Check claims against reliable sources
Unit ID: AIT-M06-U03 Estimated active time: 15-20 minutes
The main idea
Important claims need a verification trail.
A trail means someone else could repeat your check. "I looked it up" is not a trail; a named page with a date is.
Why this matters
Verification is the step that gets dropped when time is short, and it is the only thing separating research support from confident invention.
Safe example
A tool says a policy changed, so the learner checks the official policy page.
The policy had changed, on a different date, in a smaller way than the output suggested. All three differences mattered.
Better working habit
Use a claim-check table with claim, source needed, source found, and status.
Four columns. The status column is where "not found" is allowed to appear, which is what makes the table honest.
What to watch for
Do not keep claims with no reliable source when accuracy matters.
An unverified claim is not a weaker version of a verified one. It is a different kind of thing, and it should be removed or marked, not softened.
Mini practice
Build a claim-check table for five sample claims.
Count how many reached "source found". That fraction is your real evidence base.
Check yourself
Before moving on, answer:
- Which claims here would change a decision if they were wrong?
- For each, could someone else repeat my check?
- What did I do with the claims I could not verify?