BCHS Research Guide

BCHS Guide to Research

1st Edition 2010 A few notes:

This is meant to be a general guide to research and writing; you should assume, unless otherwise instructed, that your teachers at Brooklyn Center High School will want you to follow the guidelines within this document.

However…

You must pay careful attention whenever a teacher gives you a research assignment! It is up to the teacher to decide what he or she wants to include (or not include) within your work.

We would also like to acknowledge that several examples within this guide came from Writing a Research Paper: A Step-By-Step Approach by Phyllis Goldenberg (2005).

2 Table of Contents

I. Why do we need to learn how to research? p. 3

II. Plagiarism p. 4

III. Getting started p. 6 -What is your task? -Writing a thesis/hypothesis

IV. Gathering info p. 9 -Kinds of sources -Recognizing good and bad sources -Taking notes

V. Outlining p. 16

VI. Writing your paper p. 19 -Intro paragraph -Body paragraphs -Conclusion paragraph -Parenthetical citation

VII. Writing your bibliography p. 25 -MLA format -Annotation

VIII. Formatting your work p. 31 -Title/cover page -Table of contents -The paper -The bibliography -Appendices

IX. Glossary p. 45

X. Index p. 46

XI. Appendix p. 47 -Sample paper

3 I. Why do we need to learn how to research?

Beyond the obvious answer—that you will need to do research and write research papers in many of your junior high and high school classes—there are many reasons to learn this valuable skill. If you choose to continue your education at any two or four year school after high school, you will no doubt be required to write research papers. However, even if you don’t choose to continue your education and opt to go directly into the workforce, you’ll find that many of the skills you use in research and writing will apply to your job. Learning how to research lets you practice how to pick apart a problem or question, find information, determine if that information is useful in solving or addressing your task, determine whether that information is biased or “bad” in some way, and how to use different kinds of sources in different situations. It teaches you how to interact with people who may be able to help you with their experience and expertise. The writing process teaches you how to put your thoughts, ideas, and arguments into a sequence that is clear and logical to other people, and how to use word processing programs to create a pleasing and easy to follow layout for your research. Overall, research papers help you develop your abilities to analyze, support your arguments, and communicate your thoughts to the world around you, and regardless of what you choose to do once you leave BCHS, those are skills that you will be able to use in the real world.

4 II. Plagiarism

What is it? The word plagiarism comes from a Latin word that means “kidnapper” – and that’s what you are doing if you plagiarize; kidnapping someone else’s work! This is a serious academic offense that can land you in A LOT of trouble, and at the very least, earn you a zero. If you copy the WORDS or IDEAS of another writer and you DON’T GIVE CREDIT, you are plagiarizing – it is assumed that you are trying to pass the work off as your own. To avoid plagiarism, ALWAYS keep track of your sources. When you are taking notes and writing your paper, make sure you are able to tell the difference between your own thoughts and the notes from the source. You may do this by using a parenthetical citation, putting the notes word for word in quotation marks, or referencing the source within your sentence. Even if you paraphrase the information, it still did not come from your brain, so you need to give credit to the person who did the work.

BCHS Guidelines BCHS discipline guidelines state that for a first offense of plagiarism, the student will receive a zero grade on the assignment. For the second offense, a zero will be earned on the assignment as well as detention. The third offense could mean a drop from the class, failing grade and suspension. Administration will also take into account the teacher’s recommendation—keep in mind that very often it will be your teacher that determines punishment for plagiarism!

How can you tell if you are plagiarizing? If you have more than 4-5 content words (not including words like “of” or “the”) that are the same, you are plagiarizing. Here is an example of plagiarized work. This example is taken from How To Write Term Papers and Reports by L. Sue Baum. (See how we gave her credit? Now we will not be accused of plagiarizing!)

Original:

During the Battle of Waterloo, a twelve-foot ditch proved to be the best ally of the English troops. As the French cavalry charged across the field, the front ranks tumbled into the ditch, which had been concealed in the tall grass. So great was the press of the charge, that men and horses continued to fall until the ditch was filled with bodies.

Plagiarized Version:

The French took the field and charged the English position. But the front ranks tumbled into a ditch whish had been concealed in the tall grass. So great was the press of the charge that men and horses continued to fall until the ditch was filled with bodies.

5 If the student had paraphrased and then given credit to the author, it would have been okay. Here is an example:

The French took the field first and charged the English position. Less than halfway across the field, the front ranks fell into a concealed ditch. The horses and riders behind them were unable to stop and tumbled in after, quickly filing the ditch with bodies (Fuller 60-61).

The student also could have used a direct quotation, including citation. For example:

According to Dr. Milton Fuller, “During the Battle of Waterloo, a twelve-foot ditch proved to be the best ally of the English troops”. He also states that, “As the French cavalry charged across the field, the front ranks tumbled into the ditch, which had been concealed in the tall grass” (Fuller 61).

6 III. Getting started

What is your task? The first thing you need to determine is, what is being asked of you? Consider these three factors: 1. Purpose 2. Audience 3. Voice

Purpose is the what and why behind your assignment. Is your purpose to write a research paper arguing that the US should never have joined WWI? Is your purpose to research for a group presentation on the life of William Shakespeare? Your purpose may determine the tone and content of your research.

Audience refers to the people who will be reading your research. Is it going to be your teacher, your whole class, your community, or a classroom of elementary school children? Again, who you’re writing to may determine how you write and what you choose to include or emphasize.

Your voice is essentially your writing perspective. The most common voices are 1st and 3rd person. In 1st person, you use “I,” “me,” and “my,” whereas 3rd person takes you out of your own research. This research guide, for example, is an example of 3rd person. If you are asked to write an opinion paper, you would most likely be expected to use 1st person. In a research paper, you will always use 3rd person.

**REMEMBER: Unless your teacher gives you specific directions otherwise, ALWAYS write your research papers and projects in the 3rd person!!**

Are you responding to a prompt? Sometimes, your teacher will give you a prompt when they assign a research paper. A prompt is a specific question or problem they want you to address in your research. Some examples could include: -Could the American Civil War have been avoided? -Find three current examples of environmental crises in the US. -Research real-life influences on To Kill a Mockingbird.

