1. A Student Guide Western Canada High School Ms. Prentice 2014 WCHS Library A Brief Introduction to Reference Lists and Citations

2. What is a citation? To cite means to note or refer to something. It is an action word (a verb). A citation is a reference, or a mention. It is a thing (a noun). When we do research, it is important to refer to or mention where we found our information. Scholarship is a collaborative activity. We build our understanding on the work of others. It is only fair to acknowledge this. 3. Why do I need to worry about this? Plagiarism occurs when we take someone elses words or ideas and claim them as our own. Plagiarism is like stealing someones words and ideas AND STEALING IS WRONG!We want to develop habits of ethical scholarship by respecting the intellectual and creative property of others. 4. Plagiarism and Your Learning In your academic work, it is important to be honest. Give credit where credit is due. This is ethical research. You can borrow someones words and ideas, but make sure you GIVE THEM CREDIT by citing the source. Remember: your teachers can recognize plagiarism quite easily. Plagiarizing can have serious consequences so make sure to avoid it! 5. Why Create a Reference List Give credit where credit is due Guide others to the research Give credibility to your work 6. Step 1: Collect information for your reference list Every time you do research, you should create a reference list for your project. Your reference list identifies the information sources you used in creating your project. For each source, you MUST identify: 1. WHO is the author 2. WHAT is the title 3. WHEN it was published (and if the source is digital, when you found it) 4. WHERE it was published (and if the source is digital, where you found it) 5. The MEDIUM of publication (if using MLA style). DONT wait until the end of your research to do this; record the information as you go along. 7. Basic Reference/Citation Format (MLA): Who. What. Where. When. Medium. NOTE: There are many different citation styles; MLA is one of the most common. Make sure you know what style your teacher wants you to use, and use it consistently. 8. BOOK: Author last name, first name. Book Title. City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication. Example: Lane, Bryan. Crime and Detection. Toronto: Stoddart, 1998. Print. 9. WEB SITE: Author. Website Article. Web Page Title. Institution or Organization Associated with Website, Day Month Year. Web. Date retrieved in Day Month Year. Example: Lamb, Arthur. The Golden Gate Bridge. Bridge Building. University of Dublin, 15 Nov. 2010. Web. 31 Oct. 2012. *note that you dont include the URL in your citation 10. IMAGES: Author. Title of work. Year Created. Medium of work. Image Source. Database/Website. Web. Date retrieved. Example: Smith, Joan. Sunflowers. N.d. Photograph. CNN.com. Web. 6 Feb 2009. Use N.d. for no date if you cant find one. ** If the image doesnt have a title, create a descriptive one. For example: Photograph of a lion on the Serengeti. 11. Tools to Help with Creating Reference Citations Many academic resources for example, e- resources in the Online Reference Centre or our schools virtual reference library will have citation help tools. These resources will create a citation for you. All you need to do is copy and paste it into your reference list. ** make sure the citation provided is consistent with your style (MLA? APA? Chicago?) 12. Online Tools to Help with Referencing Citation Machine NoodleTools BibMe For examples, and a good general guide, visit the Purdue OWL: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01 / Online citation generators can help too (but be careful to double-check for accuracy!) Microsoft Words Referencing tool can also help. See this video tutorial for help: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcMqrs2plZE 13. Step 2: Citing in Your Essay or Project: In-text citations In addition to creating a reference list, you should credit your sources within your essay or project. We call this in-text citation. Its a bit trickier. 14. Do I have to cite everything? Facts that are widely known, or information & judgments considered common knowledge Do NOT have to be documented. 15. Examples of common knowledge: World War I began in 1914 is common knowledge. Smoking is linked to lung cancer is common knowledge. Ottawa is the capital of Canada is common knowledge. If you see a fact in three or more sources, and you are fairly certain your readers already know this information, it is likely to be common knowledge. If you are discussing your own experiences, observations, ideas or reactions you dont need to make a citation. 