Effective citing and referencing

Effective citing and referencing

Published August 2014

Published on behalf of the International Baccalaureate Organization, a not-for-profit educational foundation of 15 Route des Morillons, 1218 Le Grand-Saconnex, Geneva, Switzerland by the

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© International Baccalaureate Organization 2014

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The International Baccalaureate Organization (known as the IB) offers four high-quality and challenging educational programmes for a worldwide community of schools, aiming to create a better, more peaceful world. This publication is one of a range of materials produced to support these programmes.

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The IB programme continuum of international education Effective citing and referencing

International Baccalaureate, Baccalauréat International and Bachillerato Internacional

are registered trademarks of the International Baccalaureate Organization.

IB mission statement

The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.

To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment.

These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.

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IB learner profile

The aim of all IB programmes is to develop internationally minded people who, recognizing their common humanity and shared guardianship of the planet, help to create a better and more peaceful world.

IB learners strive to be:

Inquirers

They develop their natural curiosity. They acquire the skills necessary to conduct inquiry and research and show independence in learning. They actively enjoy learning and this love of learning will be sustained throughout their lives.

Knowledgeable

They explore concepts, ideas and issues that have local and global significance. In so doing, they acquire in-depth knowledge and develop understanding across a broad and balanced range of disciplines.

Thinkers

They exercise initiative in applying thinking skills critically and creatively to recognize and approach complex problems, and make reasoned, ethical decisions.

Communicators

They understand and express ideas and information confidently and creatively in more than one language and in a variety of modes of communication. They work effectively and willingly in collaboration with others.

Principled

They act with integrity and honesty, with a strong sense of fairness, justice and respect for the dignity of the individual, groups and communities. They take responsibility for their own actions and the consequences that accompany them.

Open-minded

They understand and appreciate their own cultures and personal histories, and are open to the perspectives, values and traditions of other individuals and communities. They are accustomed to seeking and evaluating a range of points of view, and are willing to grow from the experience.

Caring

They show empathy, compassion and respect towards the needs and feelings of others. They have a personal commitment to service, and act to make a positive difference to the lives of others and to the environment.

Risk-takers

They approach unfamiliar situations and uncertainty with courage and forethought, and have the independence of spirit to explore new roles, ideas and strategies. They are brave and articulate in defending their beliefs.

Balanced

They understand the importance of intellectual, physical and emotional balance to achieve personal well-being for themselves and others.

Reflective

They give thoughtful consideration to their own learning and experience. They are able to assess and understand their strengths and limitations in order to support their learning and personal development.

Effective citing and referencing

Contents

Introduction

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Why cite

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What to cite

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When to cite

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How to cite

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Definitions

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Documentation checklist

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Elements to be included in the reference

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Effective citing and referencing

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Introduction

In the International Baccalaureate (IB) community we produce different types of documents and other forms of work, some of which rely on resources by other people. Following good academic practice, it is expected that we appropriately acknowledge any ideas, words, or work of other people.

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This means that, when creating an authentic piece of work, we are expected to:

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• undertake research on what is already known
• analyse the research in the context of the work to be produced
• compare and/or contrast existing knowledge against our own findings/thoughts/opinions
• synthesize and present the document in an appropriate way for the expected audience
• acknowledge all contributing sources appropriately.

The ways in which we can acknowledge contributing sources appropriately may vary according to the type of work we produce. Sources are acknowledged differently in a press release or magazine article, in a piece of fiction, in artwork or a musical performance, a slide presentation, film clip or radio broadcast. The important, honest thing for us to do in these and other types of work is to acknowledge our sources and influences in some way. In academic writing, and in any work presented for assessment, not only is it necessary to acknowledge our sources appropriately, but it is regarded as important that the acknowledgments be made using a consistent style. The use of a style guide helps us to ensure this consistency.

When we use other people’s words, work and ideas to support our own ideas, or to demonstrate divergent opinion, it is essential that we indicate whose words and work we are using. Any reader would benefit from seeing just how the other person’s work contributes to ours.

If we fail to show that we are using someone else’s words, work or ideas by not indicating that they originated with someone else, then we mislead the reader. If we give the impression that these words or ideas are our own when they are not, this is not good scholarship and, deliberate or unintentional, may be deemed as academic misconduct.

