Educators write in the style dictated by the American Psychological Association (APA) Publication Manual. When you write papers in education courses, you will be expected to write in this style. The following resources will help you to learn and use APA. Of course, follow all directions given by your professor for your specific assignment.
Here is a link to information from the Purdue On-line Writing Lab about APA style:
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/10/
Here is a link to information from the Excelsior On-line Writing Lab about APA style:
http://owl.excelsior.edu/posts/view/70
Here is a link to a YouTube video that will take you through the steps to set up a paper in APA style in Word. You may have a different version of Word, or an Apple product, so the exact menus may differ from your computer screen, but the steps are the same.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pbUoNa5tyY&feature=related
Before you turn in your paper use this APA Checklist:
APA Checklist
Use this checklist to review your papers. If you find errors, correct them.
Check off each item as you review and correct them.
Title Page
_____ The title page is centered horizontally and vertically.
_____ A 12-point standard font, such as Times Roman, Courier, or Arial is used.
_____ The title page includes a title, the student’s name, and Simpson College.
_____ A header with the title and page number is included on the title page and all pages of the paper. It is left-justified.
Format
_____ The title is centered at the top of page 2.
_____ Margins are 1 inch on all sides, and double spacing is used throughout.
_____ Paragraphs are left-justified, with the first line indented .5 inches.
_____ Quotations of fewer than 40 words are enclosed in quotation marks.
_____ Quotations of 40 words or longer begin on a new line and are indented .5 inches from the left margin.
In-text citations
_____ All quotations, statistics, and ideas of others (even if paraphrased) are cited within the paper.
_____ Citations follow the following format: (Author’s last name, year published). Use n.d. (no date), if year published is unknown. Use the first few words of the article/book title if the author is unknown.
_____ Page numbers are included only when material is quoted word-for-word, for example (Brown, 2010, p. 10).
Reference Page
_____ Begins on a new page and is titled References.
_____ Only the sources used in the paper are included in the reference list.
_____ Personal communications, such as interviews and e-mails, are cited in the text but not included in the reference list. The in-text citation follows this format (B. Ramos, personal communication, September, 7 2012).
_____ References are alphabetized with hanging indents.
_____ Reference list entries include enough information to locate the source. Electronic sources include the DOI or full URL.
_____ Titles of books and articles only capitalize the first word and the first word after the colon. Titles of books are italicized. Titles of journals are italicized, with first, last and important words capitalized.
(adapted from a checklist at http://word-crafter.net/APA/APAchecklist.doc)