Why do we have to use outside sources?• Factual evidence: adds to credibility, backs up claims.

• Factual, trustworthy, undeniable evidence.

• Show background and knowledge of the field.

What do we do with information from sources?• Introduce the source, give the information context, signal to the reader that this information is from another source. •Present it: as a summary, paraphrase, or direct quotation.•Cite it!•Engage with it!

Introducing outside information

•Give a signal phrase: • As Smith writes…• The author tells us…• The article states…

• Show the difference between your source’s idea and your own idea

Summary (in academic writing)

• An overall summary

• General idea

• Less detail

• Requires a citation

Paraphrase (what we did in our Ideas essays)

• Their ideas, your words

• More detailed and specific than summary; less detailed and specific

than a direct quote

• Requires a citation

Why paraphrase?

•Why do we have to paraphrase stuff? The author wrote it the best way already…• Allows us as writers to include what we think is most important

and omit what doesn’t help us in that rhetorical context.

• Proves to readers (teachers) that we understand the content well enough to convey the main ideas to another reader.• i.e., your teacher has already read the book or could go read the article

themselves. They want to know what you got out of it, how you interpret it, etc.

•“While the earnings premium for bachelor’s-degree holders narrowed slightly in recent years, it has increased markedly in the past two decades, according to the College Board. College graduates earn significantly more over their careers than do their peers with less education, it found, and they are much less likely to be unemployed.”

How do we paraphrase?

• Our brains just like to copy stuff!

• Outsmart your brain!• Put the source away and make your memory do the work. • Double-check facts/dates after drafting.

Direct Quotations

• To be used occasionally (less often than you think!)

• Their ideas, their words

• Requires a citation and quotation marks

• Use direct quotes when there is no stronger or more concise way to phrase something, or when the original phrasing is integral to the point.

• Don’t be afraid to only quote part of a sentence or paragraph; be precise!

Plagiarism!

•No citation• Their ideas, their words,

no quotation marks and/or citation•Presenting others’ ideas

as yours

Citing sources requires two steps

• In-text citations• AKA parenthetical citations• Informs reader that a quote or

paraphrase comes from a particular source

• Works Cited page• AKA references page, bibliography• List of sources and where to find

them• More detailed information than in-

text citations

• Any source listed in the text must have a matching source on the works cited page, and vice versa: every source listed on the works cited page must be used in an in-text citation.

Citations• MLA/Humanities: For literature, philosophy, humanities courses.• Citing passages or pages from works (films, plays, novels, poems)• (Author page#) = (Dumbledore 47)

• APA/Social Sciences: For psychology, sociology, political science, nursing• Generally citing results or conclusions from research that has been published• Less frequently uses direct quotations• (Author, year) = (Baggins, 1945)

• Bedford St. Martins and Purdue Owl• College of Lake County Writing Center

Do we have to memorize all this stuff?• More important is how to paraphrase and engage with your sources

• Use your resources! Try not to be overwhelmed by the rules

Engaging with your sources

• Every quote or paraphrase should have some kind of your own analysis• How does your source info support your claim?• What are we supposed to learn from it?

• If you end a paragraph with a quote/paraphrase, it’s pretty obvious that you didn’t engage with the source.• Professors (and readers) can tell when you’re using quotes

just to take up space.