If your prompt is a question, your research should focus on answering the question; if it is a statement, your research should do as the statement says. In either case, you will need to come up with a thesis or hypothesis. These are put at the beginning of a paper to let the audience know what you intend to address in the body of your paper, and what you intended to prove with your research.

Thesis: an opinion that is supported by a logical and reasonable argument Hypothesis: a statement that is taken to be true until proven otherwise

7 You will most often be asked to create a hypothesis in science-based classes; you usually create a hypothesis first, and then through research and experimentation, you determine whether your hypothesis holds up. Your hypothesis DOES NOT have to be true, although if it is not, your research paper should cover in depth the evidence and results that go against your hypothesis. In most of your other classes, though, especially in English and Humanities, you will be asked to use a thesis. Theses (side note—theses is the plural of thesis) are usually written AFTER the research has been done, and should be true, at least based on the research you’ve done. Regardless of whether you have a thesis or hypothesis, if you have been given a prompt, the easiest thing to do is answer the question or address the statement. Below are our previous prompt examples, and examples of three possible theses:

-Could the American Civil War have been avoided? The Civil War could not have been avoided because tensions over slavery had gotten to the point that no politician could have created a compromise that would appeal to both the Northern abolitionists and the Southern slave owners.

-Find three current examples of environmental crises in the US. Three of the most damaging environmental issues in the US today are the leaching of pesticides and other such chemicals into groundwater, terrible air quality due to car emissions, and the massive amounts of American consumption which ends up in US landfills on a yearly basis.

-Research real-life influences on To Kill a Mockingbird. Harper Lee’s experience growing up in a small Southern town, the Great Depression, and racial injustices like the Scottsboro case all influenced To Kill a Mockingbird.

Remember, a thesis/hypothesis is there to introduce your topic and research to your reader, so make sure you address what you’ve been asked to, but also include what your main ideas are going to be!

Are you creating your own topic? Sometimes a teacher will give you a general research assignment, but let you choose your own topic. Maybe the assignment will look like this:

-Write a 5-7 page research paper on a topic in math.

Some people would look at this and say, “Awesome! I can do whatever I want!” Other would say, “Man, I don’t even begin to know where to start.” Well, the easiest way to address this kind of assignment is to start brainstorming everything you can related to what your teacher is asking. In the example above, you could make a list of every math related topic you can think of—once you’ve done that, you can start circling

8 in on a topic that would be appealing enough to you that you could enjoy researching it. Imagine you decide that you’re interested in finding out how much math is used when people design new rollercoasters. Once you have your general topic, it helps to come up with a driving question. Since your teacher didn’t give you a question you can just respond to in thesis form, you just make one up yourself. It doesn’t have to be incredibly complicated. For your math assignment, you could write:

-What kinds of math are used in creating new rollercoasters?

Then, to write your thesis or hypothesis, you do exactly what you would have done if your teacher had given you the prompt: just answer the question. (See the section, “Are you responding to a prompt” on page 6 for more information on writing a thesis.)

9 IV. Gathering info

In order to write your research paper, you’re going to need to find information that will back up your thesis/hypothesis. There are many different kinds of sources available to you.

Print: Print sources include anything that has been printed—books, encyclopedias, magazines, newspapers, pamphlets, and so on. Your school library has many of these sources, but keep in mind that your city library may have a large catalogue of old magazines and newspapers you can look at as well, plus a wider variety of books. Many local colleges and universities will let you look at their books, too, although most won’t let you check them out unless you’re a student.

Electronic: Electronic sources have expanded greatly in the past decade. Many newspapers, magazines, and encyclopedias have content online, and there are websites that let you read entire books online, too. Websites can possibly give you useful information, but be aware of who is sponsoring the website: is it a reputable organization, like the Smithsonian Institute, or is it a crazy old man just stating his own opinion? Likewise, beware of website with user-edited content, like wikis. You can’t be entirely sure that their information has been well-researched.

Multimedia: Multimedia sources include movies, documentaries, TV programs, and songs. Keep in mind that if you use these sources, you still need to include them in a bibliography later, so make sure to mark down the channel, format, date, and even time that you view or listen to these sources. (There will be more on this later.)

In-person: In-person sources include interviews, either face to face or on paper, letters, or emails. If you are researching a topic and you know a person or would like to contact a person who has experience related to your topic, you are absolutely encouraged to use them as a source. Just be sure that they have firsthand experience. For example, your uncle who fought in Vietnam would be excellent as a resource if you’re researching the effect of war on soldiers. Your best friend’s sister’s boyfriend whose grandfather (who died when he was five) fought in WWII would NOT make a good source. If you know the person you’d like to ask well enough that you’re comfortable just straight-out asking, that’s great. If not, here are some sample formats you can use to make first contact with your potential source:

By letter: Make sure to include your contact information at the top of your letter so that they can reply to your request. Include the date at the top as well, and if you need their response by a certain date, include that information near the end and as politely as possible. Do not pressure the person—they are not required in any way to help

10 you. Use Times New Roman font in size 12, with standard margins and double spacing. Do not indent, but leave a space between paragraphs. At the very end, type a closer like “Sincerely,” leave a few lines of space, and then type your name. When you print it out, hand-sign your name in that blank space.

11 Your name

Your address

Your phone

Your email

Dear Mr./Ms./Mrs.______,

My name is ______, and I am a student at Brooklyn Center High

School. I am working on a research project for my ______class, and I was hoping to interview you because you have valuable experience in this area.

If you are interested in helping me, please let me know so that we can figure out a time to meet. (Note—include the next line if you are concerned about time.) I am on a schedule, so I would appreciate a response by ______if that is convenient for you. If not, thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Your name

12 By email: Much like the letter, it is important not to pressure the person, be polite and to the point, and include contact information. The content of your email can essentially be the same as the letter, but you need to be less concerned about correct formatting.

Dear Mr./Ms./Mrs.______,

My name is ______, and I am a student at Brooklyn Center High School. I am working on a research project for my ______class, and I was hoping to interview you because you have valuable experience in this area.

