Trek 1:
Analysing your topic
Trek 2:
Finding keywords
Trek 3:
Understanding your reading list
Trek 4:
Using the Library Catalogue 1
Trek 5:
Using the Library Catalogue 2
Trek 6:
Finding journal articles
Trek 7:
Searching the Web
Trek 8:
Evaluating resources
Trek 10:
Using Library services from home
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When you write an assignment or essay, it is very important to acknowledge the source of anyone else's ideas that you have used or mentioned in your work. If you don't, you could be accused of plagiarism - a charge that is taken very seriously by the academic world.
This Trek will help you understand what referencing is and why you should take it seriously, and gives you a few helpful hints on how to do it with a minimum of pain!
What is plagiarism?
What is referencing?
Referencing styles
Hints on how to make referencing easier
InfoTrekker Quiz 9
Link to Chicago Author-Date and APA style sheets and Endnote information.
"Plagiarism occurs when the work of another person, or persons, is used and presented as one's own, unless the source of each quotation or piece of borrowed material is acknowledged with an appropriate citation."
from the Curtin University Statement on Plagiarism.
Academic work is not limited to your own views and opinions, but is developed by thinking about ideas put forward by others. It is acceptable and appropriate to synthesise the work of others, so long as you acknowledge your sources accurately. These sources can be books, journal articles, newspaper reports, television or radio programs, conference proceedings, personal communications, email messages or web pages. In fact anything at all!
Of course it's important to keep a note of all the sources you've used so that you can acknowledge and reference them properly.
Click here if you want to read the complete Curtin University Statement on Plagiarism
Referencing is a standard method of acknowledging your sources of information and ideas that you have used in your assignment in a way that identifies the source. This enables the reader to check your sources of information, to verify any quotations you have used and to follow-up your 'cited' author's arguments.
You must reference direct quotations, facts and figures as well as ideas and theories from both published and unpublished works.
There are many acceptable forms or 'styles' of referencing.
Some commonly used styles are the Harvard, Chicago Author-Date and the APA (American Psychological Association) referencing styles, but there are many others. In these styles you acknowledge an idea by placing the author's name and the year of publication at the point in your essay where you refer to it. This is called the in-text citation.
Here is an example of an in-text citation:
In 2005, the Arctic ice cap was at its smallest in 100 years (Lippsett, 2005).
The reference list at the end of your assignment then gives the full details of all (with a few exceptions) the in-text citations. The example below is a journal article in the APA style.
Lippsett, L. (2005). Is global warming changing the Arctic. Oceanus,
44(3), 24-25.
Referencing styles follow strict rules of punctuation and indentation and you will need to refer to a style sheet to get your referencing style correct. You will find links to style sheets for the Chicago Author-Date, APA, Harvard and other styles at the top and bottom of this page.
Congratulations! You're nearly at the last Trek! Now try out the Quiz to see if you've really understood the idea of referencing in your assignments (and avoiding plagiarism). It is very important for all students to know how to reference correctly.
To find out more on Chicago and APA referencing styles and Endnote, click on the link below.
If you're a Curtin student and can't get to the Library often, Trek 10 will tell you what services can bring the Library to you.
Link to:
Chicago, Harvard and APA style sheets
StudyTrekk:'S'Trek 6: Referencing, not plagiarism (has examples of plagiarism)
Academic Integrity at Curtin: student guidelines for avoiding plagiarism (pdf) (student booklet)