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Purpose of this document

The purpose of this publication is to guide members of the International Baccalaureate (IB) community in understanding the IB’s expectations with regards to referencing the ideas, words, or work of other people when producing an original document or piece of work.

This document provides guidance on referencing and demonstrates some of the differences between the most widely used styles. Due to the wide range of subjects, multiple response languages and the diversity of referencing styles, the IB does not prescribe or insist on a particular style. All examples provided in this document are for illustration purposes only. The IB’s requirements are for honesty in indicating when and which ideas and words are not the writer’s own, and consistency in referencing the source of those ideas and words.

Effective citing and referencing

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Why cite

Proper citation is a key element in academic scholarship and intellectual exchange. When we cite we:

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• show respect for the work of others
• help a reader to distinguish our work from the work of others who have contributed to our work
• give the reader the opportunity to check the validity of our use of other people’s work
• give the reader the opportunity to follow up our references, out of interest
• show and receive proper credit for our research process
• demonstrate that we are able to use reliable sources and critically assess them to support our work
• establish the credibility and authority of our knowledge and ideas
• demonstrate that we are able to draw our own conclusions
• share the blame (if we get it wrong).

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What to cite

As creators/authors, we are expected to acknowledge any materials or ideas that are not ours and that have been used in any way, such as quotation, paraphrase or summary. The term “materials” means written, oral or electronic products, and may include the following.

Basic and common knowledge within a field or subject does not need to be acknowledged. However, if we are in doubt whether the source material is common knowledge or not, we should cite!

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When to cite

When we acknowledge the use of materials or ideas that are not ours, the reader must be able to clearly distinguish between our own words, illustrations, findings and ideas and the words and work of other creators.

Style guides give us advice for documenting our sources in written work, but they are less helpful with other formats and mediums. Nevertheless, we can be honest and we can be helpful to our audience(s)—for assessment purposes, this is an expectation.

In written work, we should cite in the text where we have used an external source. The inclusion of a reference in a bibliography (works cited/list of references) at the end of the paper is not enough.

In other forms of work (music, video, artistic pieces), we are expected to acknowledge use of external sources appropriately.

In presentations we can provide our audience with a handout of our references, or list our sources on the final slide(s).

During an oral presentation, we can acknowledge the sources we are using by the use of phrases, for example, “As Gandhi put it …” or “According to …”. We can show a direct quotation by saying “Quote … Unquote” or by signalling with “rabbit’s ears” or “air quotes”. In a presentation supported by posters or slides, we can include short or full references on the slides; if short references are made on the slides, then we should again provide a full list of references on a handout or on the final slide(s).

We can include references or acknowledgments of other people’s work in the final credits of a film. A piece of music can be accompanied by programme notes indicating influences and direct sources. Art on display can be labelled or captioned.

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How to cite

When we cite, we should make clear what it is that we are citing. It must be clear to the reader just what it is that we owe to someone else, and whether we have quoted exactly or have used our own words and understanding of the original material.

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• The reader must be able to distinguish clearly between our words/work and the words/work of others.
• Quotations—the exact words as used by others—are indicated either by quotation marks or by displaying (indenting) the quotation.
• Paraphrase and summary of others’ work should similarly be distinguishable from our own words and ideas.
• Use of a style guide ensures that our citations and references are recorded consistently.
• Choice of introductory or parenthetical citation is often a matter of readability, emphasis and authority.

As noted in the definitions below, the citation in the text links to a full reference that will enable the reader to trace the exact material used.

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The three main types of in-text citation are as follows.

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1. Author

In-text citation is done by an introductory and/or parenthetical citation providing:

• the last name of the author, and
• page number(s) from which the quotation or paraphrase is taken, if applicable.
• Author–date

In-text citation is done by an introductory and/or parenthetical citation providing:

• the last name of the author, and
• the year of publication from which the quotation or paraphrase is taken, and the page number, if applicable.
• Numbered footnote

In-text citation is done by:

• superscript note numbers that come after the referenced passage, and after the final punctuation mark, if used, and
• corresponding footnotes placed at the bottom of their page of reference containing all reference details from which the quotation or paraphrase is taken; when using a source for a second or subsequent time, a shorter footnote reference is sufficient.