If you are interested in helping me, please let me know so that we can figure out a time to meet. (Note—include the next line if you are concerned about time.) I am on a schedule, so I would appreciate a response by ______if that is convenient for you. If not, thank you for your time.

Sincerely, Your name Your address Your phone number Your email (if you’d like)

By phone: If you choose to contact the person by phone, you may choose to write a short script to ensure that you discuss all the important points you’d like to include. Again, when talking to a potential source, be polite: try to be as respectful in your speech as you can, and try to call the person by “sir” or “ma’am.” Obviously, one benefit of phoning your contact is that you will know right away whether or not they will meet with you—it’s even possible that they may want to conduct the interview over the phone right then, so it may be helpful to have your questions at the ready. (See the next section for interviewing skills.) No matter what happens, be sure to leave your contact info with them. If they are going to help you in the future, they’ll need it, if you’ve already interviewed them, they may remember something else later and want to call you back, and if they say they can’t help you, they might change their mind. In any case, you’re covered.

Tips for conducting an interview 1. Contact the person you want to interview. Explain who you are, what your project involves, and why you think they would be a great resource. 2. Set a time frame (45 minutes for example) and a date and time to meet. 3. Prepare five to ten questions that will get to the point of your research. Don’t be afraid to branch out and ask other questions during the actual interview – be flexible!

13 4. Arrive on time, be polite and take notes. 5. Ask for permission to use notes and direct quotations in your project. 6. Wrap it up – thank them in person AND in a thank you note!

In some cases you may want to record the interview. This gives you a more accurate account of exactly what was said. You should always get permission ahead of time to record your interview as well as to use direct quotes from the conversation.

Following up on in interview Thank You Notes Thank you notes should be sent promptly – within one week of the interview. If you miss this deadline, send it anyway! Better late than never! Use the interviewee’s full name and thank them specifically. Handwritten notes are always appreciated. Include your signature.

Acknowledgements It may also be appropriate to thank your resources in the body of your work. You can acknowledge people, businesses, organizations, etc. either at the beginning or the end of your project. Acknowledgements are usually on their own page, right after the title or dedication page or at the end after the body of your work.

How do I recognize a good source from a bad source? When you find a source that you think might be useful, consider three things: 1. Is it useful? When you find the source, you have to keep in mind if it’s useful to your task. For example, you might find a great website on World War I for your history project; however, if your assignment is to research World War II, that website won’t end up being very useful to you. Likewise, you might find a great website about World War II victory gardens, but if the focus of your research is great battles, the website is going to be useless to you. 2. Is the content any good? Imagine that you found a website that actually covered great battles of WWII. Before you go ahead and start taking notes, look carefully at the content of the website. You can’t necessarily believe everything you read on the internet. A good source—be it book, internet source, or documentary—will tell you where they got their facts. A good source will have citations, footnotes, works cited, bibliographies—something to show you that they know the topic. You also need to be aware of the agenda of the source: are they trying to convince you of something? If they have an agenda, they might only be telling you part of the story. If you’re researching causes of lung cancer, for example, who are you going to believe, a well-known hospital, or a tobacco company? If a source is obviously biased, or one-sided, you need to make sure you seek out other sides

14 to make sure you’re getting the full story, or before you decide to include that source in your research. 3. Who created the source? When you’re trying to figure out if a source is credible and useable, you need to also look at who created it. Sometimes this is easy, and sometimes it’s not. If you’re using a book, the book’s jacket will often tell you about the author. It’s trickier with sources like websites, because sometimes they won’t list an author or creator. Do your best to figure out who is creating your source, and if you can’t, it’s best to simply not use it and look for something more credible. There are, though, some sources that don’t list an author but are still perfectly fine: if a major and reputable organization, like the US government or a well-known museum like the Smithsonian, sponsors the site, you can assume that the information is accurate and useable. If you find a source that you think might be good but you really don’t know if you should use it, talk to your teacher or a librarian, who can help you figure out if it’s a good source. If the author IS listed, think critically about whether or not you can trust them to give you useable and accurate information. Is a white supremacist going to write an accurate and unbiased article on Martin Luther King? Unlikely. If you’re doing a project on Vincent Van Gogh, do you want to use the website created by Mr. Johnston’s 2nd grade class as a source? Probably not. Credible authors will have expertise in their area.

Taking Notes Organizing your Notes You should organize your notes in a way that makes sense to you. Some people like to put them on 3 X 5 note cards, some record them in their notebooks, and others type them up on the computer. Each source should have its own note cards, pages in your notebook or pages in a word document. When you have collected all of your sources, assign each of them a number. When you take information from that particular source, put the number at the top of you note card, notebook page, or word document. This will remind you where the information is coming from. Next , decide which section of your paper this information should go into – assign that info a topic and write that at the top of your note card, notebook page, or word document. Some people choose to color code their sources according to topic, using colored note cards, highlighters, or tabs. After you record the information that you want to use on that same note card, notebook page, or word document, be sure to write the author of your sources and the page number where you got the information as well. This will help you later when you make parenthetical citations. This is the information that each note card/notebook page/word document page should have:

15 Topic Source # Author, page #s

Information from the source

An example may look like this: History Source # 3 Burleigh 15

Theobroma = food of the gods – comes from Greek

Types of Notes There are basically three ways to takes notes from a source. You can use a direct quotation, you can write a summary of the information, or you can paraphrase the information. When you use a direct quotation, you are using the author’s words exactly as they appear in the source, and enclosing them in quotation marks.

Homelessness Source # 3 Chambers, 11

“A man stands at the corner, holding a sign that says he has been out of work for two years. This is a common sight at the intersection, but one no one gets used to seeing.”

When you use a summary, you are taking the information and BRIEFLY restating the author’s main idea. You can skip the details, as a summary is always shorter than the original information.

Homeless people are something no one ever gets used to looking at.

The last type of note-taking is paraphrasing. This is a detailed restatement of the source’s entire idea. This one is tricky! It is a slippery slope to plagiarism!

People never grow accustomed to seeing the homeless standing at the intersection with signs stating they are out of work.

