Take notes and add citations to your MyBib list. This process should take approximate 30-50% of the time you have earmarked for this project.
Note Taking Process:
1. Skim. Skim through the article first to know whether it will or will not be useful. Use Ctrl-f to browse keywords.
2. Read. Read and understand what you've read. Read an entire paragraph or section and state verbally or in writing what you have just read.
3. Select. Be picky. Only write down notes that will be useful later in writing the paper.
4. Record. Paste the source information along with your notes.
“But how do I put what I'm reading into my own words?”
· Don’t copy word-for-word unless you plan on using it later as a quotation. And put it in quotes.
· Feel free to abbreviate and use incomplete sentences, as long as you understand the meaning.
· Make a diagram or mini outline of key points (Main Idea - Sub Idea) for long paragraphs.
· Test yourself! Read a paragraph. Without looking, write down what you remember. Go back and read the original work to make sure that the words and sentence structure are different but the meaning is the same. The extra reading will also drill in the content.
· Don't get lazy and just substitute words here and there. If you copy this later in your draft, is considered plagiarism because you are still using the writer's style and sentence structure. Watch this video for more assistance:
“What is Plagiarism?” Check out this graphic!
To "plagiarize" is to present someone else's writing or ideas as your own. The most common example is copying something word for word without the use of quotation marks. You also plagiarize when you use someone's ideas without giving them credit.
Word-for-Word Plagiarism
If you wrote your paper by yourself, you will have a certain style or “voice” to your writing that can be identified by your teacher. When your teacher comes across writing that “doesn’t sound like you,” he or she can easily Google the phrases that stand out or you may be caught with a plagiarism detector. It’s simply not worth it to try. In addition to the fact that you have learned nothing and you are unprepared for higher education, you may face disciplinary action that can preclude you from induction to the National Honor Society (or could lead to your expulsion). According to the Monty Tech Student Handbook:
Any student caught cheating by a teacher will receive a grade of zero (0) for the work involved. In addition, the incident will be reported to the Dean of Students on a referral form. Repeated offenses may result in course failure and/or suspension (47-48).
Idea Stealing
In addition to the obvious word-for-word plagiarism, you also plagiarize when you use someone's ideas without giving them credit. When you don't cite ideas or information your sources, you are telling the world that YOU came up with these ideas, not the original author. In a research paper, it is likely that very few ideas will be your own. It is expected that the introductory paragraph and the conclusion, along with the thesis statement will be from you, but the evidence to support those ideas will not be.
Teachers can usually tell if you came up with the ideas presented based on the content of the paper and your experience with the subject matter. For example, if you are writing a paper on the significance of the Battle of the Bulge, your teacher knows that you are not a World War II scholar and expects almost all of your research to be cited. If it isn’t, you are effectively implying that you did original research. Since we know this is not the case, you could be accused of plagiarism. At the very least, it’s sloppy scholarship and not worthy of a respectable grade. And, you do not state from which source you found the information and so it’s impossible to verify your information.
Note: Anything not considered common knowledge, needs a citation. Here’s a rule of thumb: If you didn't know it before you read it, then it isn't common knowledge. Cite it!
To provide appropriate credit, you need parenthetical (or in-text) citations and the source needs to be listed at the end of your paper in a “Works Cited” (MLA format) or “References” page (APA format) or "Bibliography" (Chicago).
This example of plagiarism is from Purdue University's OWL website:
The original passage:
Students frequently overuse direct quotation in taking notes, and as a result they overuse quotations in the final [research] paper. Probably only about 10% of your final manuscript should appear as directly quoted matter. Therefore, you should strive to limit the amount of exact transcribing of source materials while taking notes. Lester, James D., Writing Research Papers. 2nd ed. (1976): 46-47.
A plagiarized version:
Students often use too many direct quotations when they take notes, resulting in too many of them in the final research paper. In fact, probably only about 10% of the final copy should consist of directly quoted material. So it is important to limit the amount of source material copied while taking notes.
This is a common example of plagiarism. The student just changed certain words. For example, "overuse" is replaced with "use too many.” This is considered plagiarism because the student is using the exact meaning and sentence structure of the author. The student also did not provide a parenthetical citation.
A legitimate paraphrase:
In research papers students often quote excessively, failing to keep quoted material down to a desirable level. Since the problem usually originates during note taking, it is essential to minimize the material recorded verbatim (Lester 46-47).
An acceptable summary:
Students should take just a few notes in direct quotation from sources to help minimize the amount of quoted material in a research paper (Lester 46-47).
Log into your Google Drive Account first. Click here, then File and Make a Copy.
Note: A great practice is to print them and cut them into boxes when you write your paper!
There are three ways to take notes:
MyBib.com is a free citation generator for MLA, APA, and Chicago style. Create a new Project & Add a Citation. Choose website, book, journal, video, etc. For database articles, click More then Write/Paste. To copy or print your final list, click on Download Bibliography. Click here for handout. Watch the video!