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This video is about how to create and use References in your assignments.
Why do we use References in our research?
Referencing is important to distinguish between your own personal ideas, and those that you have found in other peoples work.
Acknowledging the contribution of others in your work is part of the culture of academic honesty.
When you acknowledge the ideas taken from other people, you can't be accused of plagiarism.
Referencing helps people follow up the ideas behind your argument. It's like leaving a trail behind you, so others can find the way.
It shows your lecturers that you have used a range of resources in your work, and gives them a better idea of its quality.
It shows your lecturers that you have used a range of resources in your work, and gives them a better idea of its quality.
So, does this mean you have to reference every single fact in your assignment?
You don't have to have to reference things that are :
Established scientific truths like the law of gravity.
Established scientific truths like the law of gravity.
You don't have to reference things that are common knowledge like the fact that New Zealanders drive on the left hand side of the road.
You don't have to reference dates in history, or election results.
However, you do have to reference statistics, graphs, financial figures. Opinions, theories or claims and quotations.
When you write your references, you need to use a particular academic style.
This can seem very picky, with complicated rules that you have to follow. But it is an important demonstration of your academic integrity, and you can lose marks if you don't get it right.
The style that is most common at Unitec is called the APA style. This is the one that we are using in this video.
Let's look at how a correct reference should appear.
There are two parts to referencing.
The first part is the in-text citation. That is what you put in your essay to refer to the source that you have used.
An in-text citation has three parts : the authour, year and the page number.
You can leave out the page number if you are referring to the whole work, rather than a particular passage.
You make a citation when you directly quote someone's work or if you paraphrase the authours' words into your own.
Changing the words doesn't mean you should not make a reference.
You can find more about this on our guide to APA.
The second part goes in the Reference List at then end of your document.
A Reference List is organised alphabetically according to the authour's family name, or by the title if there isn't any authour.
A reference contains information about the source you used. What information to include depends on what type of material you are referring to.
In this video we look at books and journal articles.
You can go to our APA guide to get more details about the punctuation, and what to do with other types of material.
For example websites, DVDs, course handouts, etc.
Let's look at what kinds of information are included in the Reference List.
For a printed book, you'll find the following : an authour, the year, the title of the book, a place of publication and the publisher's name.
For a printed book, you'll find the following : an authour, the year, the title of the book, a place of publication and the publisher's name.
You can find this information inside the book. If there is anything you are not sure about, it's a good idea to look up the book up in the library catalogue.
For a journal article it is a little different, depending on whether you looked at the article in print or online.
This example is for a print journal.
You will need an authour, the year, the title of the article, the title of the journal, the volume, the issue, and the page numbers.
You will need an authour, the year, the title of the article, the title of the journal, the volume, the issue, and the page numbers.
This has been just a brief introduction to referencing.
For more information about the correct construction of in-text citations, and reference lists, please see our online guide, ask at the Information Desk or see our video series on our YouTube channel.