16. What should I cite? Facts that might be unfamiliar to your reader (such as statistics or specific historical information) should be cited. Ideas or interpretations that are not your own should be cited (even if you agree with the idea or interpretation). Cite direct quotes Cite anything you paraphrase or summarize If you arent sure if you should cite something, err on the side of caution and cite. Generally speaking: if the thinking isnt yours, cite it (even if the words are yours). 17. Should we cite it? EXAMPLE 1: Shakespeare was born in Stratford- upon-Avon. He is one of the most famous writers in English literature. EXAMPLE 2: Most Elizabethans, like Shakespeare, believed human emotions and actions were governed by four fluids, known as humours: blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile. If the humours were in balance, a person would behave rationally. However, an excess of one humour could cause irrational behaviour. 18. Should we cite it? EXAMPLE 3: Romeo and Juliet are sacrificial victims, and the ancient rule about sacrifice was that the victim had to be perfect and without blemish. The belief underlying this idea was that nothing that is perfect can exist in this world of imperfection. That which is perfect should therefore be offered up to another world before it deteriorates. EXAMPLE 4: "Like adolescence itself, the play has many moods: it is delicate yet intense, occasionally obscene, sometimes funny, and always heartbreaking you're in for a delightful surprise. This play is terrific." 19. Paraphrasing & Summarizing Paraphrasing means putting someone elses thoughts or ideas in your own words. When you paraphrase, you must credit the original author. Summarizing means taking the main idea or ideas of one author or several authors and putting them briefly in your own words. When you summarize someone elses ideas, you must credit them. Remember: if the thinking isnt yours, cite it (even if the words are yours). 20. Example of Paraphrasing To paraphrase, you have to use your own words and change the structure of the sentences. Original: Kenyans enjoy many sports and activities. Soccer is the most popular team sport in Kenya. Many people belong to soccer teams in their cities and towns. Track-and-field activities such as running and high jumping are very popular. Many Kenyan runners compete in races around the world. The best have won medals in the Olympics. Paraphrased: Sports such as soccer, running and high jumping are popular in Kenya. Kenyan runners compete internationally, and some have won Olympic medals. Soccer is a popular team sport, and many Kenyans play on soccer teams in their communities (Bartell 20). 21. Example of Summarizing Summaries are much shorter than the original source or sources, and only include the main ideas. The summary should be in your own words. Original: Every year, Nigerians and people from around the world look forward to the Argungu Fishing festival. The four-day events began as a way to bring neighbouring villages together in peace. During the first three days of the festival, people enjoy a motor rally, canoes races, and a fair. People dance to traditional music and watch many different sporting events. The fishing competition happens on the last day of the festival. Thousands line up along the banks of the Sokoto River with nets to catch fish. Summary: The Augungu Fishing Festival is an important Nigerian holiday. This festival is an opportunity for people to come together and enjoy many activities (Owings 26). 22. Quoting Quotations are someone elses words, copied exactly from the source material. Quotations need to be in quotation marks, and must be credited. Original: Goalkeepers have to make important decisions during a game. These decisions may affect whether the game is a win, loss or draw for their team. Quotation: Gifford notes, Goalkeepers have to make important decisions during a game. These decisions may affect whether the game is a win, loss or draw for their team (20). 23. Dealing with long quotes For longer quotes, such as a text excerpt, set the quote apart as a free-standing text block. You dont need quotation marks. Nelly Dean treats Heathcliff poorly and dehumanizes him throughout her narration: They entirely refused to have it in bed with them, or even in their room, and I had no more sense, so, I put it on the landing of the stairs, hoping it would be gone on the morrow. By chance, or else attracted by hearing his voice, it crept to Mr. Earnshaw's door, and there he found it on quitting his chamber. Inquiries were made as to how it got there; I was obliged to confess, and in recompense for my cowardice and inhumanity 24. Remembertake accurate notes while researching: Include any direct quotes or unique phrases in quotation marks or mark with a big Q and make sure the speakers /writers name is identified. Make sure you note a paraphrase with the writers name and mark it with a big P Include page numbers and source references so you can go back and check for accuracy as you write.