The following section provides examples on how to cite:

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• printed sources
• non-printed electronic sources
• online video clips
• social media.

How to cite

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How to cite

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How to cite

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How to cite

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How to cite

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Definitions

The words listed here are often used, sometimes interchangeably, in textbooks and in style guides. To support understanding, the terminology in this guide uses the following definitions.

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Documentation

Documentation is the stylized process of indicating sources in the text (citation) and giving full details (references) to enable another reader to locate the sources.

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Style guide

A style guide is a published manual that gives guidance on citation and references to help ensure that our documentation is expressed consistently, and that we include all the elements needed for our sources to be identified.

Some style guides offer more than one set of choices or sub-styles; if we use a particular sub-style, we must be sure to use the same sub-style throughout our work.

As well as advice on citations and referencing, many published style guides give advice on spelling, abbreviations, punctuation, and so on. Many also give guidance on research and on the general writing process.

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Style guides in common use in the academic world include the following.

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• MLA (Modern Language Association)
• APA (American Pyschological Association)
• Harvard
• Chicago/Turabian
• CSE (Council of Science Editors)
• ISO 690 (International Organization for Standardization)

Note local variations between style guides; writers should be sure to follow a single style guide consistently. When consulted sources are accessed online, the IB prefers the use of URLs (uniform resource locators) or DOIs (digital object identifiers), even if the published style guide makes them optional.

Owing to different editions of style guides, the variety of languages in which members of the IB community complete their work, and diverse subject areas, the IB does not endorse any particular style guide. This choice is left to the discretion of the authors/creators, or their advisers.

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For assessment purposes, IB students are not expected to show faultless expertise in referencing but are

expected to acknowledge all uses of other people’s work.

Definitions

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Citation

A citation is an indication (signal) in the text that this (material) is not ours; we have “borrowed” it (as a direct quote, paraphrase or summary) from someone or somewhere else. The citation in the text can be:

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• in the form of an introductory phrase, or
• at the end of the statement, or
• indicated by a superscript or bracketed number that leads to a similarly numbered footnote or endnote.

Every citation should be given a full reference that enables the reader to locate the exact source used.

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Reference

A reference gives full details of the source cited in the work; the parts or elements of the reference should be noted in a consistent order. Use of a recognized style guide will help ensure consistency, and will also ensure that all required elements are included.

Every reference should be given a citation in the text. If we have looked at a source but not mentioned or cited it in the text, then we do not include it as a reference.

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Bibliography/references/works cited

Most style guides require a list of references at the end of the work. This is usually a list, in alphabetical order, of the authors (last name first), whose words and works have been cited in the work. The title of this section varies from one style guide to another.

Each entry in the list of references includes the full information (or as much of it as can be found), expressed in a consistent fashion, which will allow an interested reader to track down exactly where you found the material you have used and cited.

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Paraphrase

In writing an essay, we often use our own words to put over someone else’s thoughts and ideas. While there are some words that we cannot change (especially the names of people, places, chemicals, and so on), we should use our own words for as much as we can of the rest of the passage. We should also aim to change the structure of the passage, perhaps by reordering the thoughts and ideas.

When we paraphrase, we need to make it very clear where the original author’s ideas start and where they finish. If we include our own examples, we should make it clear that these are our thoughts and not those of the original author.

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Definitions

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Summary

A summary is a much-shortened summing up of someone else’s work. We might summarize a chapter or academic paper, or perhaps even a book, in two or three sentences. Again, although we are using our own words, we must still cite the original source used.

Summaries are often used in a review of the literature—when we sum up what other writers have said or done in investigating a topic or theme.

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Quotation

When we use someone else’s exact words, we quote that original author, and we show this is a quotation by using quotation marks. Longer quotations may be indicated by the use of an indented paragraph (without quotation marks). As well as indicating the words quoted, we must also acknowledge the author by using an in-text citation, the citation in turn linking to a full reference.

Quotations should normally be used sparingly and carefully; essays on literary subjects or from historical documents might include more quotations than other essays.

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Documentation checklist

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Elements to be included in the reference