16 17 V. Outlining

Your final outline should give the reader three things: a look at the organization of your paper, a look at the content of your paper, and a look at your thesis statement. (The thesis statement should come after the title and before the body of the paper.) There are two types of outlines: sentence outlines and topic outlines. In a sentence outline every heading and subheading is a complete sentence. In a topic outline the headings and subheadings are groups of words or phrases. Outlines use numbers and letters to organize the different sections of your paper. Roman Numerals = Main headings Capital Letters = Subheadings Regular numbers = details Outlines can be broken down even further – ask your teacher if necessary.

Outline Form A number or letter should come before each heading. Each number or letter has a period after it. Each heading should be capitalized. Indent each time you break down the heading – this shows the level of importance. If you use an A, you must use a B. If you use a 1, you must use a 2, and so on. A very basic template might look like this:

18 Title of Paper

I. Introduction A. Attention-getter B. Preview of paper C. Thesis statement II. First main point A. Sub point 1. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation 2. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation B. Sub point 1. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation 2. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation C. Sub point 1. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation 2. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation III. Second main point A. Sub point 1. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation 2. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation B. Sub point 1. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation 2. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation C. Sub point 1. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation 2. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation IV. Third main point A. Sub point 1. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation 2. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation B. Sub point 1. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation 2. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation C. Sub point 1. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation 2. Supporting detail/evidence/quotation V. Conclusion

19 Here is an example with a given topic.

The Timeless Wizard of Oz

I. Introduction A. “There’s no place like home!” B. Reasons why the Wizard of Oz is still popular C. The movie The Wizard of Oz remains an enduring classic because of things like its plot, its characters and its message. II. The plot A. Story frame a. Tornado in Kansas b. Return to Kansas B. Fantastic adventures a. Meeting friends b. Battling the witch C. Suspenseful conflicts a. Good vs. Evil b. Struggle to return home III. The characters A. Dorothy a. Strong young woman b. Sympathetic situation 2. Scarecrow, Tin Man, Lion a. Searching for friendship b. Helpful to Dorothy 3. The wicked witch a. Anger at death of sister b. Greed for ruby slippers IV. The messages 1. You can always go home a. Dorothy runs away b. Family welcomes her back 2. Good triumphs over evil a. Dorothy and her friends outsmart the witch b. The friends overcome their weaknesses 3. Friendships endure a. Scarecrow, Tin Man and Lion stay with Dorothy b. Friends in Kansas are concerned, relieved

V. Conclusion

20 VI. Writing Your Paper

Introductory paragraph Tips for writing your introduction: 1. Attract the reader’s attention (use statistics, quotations, anecdotes, etc.) 2. Tell what your paper will be about, and indicate main points 3. Provide background info on your topic or define key terms 4. Present your thesis statement (this should be the last sentence in your intro)

An example: The History and Production of Chocolate

Carolus Linnaeus, a Swedish botanist, classified more than 4,400 species of animals and 7.700 species of plants (“Linneaus”). In 1753, he named the cacao tree

Theobroma cacao. Theobroma in Greek means “food of the gods” (Burleigh 15). From the pods of this rain forest tree come cacao beans, the raw material of chocolate.

Chocolate has a long history as a highly prized food.

(The last sentence is underlined to draw your attention to the thesis statement in this introduction. DO NOT underline in your own paper.)

**Depending on the teacher or the project, you may not be allowed to cite sources in your introduction. As always, ask if you are unsure!**

Body paragraphs A paragraph is made up of five to six sentences. Each paragraph in the body of your paper should include a topic sentence and supporting details. Topic sentences are important because they control what your paragraph contains. All the other sentences should give evidence and support that proves your topic sentence.

Here is an example:

The fact that good triumphs over evil in the movie The Wizard of Oz, is another reason why its message endures.* In the beginning, Dorothy’s house crushes the other

“wicked” witch. Her friends come to her rescue, and when the witch attacks, Dorothy inadvertently melts the witch while trying to save her friend the scarecrow. Even the

21 witch’s guards can be persuaded to see how mean the witch is. In these cases, the right, or “good” side has won.

*The first sentence in the paragraph is the topic sentence.

As you draft each section, make sure to give credit as you use information from your sources. You give credit by documenting your source. (See the section on Parenthetical Citation starting on page 21)

Keep in mind, too, that direct quotes that are more than three lines long must be formatted differently: it needs to start the line after the last sentence, it must be tabbed in one half inch on both ends, and be of a font size two sizes smaller than the rest of the text (10 point font). Also, because it is formatted differently, you do not need to put quotes around it. Here is an example:

The story then begins to focus on the sense of isolation felt by the members of the village, who have been quarantined from the rest of the world. The author writes:

…the plague was posting sentries at the gates and turning away ships bound for Oran.

No vehicle had entered the town since the gates were closed. From that day onward one

had the impression that all cars were moving in circles. The harbor, too, presented a

strange appearance to those who looked down on it from the top of the boulevards.

(Camus 77)

He then goes on to describe the reactions of some of the main characters of the novel.

Transitions between your paragraphs should be smooth and logical. The order in which you speak about things should make sense, and the reader should be able to follow your train of thought. Here are some helpful transitional phrases one can use at the beginning or the end of paragraphs:

To Explain: for example, for instance, in fact, in other words, specifically, that is, thus, to illustrate To Sequence: after, at first, at last, at the same time, before, during, eventually, finally, first (second, third, etc.), in the end, later meanwhile, next, once, soon, then when, whenever, while To Show Importance: above all, first, (second, third, etc.), last, mainly, more, important, most important, to begin with To Compare: also, and, another, besides, both, in like manner, like, moreover, not only – but also, similarly, still, too

22 To Contrast: although, but, despite, however, in contrast, in spite of, nor, nevertheless, on the other hand, on the contrary, still, yet To Show Cause and Effect: as a result, because, consequently, for, in effect, in the end, since, so, so that, thus, therefore

Conclusion paragraph A conclusion is what you will leave the reader with – spend just as much time on this as you do on the introduction! Many students are so relieved to be almost done, or so sick of writing, that they run out of steam and their papers end abruptly and seem unfinished. Tips for writing your conclusion: *Restate your thesis *Offer a judgment *Make a final comment or observation *Close with a quotation that wraps it all up *Summarize your main ideas *Refer to the introduction *Say something worthwhile! Example:

So the next time you bite into a chocolate bar, or drink a steaming mug of cocoa, stop to think about the long history of chocolate. Remember this “food of the gods” and think about the people who work to grow and process cacao beans (Burleigh 15). Even with this rich tradition of the past, there is still much to look to for the future as we learn even more about this delicious food.

