Citations and Referencing

A note on citations and referencing formats

IB does not require the use of a specific format. Their guidelines require students to choose an appropriate, recognizable format and consistency. Here at MDID, most subjects and teachers have used MLA format, but you are free to select whatever you feel most comfortable with, even if it is not the format that is typically associated with your subject (i.e. anyone can choose to use the Chicago Manual of Style, even though it is most closely linked to subjects like History.)

A few notes and recommendations...

You should be cautious of sites like EasyBib and Citation Machine when creating a bibliography; they often miss essential elements of a bibliography entry. Double-check ANY reference that you put through one of these websites.
For sources from an online database, use a DOI (when available) rather than the URL.
Footnotes are, in some ways, easier to handle as they do not affect the word count of your essay. If you have not used footnotes before, this would be a good time to learn -- you can do footnotes with ANY of the following formats.
Many university courses are likely to require APA -- this could be a chance to familiarize yourself with that format.

While MLA is MDID's chosen format, you are not obligated to use it for your EE.

Tired of MLA? Now is your chance for revenge :)

MLA Format

Purdue OWL: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_general_format.html

MLA's own site: https://style.mla.org/mla-format/

APA Format

Purdue OWL: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_overview_and_workshop.html

Mendeley: https://www.mendeley.com/guides/apa-citation-guide

Chicago Manual of Style

NOTE: If you choose CMOS, you should use the Author-Bibliography format. This is Tr. Larry's prefered style -- I like footnotes a lot more than in-text citations. Footnotes also help when it comes to getting an accurate word count for your essay (most word processors exclude footnotes from a word count, or they provide an option to exclude them.) If you've never used footnotes before and you'd like some help, please let me know!!!

Purdue OWL: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/chicago_manual_17th_edition/cmos_overview_and_workshop.html

CMOS Official Site: https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/home.html

There's also the Harvard referencing format, but that's not a very good school so nobody should use it. Bunch of jumped up Ivy League jerks who act like they go to school in Boston, but they actually live in Cambridge (booooooooo.) #UPENNUBERALLES

What should I do if my sources are in a language other than English?

IB says to do the following:

Referencing sources not in the language of submission

"An extended essay can use sources in languages other than that of submission where appropriate. In these situations, the IB advises that the sources be used as necessary, and that

When referred to in the body of the extended essay as a quotation, the translation is given and the original quotation is placed as a footnote.
When a source is acknowledged in the bibliography, it should be referenced in its original language. Where there is no official published translation, the student should write a brief summary alongside the source in the language of submission of a) the title, b) name of the author, c) the focus of the work and d) any other relevant details. This way, the examiner can assess the relevance and suitability of the source as required.
The translation of the text should be done by the student if there is no official translation. The supervisor should help ensure as best as possible that the translation is accurate and representative of the original text. If the student finds the translation task beyond their capabilities, then it is advisable not to include that source in his/her research. In selecting sources, the nature of the subject in question needs to be considered—for example, in a language acquisition essay, it is vital that students work mostly with authentic materials in the target language."

So, what the heck does that mean!?

It means...

Anything that actually appears in the body of your essay MUST be in English (Chinese L&L EEs? Y'all are ok.) If you quote from a non-English source, the quote must be translated into English. The original Chinese is included in a footnote. Paraphrases do not need any original Chinese text to be included.
If your bibliography entry has an author name, an article title, a publication title, etc. Anything in Chinese must be put into English and the original Chinese is still used, too. It will look similar to what you see below. My recommendation is to use the English first, followed by the original Chinese.