DocumentationDocumentationin MLA Formatin MLA Format

Why Document SourcesWhy Document Sourcesin MLA Format?in MLA Format?

To give credit where credit is due: avoid plagiarism◦Plagiarism is using someone’s words

or ideas without giving the source proper credit.

To establish your credibility as a careful scholar within the field

How Documentation How Documentation WorksWorksIn-text citations refer to a Works

Cited page

Works Cited page gives readers bibliographic information to locate sources themselves

Works Cited PageWorks Cited Page

Quick Tip: All sources cited in the paper must be listed on the Works Cited page. All sources listed on the Works Cited page must have been cited in the paper itself.

A Sample Works Cited A Sample Works Cited PagePage

Works Cited

Davis, Barbara, Michael Scriven, and Susan Thomas. The Evaluation of

Composition Instruction. New York: Teachers College, 1987. Print.

Hanson, F. Allan. Testing Testing: Social Consequences of the Examined Life.

Berkeley: U of California, 1993. Print.

Huot, Brian A. “The Literature of Direct Writing Assessment: Major Concerns and

Prevailing Trends.” Review of Educational Research 60 (1990): 237-63. Print.

Yancey, Kathleen. “Looking Back as We Look Forward: Historicizing Writing

Assessment.” College Composition and Communication 50.3 (1999): 483-503.

Print.

A Sample Works Cited A Sample Works Cited PagePage

Works Cited

Davis, Barbara, Michael Scriven, and Susan

Thomas. The Evaluation of Composition

Instruction. New York: Teachers College,

1987. Print.

Basic Style for Citations Basic Style for Citations of Electronic Sources of Electronic Sources (Including Online (Including Online Databases)Databases) Author and/or editor names (if available) Article name in quotation marks (if applicable) Title of the Website, project, or book in italics. (Remember

that some Print publications have Web publications with slightly different names. They may, for example, include the additional information or otherwise modified information, like domain names [e.g. .com or .net].)

Any version numbers available, including revisions, posting dates, volumes, or issue numbers.

Publisher information, including the publisher name and publishing date.

Take note of any page numbers (if available). Medium of publication. Date you accessed the material. URL (if required, or for your own personal reference; MLA

does not require a URL).

Electronic SourcesElectronic SourcesEditor, author, or compiler name (if

available). Name of Site. Version number. Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher), date of resource creation (if available). Medium of publication. Date of access. <URL>.

The Purdue OWL Family of Sites. The Writing Lab and OWL at Purdue and Purdue U, 2008. Web. 23 Apr. 2008.<https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl>

In-Text, Parenthetical In-Text, Parenthetical CitationsCitationsUse them to:

Quote directlySummarize materialParaphrase material

TRY AN IN-TEXT CITATION:TRY AN IN-TEXT CITATION:“By using my advanced

knowledge and expertise in the field of educational theory, I have decided all of my students are the best students ever,” Ms. Morita stated.

ExamplesExamplesThen she said, “all of her

students are the best ever” (Morita 13).

Ms. Morita believes that “all of her students are the best ever” (13).

Ms. Morita spoke highly of all of her students during her interview (13).

Formatting An In-Text, Formatting An In-Text, Parenthetical CitationParenthetical Citation

There are two common ways of writing an in-text citation:

1. Integrate the author’s name into the sentence itself, OR

2. Include the author’s name in a parenthetical citation at the end of the passage in which you quote, summarize, or paraphrase the work.

*The page number of the information is always included in the parenthetical citation.

In-Text, Parenthetical In-Text, Parenthetical CitationsCitationsAre brief

Refer readers to the Works Cited page

Avoid repetition

Questions?Questions?

WRITE THIS DOWN:

owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/