MLA Style Parenthetical Citations A parenthetical citation is a quick way of telling the reader where you got your information. Then, they can look at the full information on the Works Cited/Bibliography page. You use a parenthetical citation EVERY time you use information from a source, whether it’s a direct quotation, a summary or a paraphrase. Citations are within parentheses, at the end of sentences or phrases, inside of punctuation. In general, inside the parentheses you list the author’s last name and the page number where you found the information. This is the rule of thumb for in-text citations. This is why you put that information on your note cards. Cite at least every three sentences if they contain information from the same source. It is unnecessary to document information that is common knowledge. Common knowledge refers to a fact that is commonly known by people and found in many resources. An example might be something like this: World War II started in Europe in 1939.

Here is an example of an MLA citation for paraphrased/summarized information:

23 Montezuma II, the Aztec emperor, served Cortez and his men chocolatl or bitter water in special goblets made of gold (Jones 6).

Here is an example of an MLA citation for a direct quotation:

Cacao seeds had become so valuable to the Aztecs that they were used as money. “A turkey, for example, was worth a hundred seeds. A small rabbit was worth thirty” (Burleigh 10).

Sometimes, different sources require different information to be placed in the parentheses. Use the following guide to determine the correct format.

Most Basic Sources and MLA Parenthetical Citation (Again, you are almost always just using the author’s name and page number where you found the information, no matter the source.)

Print Materials ------

Book (one author) Place the author’s last name and the page(s) where you found the info in parentheses. Do not use a comma or the word/abbreviation for “page”.

There are so many things that we don’t yet know about spiders (Parson 3).

If you refer to the author in the text, just put the page number in the parentheses.

According Dr. Alexander Parson, there are many things that we don’t yet know about spiders (3). ------

Book (no author) If no author is given, use the title of the book.

There are many undiscovered getaways to explore all over the seven continents (World Travel Guide 8). ------

Book (two or more authors) If there are two authors, cite both of the authors’ names.

The contributions of African American inventors are wide and varied (Mckissack and Mckissack 14).

24 If there are three or more authors, either cite all of the names, or use the first author’s name followed by the phrase et. al., meaning “and others”. You may also do this in the Works Cited/Bibliography. ------

Encyclopedia, Magazine or Newspaper Articles Use the same author/page number format as is used with books. ------

Electronic Sources Electronic sources follow the same rules as print sources – if the author and page number are present, use both. ------

Video If the cassette tape is divided into sections, use the writer/director along with the section number. You may abbreviate and use “sec.” with the number in the parentheses. (Johnson sec. 4) ------

DVD Use the writer/director along with the chapter/section number in parentheses. ------

Internet Source/Web Pages Internet sources often lack authors or page numbers. If you are not finding the author, use the title of the website. If you are unable to locate page numbers, count the paragraphs and use “par.” (Learn How to Knit par. 4) ------

Other ------

Interview Place the last name of the interviewee in the parentheses.

“Milk is good for you – I take mine with chocolate” said the chef (Verdell). ------

Play Use the title with the act and scene number of plays.

“Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing” (Macbeth 5.5) ------

25 Poem Use the title with line numbers.

“And she balanced in the delight of her thought” (“Elegy for Jane” 4). ------

Resources

The following websites can be useful in helping with citations and Works Cited/Bibliography formatting: http://www.liu.edu/cwis/cwp/library/workshop/citmla.htm http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/01/ http://static.hcrhs.k12.nj.us/gems/imc/PARENT03.doc

26 VII. Writing your bibliography

What do I have to include? You can choose to write your bibliography as you work on your research and your paper, or you can save it until the end, but either way, you will need to use MLA format! MLA stands for “Modern Language Association,” and it’s a system designed to make sure that all students who write research papers write their citations and bibliographies the same way. That’s not meant to create more work for you, but rather, to give you some guidelines as to what you need to include so that you don’t plagiarize.

The format is generally the same, although the information you include changes based on what kind of source you use. On the following two pages are templates for the most common sources, and each is followed by an example of that kind of source. For example, the first kind of source listed is book with one author:

Book (one author) Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. City: Publisher, Copyright Year.

Imagine that we’re researching spiders, and we found a great book by Alexander Parson. As we researched, we wrote down the information we knew we’d need for the bibliography. The book is called Amazing Spiders, and it was published in 1990 in New York City by Knopf publishers. All we have to do, then, is plug the information we have into the template and copy in all the punctuation as we see it in the template, too:

Author’s Last Name, First Name. Parson, Alexander.

Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Parson, Alexander. Amazing Spiders.

Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. City: Parson, Alexander. Amazing Spiders. New York:

Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. City: Publisher, Parson, Alexander. Amazing Spiders. New York: Knopf,

Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. City: Publisher, Copyright Year. Parson, Alexander. Amazing Spiders. New York: Knopf, 1990.

Make sure when you write out your bibliography, you put all your sources in alphabetical order as well—Mr. Parson would probably end up in the middle of your bibliography.

If you are missing any information from a source, you skip over that section…you will find this happens mostly when you use internet sources, but you still need to try your best to find author, date published, and so on. So, for example, a bibliography entry for

27 a website that is missing an author’s name would start instead with the title of the website, and you would use the first letter of that to figure out where to put it alphabetically in your bibliography.

The difference between an author and an editor is that authors are responsible for writing the content of the source, while the editor compiled it—multiple people contributed, and they put it all together. Make sure you know if your source was edited or authored, because you include different information for each.

Keep in mind, too, that there are different kinds of online sources, and to write your bibliography correctly, you need to know which ones you used. Just because it’s online doesn’t mean it’s just a “webpage”— it could be an encyclopedia article on the web, so look for that information when you find a useful source!

