Creating an Annotated Bibliography

Base XP: 60

Learning Target(s):


  • The examination of First Peoples cultures and lived experiences through text builds understanding of Canadians’ responsibilities in relation to Reconciliation.

  • Express and support an opinion with evidence.

  • Think critically, creatively, and reflectively to analyze ideas within, between,

  • and beyond texts.

  • Use information for diverse purposes and from a variety of sources.

Creating an Annotated Bibliography

You might be asking yourself, "What the heck is an annotated bibliography?!"

Think about the words for a second. Say them out loud. What do you hear? A noted bibliography! You know what a bibliography is: a comprehensive list of resources about a topic that you have had to write for an essay. The noting that is heard when the words are said aloud refer to the short summary that is included in the bibliographical information that help you and anyone else that is reading your paper evaluate how valuable that resource was to your research and/or could be to theirs.

When it comes to writing about a specific topic, it is valuable to summarize what people in the field have written about. You won't be creating new content on the topic, however, you will be creating a valuable resource that will be an excellent starting point for someone interested in your topic. AND YOU WILL DEVELOP THE RESOURCES YOU WILL NEED TO COMPLETE YOUR FINAL PROJECT.

You will become a "content expert" on the subject and use the information to write your response. Along the way you will practice skills and learn how to access resources to do so selectively and legitimately. Be sure to critically evaluate your resources. Consider all aspects of the resource. Watch this video on evaluating resources.

IMPORTANT

Before you start your own ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY it is important to consider the topic of plagiarism and copyright. You are essentially summarizing the work of a number of people in your research so it is important that you do it correctly. In that way, you are creating new content yourself based on the work of others.

What is plagiarism?

Many people think of plagiarism as copying another's work, or borrowing someone else's original ideas. But euphemisms like "copying" and "borrowing" can disguise the seriousness of the offense.

According to the Merriam-Webster Online dictionary, to "plagiarize" means "to steal and pass off (the ideas or words or another) as one's own"; "to commit literary theft".

In other words, plagiarism is an act of fraud. It involves both stealing someone else's work and lying about it afterward.

Source: https://21cif.com/tutorials/micro/mm/plagiarism/page5.htm

Take this cartoon tutorial to find out more about plagiarism and how to avoid it.

Copyright and Fair Use

1.Read here carefully to learn about copyright and fair use.

2. Click the links to test your knowledge on copyright and fair use.

Be sure to acknowledge your sources in MLA format. Read the handout on MLA CITATION in Class Handouts at the top of the course. There are also a number of online sites that will generate your citations for you!! Try citationmachine.

Getting Started

1. Google It: Often our first action is to put our question into Google. For specific research there are better options, but for exploring a topic give it a whirl. Type in the question "Is veganism more sustainable?" Notice your search results. What comes up first? Google will make predictions as you type (called autocomplete). Follow this link to learn about autocomplete. Are Google's suggestions answering your question?

2. You will probably have noticed that your results aren't specific enough for your purpose and that you will need to evaluate the results more critically to create your content list. Make sure you remember your source evaluation from the previous lessons.

3. Your goal is to collect information that will answer that question. As well, to find out what sort of information is supposed to be included in an annotated bibliography. What is an annotated bibliography? What specific questions should you answer in your 150 word summary? Use a key word search” annotated bibliography”.

Task:

For this assignment, you will complete an annotated bibliography after conducting research focused on an essential question about Aboriginal Reconciliation; examining and summarizing the resources you find and how it pertains to the research topic in the essential question.

Essential Question: Which historically significant events and people in Canadian history indicate the most progress towards, or decline from Truth and Reconciliation for Canada's Indigenous people?

Your goal is to collect information as it pertains to and answers this essential question. Try and find at least 5 historically significant events and/or people that you can use for the purposes of the essential question.

Your Annotated Bibliography should include:

  • an introduction that introduces your focused topic

  • 5 sources (website, article, video, book, magazine, etc.). For each reference you are to write a short 150 word summary about the value and relevance of the source.

  • 5 properly formatted citations Use MLA format (see handout or the Purdue Online Writing Lab).

Annotated Bibliography Tips

1. In your 150 word write up, discuss how this source was useful in writing your hypothetical research project. Be very specific for each resource. Try and find sources that compliments one another, providing additional information with each resource. Your 5 paragraphs should not be so similar in content that you are repeating yourself constantly.

2. Start off your paragraph by identifying the type of resource. For example,

This magazine article described the potential for the career of an accountant. Specifically, it stated that there is a rising need for international accountants and managers of money in foreign funds. Etc. etc.

This on-line cd rom described all the different careers that could result from a geography degree. I found this source useful because…

3.Remember, you are writing paragraphs which means you need to use all of your writing tools (grammar,, spelling, punctuation, transitions, sentence variety, etc.) Also, watch your mechanics. Some common mistakes include:

vague pronoun use misplaced modifiers

capitalize Internet hyphen use (easy to understand, up to date)

4. To help keep yourself organized, you might follow this template

Submit your response here when it's ready for assessment. Let me know when it's ready to assess, as well as whether you earned additional XP :)