Research is Fun!

How Do I Start? Choose a topic Adjust the size of your topic

Outline Your paper should have a focus Choose three main points to research Organize by time, importance, or geography You need an introduction and conclusion

How to Research You may need to learn a little first Choose three main points (usually) Organize by: Time, importance, geography Research only your three points Adjust if necessary!

Where Do I Research? Use books in the media center (card catalog) Use search engines (Ex. apples) Use Google Scholar Use a database (Galileo) Wikipedia????

Is My Source Reliable? Where did I find it? Who wrote it? Who published it? Are there conflicting sources?

Is My Source Reliable? Is the website professional? Can I verify the information? Are there references?

Plagiarism Copying and pasting? Using another's paper as your own? Using another's words as your own? Using another's ideas as your own?

Avoid Plagiarism Use citations to give credit to sources Use information from many sources Use quotation marks for direct quotes Paraphrase and reword--but still use citations!!

What do I have to cite? All direct quotations All paraphrases All original ideas All opinions All summaries of another person's ideas

What do I not have to cite? Common knowledge Easy to locate facts Ideas or opinions of your own

Plagiarism is an expellable offense. Plagiarism is Serious! Plagiarism is a crime. Plagiarism is an expellable offense. Plagiarism is lazy. blogs.fit.edu

APA Style APA requires a separate title page. APA requires a heading on each page. APA uses section headers for longer papers. APA requires dates in text citations. APA has different capitalization rules APA has a Reference page. APA is used for science, social sciences, and education.

APA Set Up Times New Roman Size 12 font Title page required Running head on title page Include heading on all pages Page numbers in upper right corner All text should be Times New Roman, size 12. Remind students to check margins. Remind students that headers and footers should be set up when they begin their papers.

Sample APA Title Page Running head in all caps Title, name, and course centered on page Page number in upper right corner

Sample APA Page Running head at the top of page Page number in upper right corner Headers separating sections

APA Headers Yes Centered? Left Aligned? Bold? Italics? Indented? First Degree Second Degree Third Degree Fourth Degree Centered? Yes Left Aligned? Bold? Italics? Indented? Remind students about first and second degree headers. Explain that there should be an introduction without a header.

APA In-Text Citations Include author's last name, comma, and year Example-- (Smith, 2014) Use shortened title if no author Example-- ("History of England," 2014) Citation should direct reader to an entry on the reference page Ask for questions about citations. Ask if anyone has two sources with the same author.

APA Reference Page Page should be titled References Check the guide for specific entry instructions Different punctuation rules apply here First line is left aligned, other lines are indented Include heading (title and page number) Alphabetize entries!!!

Example Reference Page Follow this example. Use guide for specific instructions. Tell students to use the media center home page for help with citations on the media center home page. Make sure that all students can access page.

MLA Style MLA does not have a separate title page. MLA requires last name and page number right aligned at the top of each page. MLA requires author’s last name and page number in citations. MLA has a Works Cited page. MLA is used in the Humanities field.

MLA Set Up Times New Roman Size 12 font No separate title page Last name and page number on each page

Sample MLA First Page

MLA In-Text Citations Include author’s last name and page number Example—(Smith 387) Use shortened title if no author Example—(“History of England” 387) Should refer the reader to an entry on the Works Cited list

MLA Works Cited Page Page should be titled Works Cited Check the guide for specific instructions First line is left aligned, other lines are indented Include name and page number in right corner Alphabetize entries!!!

Example Works Cited page Follow this example. Use guide for specific instructions.

APA versus MLA--Differences Title page Bibliography page Headers on each page Headings to separate sections In-text citations Bibliographic entries

APA versus MLA--Similarities Times New Roman 12 Double spaced Requirement to cite sources of information (parenthetical citations) Page numbers Research method

Is Research Fun?

Come to the Media Center if you need help! Good luck! Come to the Media Center if you need help!