Most Basic Sources and MLA Citation For each kind of source, there are two examples given: the first is the template, explaining the order of the information you should include for that source. The second example is what a finished entry for that kind of source would look like.

Print Materials ------

Book (one author) Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. City: Publisher, Copyright Year.

Parson, Alexander. Amazing Spiders. New York: Knopf, 1990. ------

Book (no author) Title of Book. City: Publisher, Copyright Year.

World Travel Guide. London: SF Travel Publications, 2002. ------

Book (two authors) Author #1’s Last Name, First Name, and Author #2’s First Name Last Name. Title of Book. City: Publisher, Copyright Year.

McKissack, Patricia, and Frederick McKissack. African-American Inventors. Brookfield: Millbrook Press, 1994. ------

Book (three or more authors) Author #1’s Last Name, First Name, et. al. Title of Book. City: Publisher, Copyright Year.

28 Adams, Brian et. al. Encyclopedia of Great Civilizations. New York: Shooting Star Press, 1994. ------

Book (one editor) Editor’s Last Name, First Name, ed. Title of Book. City: Publisher, Copyright Year.

Middleton, John, ed. Africa: An Encyclopedia for Students. New York: Shooting Star Press, 1994. ------

Book (two editors) Editor #1’s Last Name, First Name, and Editor #2’s First Name Last Name, eds. Title of Book. City: Publisher, Copyright Year.

Clark, Anne Rogers, and Andrew H. Brace, eds. The International Encyclopedia of Dogs. New York: Howell Book House, 1995. ------

Book (three or more editors) Editor #1’s Last Name, First Name, et. al., eds. Title of Book. City: Publisher, Copyright Year.

Boehm, David A., et. al., eds. Guiness Sports Record Book, 1990-91. New York: Sterling, 1990. ------

Encyclopedia Article Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Encyclopedia Title. Year.

Minch, Edwin W. “Spiders.” The World Book Encyclopedia. 1997 ed. ------

Magazine Article Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Magazine Title Date of Magazine (day month year): Pages.

Churchman, Deborah. “Be a Nature Detective.” Ranger Rick Mar. 1999: 28-31. (Include the day if it is part of the magazine date; ex. 29 Sept. 2002.) ------

Newspaper Article Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Name of Newspaper [City if local and not in the Newspaper Name] Date: Section and Page

29 Stern, Henry. “Pre-emptive Blitz Set to Meet Threat of West Nile.” Oregonian 9 Apr. 2003: D01 ------

Electronic Sources ------

CD-ROM Encyclopedia Article “Title of Article.” Title of the CD-ROM. CD-ROM. City: Publisher, Year.

“Spiders.” Grolier’s New Multimedia Encyclopedia. CD-ROM. Danbury: Grolier, 1998. ------

Video Title. Videocassette. Distributor. Year of Release.

Spiders: Backyard Science. Videocassette. Phoenix Films, 1992. ------

DVD Title. DVD. Distributor, Year of Release.

Lewis and Clark Expedition. DVD. Film Ideas, 2001. ------

Internet Sources ------

Encyclopedia Article on the Web (online database) Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Encyclopedia Title. Name and location of Subscribing library. Date of Visit to Site .

Minch, Edwin W. “Spider.” World Book Online. Eastwood El. School, Roseburg, OR. 9 Apr. 2003 http://www.worldbookonline.com/

(Subscribing library is included if you used a resource that a library or other place had to pay to access. If this is not the case, skip that information.) ------

Magazine Article on the Web (online database) Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Original Source of Article Date of Original Source: Pages. Database Title. Name of Service Provider. Name and location of Subscribing library. Date of Visit to Site .

30 Churchman, Deborah. “Super Spider Silk.” Ranger Rick May 1995: 36. Kids Search. EBSCOhost. Terra Linda El. School, Portland, OR. 9 Apr. 2003 http://search.epnet.com/ ------

Newspaper Article on the Web (online database) Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Name of Newspaper [City if local and not in Newspaper Name]. Name and location of subscribing library. Date of Article. Date of Visit to Site .

Stern, Henry. “Pre-Emptive Blitz Set to Meet Threat of West Nile.” Oregonian [Portland]. Newsbank. Adams El. School, Eugene, OR. 14 Apr. 2003. 14 Apr. 2003 http://infoweb.newsbank.com/. ------

Magazine Article on the Web Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine Date of Article. Date of Visit to Site .

Levy, Steven. “Great Minds, Great Ideas.” Newsweek 27 May 2002. May 2002 http://www.msnbc.com/news/754336.asp. ------

Web Page Author, if given (not web page creator). Title of Site or Page. Name of Institution or Sponsoring Organization. Date of Visit to Site .

Gilbert, Tim. Anansi the Spider. Manteno Community Unit School District #5, Manteno, IL. 9 Apr. 2003 http://www.menteno.k12.il.us/webquest/elementary/ ------

Other Interview Name of person interviewed (Last Name, First Name). Type of Interview (Personal or Telephone). Date of Interview.

Barquist, Carmelita. Personal Interview. 28 July 2002. ------

31 I’m suppose to have an “annotated” bibliography. What does that mean? An annotation is anywhere from a sentence to a paragraph written after a bibliography entry that explains why you chose to use that source and what you got out of it. They keep people from tacking on lots of sources they didn’t even use by forcing people to account for each source. You won’t always be asked to do them, but if so, your teacher will tell you what he or she wants you to include and how long it should be. In general, if you write two to three sentences explaining why you chose to use each resource and how it was necessary for your research, you’ll be fine. Here are a couple of examples of annotated sources (an annotated bibliography would just be a collection of these):

Anderson, Allen. Coloring for Dummies. New York: Penguin Books, 1997.

I used this source because I had no idea how to color before I did this research

project. This book was very helpful to me because it gave me the basics of

coloring—like staying in the lines and how to sharpen crayons—and once I

finished it, I was able to go on and find more advanced sources on coloring.

Smith, Fred, ed. Advanced Crayon Techniques: Vol. 3. Phoenix: Library Press, 2004.

This source taught me a lot about different melting techniques and addressed the

postitives and negatives of using crayons as an artistic medium. Because of this

source, I decided to use crayons to add texture to my future art rather than use it to

create detailed works.

