" Towards Sustainability"
Referencing, or citing, is the practice of acknowledging sources of information and ideas that you have used in an assignment (e.g. an essay or report). This means that whenever you write an assignment that requires you to find and use information from other sources, you are expected to refer to these sources in your writing. This is a university expectation linked to Academic Integrity. Referencing is also part of the process of being ‘information literate’. This means that you will be able to ‘locate, evaluate, manage and use information in a range of contexts’ – in other words, be ‘information literate’.
Why reference?
Using numerous references in an assignment demonstrates wide reading and your breadth of knowledge of a topic and strengthens your academic argument by providing evidence to support your point of view. These references are necessary so anyone reading your work knows the source of your information and can consult these sources if they choose to do so. Referencing information from a variety of resources clearly identifies and distinguishes between information which comes from another source and information which is your own. By using references appropriately, you will avoid plagiarism, which is wrongfully claiming someone else’s words or ideas as your own
Three key principles of referencing are:
1. A source of information must be referred to every time you use information from another source in your assignment. Use a reference if you paraphrase, summaries, quote or copy.
2. Each reference must be
- indicated in the text of your assignment (in brackets)
AND
- listed in the reference list at the end of the assignment. This listing has full details so that the reader can locate and consult the reference if required.
3.The in-text reference needs enough information so that the reader can find the source in the reference list at the end of the assignment.
MLA style specifies guidelines for formatting manuscripts and using the English language in writing. MLA style also provides writers with a system for referencing their sources through parenthetical citation in their essays and Works Cited pages.
Writers who properly use MLA also build their credibility by demonstrating accountability to their source material. Most importantly, the use of MLA style can protect writers from accusations of plagiarism, which is the purposeful or accidental unaccredited use of source material by other writers.
Citation for Print Resources
Books
Book by One Author
Author’s last name, first name. Book title. City of publication: Publisher, publication date.
Book by Two or Three Authors
First author's last name, first name, and second author's first name, last name. Book Title. City of publication: Publisher, publication date.
Book by Three or More Authors
First author's last name, first name, et al. Book Title. City of publication: Publisher, publication date.
(Note: et al. means "and others".)
Unsigned Article in a Reference Book or Encyclopedia or Dictionary
"Article Title." Book Title. Edition. Year published
Article in a Reference Book or Encyclopedia
Author’s last name, first name. "Article Title." Book Title. Year published ed.
Book with an Editor and No Author
Last name, first name, ed. Book Title. City of publication: Publisher, publication date.
Print Magazine or Newspaper Article
Author’s last name, first name. "Article Name." Magazine or Newspaper Name. Date Month Year, pages.
Interview
Last name of person interviewed, first name. Personal interview or Telephone interview or E-mail interview. Date.
Music cds
Last name of artist, first name. "Name of song." Name of composer. Name of CD. Manufacturer. Date of issue.
Video / Film
Title, underlined. Director's name. Distributor, year.
Paintings, Sculpture or Photograph
To cite a painting or sculpture, state the artist's name first. Underline the title. Name the institution that houses the work (such as a museum) or who owns it and follow the name by a comma and the city. If you use a photograph of a painting or sculpture, also include the complete publication information for the source in which the photograph appears, including the page, slide, figure, or plate number, whichever is relevant. If you wish to indicate when a work of art was created, add the date immediately after the title. Cite a photograph in a museum or collection as you would a painting or sculpture.
Artist's last name, first name. Title of artwork. Museum or owner, city
Some Tips on Handling Electronic Sources
It is always a good idea to maintain personal copies of electronic information, when possible. It is good practice to print or save Web pages or, better, using a program like Adobe Acrobat, to keep your own copies for future reference. Most Web browsers will include URL/electronic address information when you print, which makes later reference easy. Also learn to use the Bookmark function in your Web browser.
Basic Style for Citations of Electronic Sources
Here are some common features you should try and find before citing electronic sources in MLA style. Always include as much information as is available/applicable:
1) Author and/or editor names
2) Name of the database, or title of project, book, article
3) Any version numbers available
4) Date of version, revision, or posting
5) Publisher information
6) Date you accessed the material
7) Electronic address, printed between carets ([<, >]).
Internet Text Resources
Author’s last name, first name. "Title of Page Section." Title of Complete Site. Accessed date month year <URL>.
Online newspaper and Magazines
Author’s last name, first name. "Article Title." Name of newspaper. Edition, section: date of publication, page. Accessed date month year <URL>.
Online Encyclopedia
Author's last name, first name. "Article Name." Name of encyclopedia. Edition. Accessed date month year <URL>.
E book
Author Last Name, First Name . Book Title. Print Publisher Information, Publication Date (if available). Website/Database Name. Website/Database Publisher. Day Month Year of Access.
How to write a Bibliography
A Bibliography or bibliographies provide an alphabetical list of sources that may have been used in order to create a piece of work. Bibliographies are often a part of research papers and academic articles, and in these cases, the bibliography lists all the works referred to in that paper or article. Now these sources may appear in various forms, for e.g. Books,magazines,newspapers, CD ROMs, Internet, interviews, etc. In fact it’s said that all biographies begin with the research which include everything from hunting in a library to searching on the web.
Bibliographies actually helps us to acknowledge our sources, to ensure the accuracy of the information found in the written work and last but not the least, to give the readers information so as to identify and consult the sources. If the bibliography is not included one may be accused of plagiarism (which is stealing another person’s ideas or writing).Start a preliminary, or draft, bibliography by listing on a separate sheet of paper all your sources. Note down the full title, author, and place of publication, publisher, and date of publication for each source.
When assembling a final bibliography, list your sources (text, articles… and so on) in alphabetical order by authors’ last names. Sources that don’t have authors (encyclopedias, movies) should be alphabetized by title
When assembling a final bibliography, list your sources (text, articles… and so on) in alphabetical order by authors’ last names. Sources that don’t have authors (encyclopedias, movies) should be alphabetized by title
Authors first name, last name. Title of the book .place of publication: publisher, year of publication.
References
www.writing.wisc.edu ( accessed dt. 5 March 2021)http://www.aresearchguide.com/7footnot.html ( accessed dt. 15 March 2021)http://owl.english.purdue ( accessed dt.25 March 2021)www.library.uq.edu.ou ( accessed dt. 28 April2021)www.easybib.com ( accessed dt. 19 June 2021)www.citation machine ( accessed dt.25 Juneh 2021)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wvXEAO4Q44 (accessed dt 12, April 2021)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roqW2XDGeZE&t=26s (accessed dt. 14 April 2021)