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Keeping accurate records helps you to practice academic integrity. Whenever you consult a source, make a habit of writing down all relevant information. This includes but is not limited to the following:
Source details:
- Title
- Author(s)
- Publication Date
Note details:
- Whether information is quoted, summarized, or paraphrased
- Page numbers
Your records may take one or many forms:
Record-keeping methods
- Use 3x5 index cards to organize your research by topic.
- Write one idea per note card.
- Label in the top left corner of each note card the author(s) last names and the page number of where you found the information.
- Label in the top right corner of each note card a topic that this idea supports and/or how it connects to your thesis.
- You can color-code note cards by idea or topic.
- You can organize your index cards in order by how you plan to present the ideas they contain in your paper.
- Typically used in conjunction with note cards, bibliographic cards contains all of the information that you need to document your source accurately.
- The information typically needed is:
author’s last name and first name or initials
title of the source
date of publication, along with the edition, if appropriate
publisher and location
page number(s) of material cited
- Consult the style guide to determine what other information might be needed for that specific source type. For example, for an academic journal the article title and the journal title will both be needed for proper documentation.
- A research log can be electronic or paper format where all the information for the source is on one or multiple pages per source.
- Your first page should list all the sources you consulted during your research process and the following pages will include the notes about those sources. On this page. You could add information of how and/or where you found this source. This will help you to relocate the source if needed.
- For each source have a new page or clear section in your log with the bibliographic information of the source listed at the top of that page or section following your assignment’s required citation style.
- As you read through the source material, write notes in the log and provide a page number of where you found the material. Be clear to note whether your information is a quote, paraphrase, or summary. One way this might look is a bullet listed that starts with the page number – type of information – and then the information:
Page 3 – direct quote -
Pages 7-8 – summary -
Page 11 – paraphrase -
- In the log you can also include ideas of how it connects to other sources and specific the other source in your log that you found the connection. As you prepare to write your first draft, you could highlight ideas from your bulleted list that you plan to use in the same section or paragraph.
- A benefit of this method is that all the information for the source is in one place compared to individual note cards.
- This can be photocopies, printouts, or saved files of articles or pages. This can be very convenient if you have material you cannot annotate like a library book but only have a small section that you want to refer to.
- If you choose this method, make sure that you have a copy of all the bibliographic information that you might need for documenting your source. For example, if you copy the chapter of a book, be sure to copy the first couple pages at the beginning of the book that include the title, author(s), and publication information.
- Read through each source before making any marks or have a second copy to mark up the ideas you plan to use in your first draft. On the second read highlight or underline the main ideas you need to support your thesis.
- Use the margins to make notes of the main topic that this information connects to. For example, if your argument has three supporting points then you can write which point this idea connects to so that you know where to find it when you write your draft.
- Use highlighters or pens of different colors so that you can easily identify visually the ideas from different sources that are related to each other. If you underline the ideas and write the related topic in the margins first, then using highlighters to color-code ideas will be faster as a second step.
Table of Contents: Online Guide to Writing
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How Does College Writing Differ from Workplace Writing? -
What Is College Writing? -
Why So Much Emphasis on Writing?
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Doing Exploratory Research -
Getting from Notes to Your Draft -
Introduction -
Prewriting -
Prewriting - Techniques to Get Started - Mining Your Intuition -
Prewriting: Targeting Your Audience -
Prewriting: Techniques to Get Started -
Prewriting: Understanding Your Assignment -
Rewriting -
Rewriting: Being Your Own Critic -
Rewriting: Creating a Revision Strategy -
Rewriting: Getting Feedback -
Rewriting: The Final Draft -
Techniques to Get Started - Outlining -
Techniques to Get Started - Using Systematic Techniques -
Thesis Statement and Controlling Idea -
Writing: Getting from Notes to Your Draft - Freewriting -
Writing: Getting from Notes to Your Draft - Summarizing Your Ideas -
Writing: Outlining What You Will Write
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A Word About Style, Voice, and Tone -
A Word About Style, Voice, and Tone: Style Through Vocabulary and Diction -
Critical Strategies and Writing -
Critical Strategies and Writing: Analysis -
Critical Strategies and Writing: Evaluation -
Critical Strategies and Writing: Persuasion -
Critical Strategies and Writing: Synthesis -
Developing a Paper Using Strategies -
Introduction -
Kinds of Assignments You Will Write -
Patterns for Presenting Information -
Patterns for Presenting Information: Critiques -
Patterns for Presenting Information: Discussing Raw Data -
Patterns for Presenting Information: General-to-Specific Pattern -
Patterns for Presenting Information: Problem-Cause-Solution Pattern -
Patterns for Presenting Information: Specific-to-General Pattern -
Patterns for Presenting Information: Summaries and Abstracts -
Supporting with Research and Examples -
Writing Essay Examinations -
Writing Essay Examinations: Make Your Answer Relevant and Complete -
Writing Essay Examinations: Organize Thinking Before Writing -
Writing Essay Examinations: Read and Understand the Question
-
Introduction -
Planning and Writing a Research Paper -
Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Ask a Research Question -
Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Cite Sources -
Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Collect Evidence -
Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Decide Your Point of View, or Role, for Your Research -
Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Draw Conclusions -
Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Find a Topic and Get an Overview -
Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Manage Your Resources -
Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Outline -
Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Survey the Literature -
Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Work Your Sources into Your Research Writing -
Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Human Resources -
Research Resources: What Are Research Resources? -
Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? -
Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Electronic Resources -
Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Print Resources -
Structuring the Research Paper: Formal Research Structure -
Structuring the Research Paper: Informal Research Structure -
The Nature of Research -
The Research Assignment: How Should Research Sources Be Evaluated? -
The Research Assignment: When Is Research Needed? -
The Research Assignment: Why Perform Research?
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Academic Integrity -
Giving Credit to Sources -
Giving Credit to Sources: Copyright Laws -
Giving Credit to Sources: Documentation -
Giving Credit to Sources: Style Guides -
Integrating Sources -
Practicing Academic Integrity -
Practicing Academic Integrity: Keeping Accurate Records -
Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material -
Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Paraphrasing Your Source -
Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Quoting Your Source -
Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Summarizing Your Sources -
Types of Documentation -
Types of Documentation: Bibliographies and Source Lists -
Types of Documentation: Citing World Wide Web Sources -
Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations -
Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - APA Style -
Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - CSE/CBE Style -
Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - Chicago Style -
Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - MLA Style -
Types of Documentation: Note Citations
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Introduction -
Reviews and Reaction Papers: Article and Book Reviews -
Reviews and Reaction Papers: Reaction Papers -
Writing Arguments -
Writing Arguments: Adapting the Argument Structure -
Writing Arguments: Purposes of Argument -
Writing Arguments: References to Consult for Writing Arguments -
Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Anticipate Active Opposition -
Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Determine Your Organization -
Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Develop Your Argument -
Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Introduce Your Argument -
Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - State Your Thesis or Proposition -
Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Write Your Conclusion -
Writing Arguments: Types of Argument
Appendix A: Books to Help Improve Your Writing
Appendix B: Collaborative Writing and Peer Reviewing
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Collaborative Writing: Assignments to Accompany the Group Project -
Collaborative Writing: Informal Progress Report -
Collaborative Writing: Issues to Resolve -
Collaborative Writing: Methodology -
Collaborative Writing: Peer Evaluation -
Collaborative Writing: Tasks of Collaborative Writing Group Members -
Collaborative Writing: Writing Plan -
Conclusion -
General Introduction -
Peer Reviewing