32 VIII. Formatting your paper

You now have your paper and bibliography all written, but just because you’re done with the content, doesn’t mean you’re finished. Your teacher will expect that your paper looks professional and follows all the requirements that go into a “real” research paper. Formatting is very important. In this section, you will learn what you need to include in each section of the paper in order to meet BCHS research paper requirements.

First Page: Title or Cover Page If your teacher requires you to include a title or cover page, you need to make sure you include the following information: your name (first and last), the name of the class, a title that clearly connects to your topic, and the date. You do not need to include a page number on a title page, and unless your teacher asks you to, do not include any pictures, boarders, or other artistic flourishes on your title page. All of your information should be centered, 12-point Times New Roman font in black ink and double-spaced, and should be typed near the middle of the page. Do not include spaces between lines. The title of your paper should be bolded. Below is an example of what that information would look like laid out properly:

33 The Food Groups and How to Eat Healthy

Jonas James

Health

January 28th, 2010

34 Second Page: Table of Contents Your teacher may not always ask for a table of contents, but if he or she does, it would come right after your title page. What you put in your table of contents would depend on the assignment, but let’s imagine that your health teacher has assigned a project in which you need to break down the food groups and then include tips on how to eat healthy, followed by sample healthy recipes. He wants you to break each of these things into separate sections and lay them out in a table of contents. Again, you would use 12-point Times New Roman font in black ink, double-spaced, with “Table of Contents” as your title in bold at the top. “Table of Contents” should be centered and bolded, but the rest would be oriented to the left. Each section of your paper would be numbered—like a chapter in a book—with the page number each section begins on at the far right of the page. Make sure you tab your page numbers as far as you can while keeping them in line with each other so it looks neat. Do not leave spaces between sections—it’s already double-spaced. You do not need to have a page number on your table of contents page. Here is an example of what a table of contents should look like:

35 Table of Contents

1. Introduction: What are Food Groups? 1

2. Grains 2

3. Proteins 3

4. Fruits and Veggies 4

5. Dairy 5

6. Fats and Sugars 6

7. How to Eat Healthy 7

8. Sample Recipes 9

9. Annotated Bibliography 15

10. Appendix 1 17

11. Appendix 2 18

12. Appendix 3 19

36 Third Page and On: the Paper Itself There are several things to keep in mind when formatting the body of your paper.

1. Layout Your paper should be written in 12-point Times New Roman font, double-spaced, with standard margins (one inch on each side—this is the default for word processing programs). Do not include any headers, borders, pictures, columns, or anything else, unless asked to specifically by your teacher. Indent at the beginning of each paragraph by pressing the “tab” key once, and do not leave spaces between paragraphs. Add page numbers by going to “insert” in your word processor, clicking on “page numbers,” and choosing “bottom of page” and “right.” If you were asked to include a title page and table of contents, the first page of your paper should begin at the top of the page…do not include additional spaces! Here is an example of a first written page when you are asked to include a title page and table of contents:

37 There is a major problem in the United States right now—the obesity epidemic.

Americans pride themselves on having a better quality of life than in most other countries, but the truth is, many Americans suffer from poor health. The cause of this poor health is a combination of a lack of exercise and poor nutritional choices. Too many

Americans make bad choices when it comes to food. If more Americans paid better attention to what they put in their bodies, we would have fewer health problems overall

The US government has tried to combat American ignorance when it comes to food by putting out a food pyramid that recommends what people should eat in their daily lives. This pyramid has changed over time as more and more research is done as to what nutritional benefits humans get from food. At first, the original food pyramid gave a one- size fits all recommendation of the kinds of food people should eat, and recommended how many servings of different foods people should eat on a daily basis to be considered healthy (Jones 34). The updated version is a 3D pyramid that allows people to look at more customized recommendations based on their gender, age, weight, and so on, to determine what works best based on their personal demographics. Also, the new pyramid gives portion sizes to make it clearer to people what they actually need to eat. For example, the old pyramid just said a person should have three servings of fruit, while the new pyramid says that a serving is ½ cup of cooked fruit or one medium sized piece of fresh fruit (Tanaka 322).

The main kinds of food in the food pyramid are grains, proteins, fruits and vegetables, dairy, and fats and sugars. By breaking these categories down and learning what kinds of foods are best for them and how they can work them into their daily recipes, Americans can take control of their health and regain a higher quality of life.

38 Layout if no title page or table of contents: If your teacher asked for a paper without a title page or table of contents, you will need to include the information you would have included on your title page at the top of the first page of your paper. In this case, you would need to start with your name, followed by the class name, followed by the date, all in the upper right hand side, tabbed as far right as you can get them while lining them up evenly. Following that information, your next line would be your title, bolded and centered. Again, all that information should be double-spaced, just like the rest of the paper, and you DO NOT included any additional spaces. Here’s an example of the same paper without the title page and table of contents:

39 Jonas James

Health

January 28th, 2010

The Food Groups and How to Eat Healthy

There is a major problem in the United States right now—the obesity epidemic.

Americans pride themselves on having a better quality of life than in most other countries, but the truth is, many Americans suffer from poor health. The cause of this poor health is a combination of a lack of exercise and poor nutritional choices. Too many

Americans make bad choices when it comes to food. If more Americans paid better attention to what they put in their bodies, we would have fewer health problems overall

The US government has tried to combat American ignorance when it comes to food by putting out a food pyramid that recommends what people should eat in their daily lives. This pyramid has changed over time as more and more research is done as to what nutritional benefits humans get from food. At first, the original food pyramid gave a one- size fits all recommendation of the kinds of food people should eat, and recommended how many servings of different foods people should eat on a daily basis to be considered healthy (Jones 34). The updated version is a 3D pyramid that allows people to look at more customized recommendations based on their gender, age, weight, and so on, to determine what works best based on their personal demographics. Also, the new pyramid gives portion sizes to make it clearer to people what they actually need to eat. For example, the old pyramid just said a person should have three servings of fruit, while the new pyramid says that a serving is ½ cup of cooked fruit or one medium sized piece of fresh fruit (Tanaka 322).

