In higher education you are expected to cite all sources of information that you use to help you with your written assignments. Citing your references correctly is an essential part of your academic work for three main reasons: 1. To acknowledge the sources you have used as the basis of your research. Failure to do this could be construed as plagiarism. 2. To enable other people to identify and trace your sources quickly and easily. 3. To support facts and claims you have made in your text. There are three types of academic referencing that are in use at Swindon College, depending upon your subject area: 1. Harvard 2. Numeric 3. American Psychological Association (APA) Although there are many variants of Harvard formatting, this pamphlet provides guidance on the American Psychological Association referencing style taken from the University of Bath‟s Department of Sports Development and Recreation. To find out which format you should be using within your subject area please check, with your tutor, your course handbook, and your VLE course area.
Definition of Terms Direct Quotation Indirect Quotation; Referral
stating an author‟s ideas / arguments in their own words; usually punctuated with, “...”. to give a description of, or refer to, the original author‟s work or argument.
Paraphrasing
using someone else‟s ideas or arguments, but in your own words.
Summarising
to sum up the essence or main point of what the original author is saying.
Citing
acknowledging, within your piece of work, the source from which you obtained the direct or indirect quotation.
Reference List
full details of all of the sources from which you have quoted from within your work.