he-anga-arotake

Feekery, A., Condon, S. M., & Witsel, M. (2025). Communication skills for business professionals (3rd ed.). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009506953

Below are alternative information evaluation frameworks:

• BADURL for evaluating websites.
• Lateral Reading for fact checking and savvy reading.
• Rauru Whakarare is an earlier NZ information evaluation framework.
• SIFT is a strategy for checking on misinformation and fake news.