2. Spelling and Grammar Once your formatting is set, go through your paper again to fix your spelling and grammar. Start by going into “tools” in your word processor, and use the “spelling and grammar” function to find any obvious mistakes. Once you’ve let the computer check your work, go through it again yourself. Do not assume that the computer will find all your mistakes! There are several instances when the computer will be no help: *People and places If you use a name that is not recognized by the computer, it will not be able to recommend correct spelling for it. *Terrible spelling If your spelling is really off, it might not be able to recognize at all what word you were trying to spell, and it won’t be able to give you the correct spelling you need. *Using the wrong form of a word If you want to say: Joanie and Frank went to the barn, but you actually wrote: Joanie and Frank went two the barn, the computer might not catch your mistake. Technically, you spelled “two” correctly, so it might not mark it as incorrect. However, your teacher will dock you on spelling. This is one of those mistakes you’ll have to look for yourself. *Grammar check Spell check is right when it catches something incorrect; grammar check sometimes recommends changes that can completely change what it is you’re trying to express. Don’t automatically approve recommended grammar changes…think them through first.

3. Content issues There are a number of other issues you need to look for when you’re going through the final draft of your paper. Here’s a list, in order from most to least nit-picky. Some teachers will insist that you work on all of these, especially if you’re a sophomore, junior, or senior, or if you’re in an Honors or Advanced class.

Swearing and slang Swearing is never ever EVER acceptable in a school assignment! Slang is only acceptable if the topic of your paper happens to BE slang, or quotes from a reputable source that uses slang.

Abbreviations and text-speak Always write your words out in full—for example, Colorado instead of CO—and never use text speak. Using “U” instead of “you,” “2” instead of “to,” or anything like “OMG” or “LMAO” is not academic and will result in your teacher docking points.

41 Repetitive words and phrases If you find yourself using the same phrases or words a lot, consider pulling out a thesaurus and changing it up. There are two important reasons to change up how you say things: using the same phrases over and over make you look less intelligent and takes away from the content of your paper, and it bores the reader to tears. Nothing turns off a reader more than every single paragraph starting with, “First of all….” Mix it up a little to keep a readers interest. A good trick to use is read through your paper and highlight any phrases or key words that you use more than three times. Then go back and change where you can—the “tools” option in your word processor has a thesaurus function that can help you choose similar words that won’t lose your initial meaning.

Contractions When writing an academic paper, do not use contractions. Instead of “won’t”, use “will not,” instead of “isn’t,” use “is not,” and so on. Possessive contractions are fine, like, “It was Suzanne’s cat.” This might seem incredibly nit-picky, but when you move through higher education—especially college—many teachers and professors will dock points for using contractions, so it is best to get used to it now.

”Things” and “stuff” These two words are evil and should be banned from any paper you write. Research papers are meant to show that your know your topic, which means you should give a lot of specific details. “Things” and “stuff” are general terms that describe nothing. If you find yourself using these two words, find specific examples and facts to replace them. There is no reason to ever use these words in a school paper.

Opinion signifiers Students sometimes rely on statements like “I think,” and “In my opinion…” when they’re not really necessary. Teachers will assume that if you’re including certain arguments or information in your paper, that you believe in that argument yourself. This is especially true if your assignment asked you to take a side on something. If your paper asked you to take a controversial position—for example, a research paper on why school desegregation might have been a bad thing for America—you don’t necessarily have to include a section on why you disagree. There are some subjects—like school desegregation—that most people universally agree upon at this point, and people aren’t going to assume that because you were asked to argue an unpopular position that you agree with that position. Leave your opinion out of your paper unless your teacher specifically asks you to include it.

Numbers There are odd rules on how and when to write out numbers. Numbers from zero to ten need to be written out as words, whereas 11 and up can be written as numbers. Numbers with decimals are written as numbers, even under ten, like 3.14. Numbers with fractions are written out if they’re under ten, like three and three-fourths, but those over 11 can be written as numbers, like 51 ½. Dates are always written as numbers, like 1865.

42 Passive voice Passive voice is something most students won’t have to be concerned about unless they’re in an upper-level advanced class or college. If you plan on continuing your education, this is something you may want to work on now, but it is unlikely that your high school teachers are going to take away points for not doing this correctly. Passive voice refers to a style of writing in which people are affected by action rather than take action themselves. Here is an example of passive voice—which you should avoid— followed by an example of active voice, which is what college professors will require:

Passive voice: While on his way to town, Timmy passed the old farm.

Active voice: Timmy passed the old farm while on his way to town.

As you can see, the meaning of the sentence didn’t change. Look at the two parts of the sentences—there’s part “A,” Timmy passing the old farm, and part “B,” Timmy on his way to town. Active voice simply puts action in its proper order: Timmy did A and then B. With passive voice, the action is out of order: B occurs before A. Again, this is very nit-picky, but if you want to work on it, talk to a teacher who can help you and who is willing to critique you on future assignments.

After Your Paper: the Bibliography Like all the other parts of your paper, your bibliography should be written in 12- point Times New Roman font in black ink and double spaced. “Bibliography” should be written at the top as your title, centered and bolded. The entries of your bibliography should be in alphabetical order. If your bibliography is not annotated, leave a space between each entry. If your bibliography entry is longer than one line, you need to do what is called a “hanging indent,” where you tab once on all lines but the first. It should look like this:

Stern, Henry. “Pre-Emptive Blitz Set to Meet Threat of West Nile.” Oregonian

[Portland]. Newsbank. Adams El. School, Eugene, OR. 14 Apr. 2003. 14 Apr.

2003 http://infoweb.newsbank.com/.

If it is annotated, do not leave a space. The annotation is also written as a hanging indent. The following page shows examples of regular and annotated bibliographies.

43 Regular bibliography:

Bibliography

Boehm, David A., et. al., eds. Guiness Sports Record Book, 1990-91. New York:

Sterling, 1990.

Churchman, Deborah. “Be a Nature Detective.” Ranger Rick Mar. 1999: 28-31.

Middleton, John, ed. Africa: An Encyclopedia for Students. New York: Shooting Star

Press, 1994.

Annotated bibliography: