What You Need to Know About Writing Research

Essays

Plagiarism

1. Failing to cite quotes and borrowed ideas2. Failing to enclose borrowed text in quotation

marks3. Failing to put summaries and paraphrases in

your own words4. Presenting someone else’s ideas as your own5. Turning in someone else’s paper6. Turning in a previously written paper

How to Take Notes on Sources

for Research Essays

Organize Your Sources

*Takes notes on your source in a separate document.

*The best way to take notes is to first read your source and highlight important information. Then put the source aside and take notes from memory. Go back and check for accuracy.

Taking Notes

• Summarize: To give a shortened version of something that has been said or written.

• You are stating just the main points, not the details. • Paraphrase: Similar to summarizing, but you are

restating the ideas from a specific passage/section rather than summarizing the entire text (includes more details).

• Quote: To repeat or copy the exact words spoken or written by somebody.

When should I use quotations?

• When language is especially vivid or expressive

• When exact wording is needed for technical accuracy

*When you are providing textual evidence*• When you cannot put the statement in your

own words

Two ways to cite sources in an essay

As of 2000, there were about ninety million cell phone users in the United States, with 85% of them using their phones while on the road (Sundeen 1).

Matt Sundeen reports that as of 2000, there were about ninety million cell phone users in the United States, with 85% of them using their phones while on the road (1).

Helpful Hints

• You ALWAYS need a citation (author page #) after a direct quote or after you change sources.

Works Cited Page

• This is the last page of your paper.• Every work which has a citation in your paper

must appear on your Works Cited page.• Only works which have been cited in your text

may appear on your Works Cited page.• The Works Cited page is double spaced and

must be alphabetized by author’s last name.

Important Links

1. Purdue Owl2. Easy Bib

*Use these websites to help you compose your Works Cited page.

Works Cited

Hacker, Diana. A Pocket Style Manual. Boston:Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2004.

*All slides were quoted directly from this resource.