Question: Write 1-2 summaries for your annotated bibliography and bring them to class.
Annotated Bibliography Prompt
“Annotated bibliography” means:
a list of sources for your project, cited in MLA format (8th edition)
a summary of each source
an evaluation of each source
For this assignment, decide on 4-5 sources that you will be using for your research paper. At least half of these should be scholarly sources. All should be sources
that you have rigorously evaluated for credibility, reliability, authority, accuracy, and relevance.
Cite your 4-5 sources in MLA format (8th edition): use Noodle Tools to create and export a Works Cited page. Do not number the citations.
Under each citation, summarize and evaluate the source in paragraphs. These paragraphs should be indented directly underneath the citation.
First, in 1-2 paragraphs, summarize the main argument, main pieces of evidence, and main analyses presented in the source. You are writing for an audience that has not
read this article, so make sure to present the information withaccuracy and precision, and without your own analysis. Do not directly quote from the source: summarize
and paraphrase using your own words. Do not copy phrases or sentences from the source: use your own words (otherwise it is considered plagiarism, or academic
cheating).
Then, in 1-2 paragraphs assess and evaluate the source.
What makes this source credible, reliable, and relevant? Explain how you have evaluated the source for credibility. How does this source compare with other sources in
your bibliography? How does this source fit in with your overall research? How does it help you shape your argument? How do you think you will use this source in your
research project? How has this source changed the way you think about your topic?
Formatting Requirements
See the example in the file attached above (one general example and one student example)
The sources should be cited in proper MLA format (8th edition)
Citations should be in alphabetical order by last name (do not number them)
The paragraphs should be written in complete sentences, using formal, academic language, and proofread for spelling, grammar, and punctuation
12-pt Times New Roman font
1-in margins
An interesting title!
Heading, upper right-hand corner, single-spaced: Name, Date, Assignment Name
Name your document: “FirstName_Bib”
Please see the syllabus for this class’s late and missing work policy
Information you may need:
Close-Reading: How to Read and Annotate Scholarly Journal Articles
Your tasks for the next few weeks are to collect, read, annotate, and reflect on your sources for your project! Review the following guidelines, and begin filling out
the annotation matrix at the bottom of the page.
COLLECT
(1) Begin by reviewing your research questions: these questions guide your reading and thinking because what you are looking for are answers to these questions, as
well as ways to make your questions a more accurate and precise reflection of the field of research about your topic.
(2) As you find sources that pertain to your research questions, continue to refine and shift yourkeywords and search terms (and your knowledge about your topic).
(3) AS SOON AS you find a source you might use, put that source into NoodleTools. Do this immediately so that you don’t have to repeat the work later on.
(4) After finding a handful of good, credible, reliable, and relevant sources, start reading.
READ
Remind yourself, constantly:
What are you reading for? What is the purpose of your quest for information?
What are the the requirements of the research paper?
Read for Argument, Evidence, and Analysis
Use the research to guide your thinking (read the evidence FIRST, come to conclusions SECOND)
Keep track of what evidence you will use in your paper, and how you plan to use it (use the spreadsheet below)
ANNOTATE
(1) Use the annotation guidelines to help you read the sources you have found:
(2) Keep track of what you are finding out. Fill out your annotation matrix for each source that you read so that you won’t have to re-read or re-do the work later on
in the quarter when you start writing.
REFLECT
Looking back at what you’ve collected, read, and annotated, reflect on what other sources or what other information you may need to “round out” your project.
Are all your sources exactly the same? Do you need to diversify the kind of sources, or the kind of information, you are reading?
Are your sources too varied and broad? Do they cover too many ideas/topics? Do you need to narrow your focus and find sources pertaining to something more specific?
Do you have a good balance between scholarly and non-scholarly sources?
Do you have a good balance between primary, secondary, and tertiary sources?
Close-Reading: How to Read and Annotate Scholarly Journal Articles (Videos & Articles)
Optional: Here are some more resources about reading and annotating scholarly journal articles.
“How to Read a Scholarly Journal Article” Video Tutorial published by the Kishwaukee College Library (August 21, 2012) (5 min 10 sec):
Caveat: NOT ALL scholarly journal articles will contain these specific sections, or be divided into sections in the first place. A “methods” section, for example, is
likely used for research that collects and analyzes statistical data. Many humanities or social science articles might discuss their research methods explicitly, but
integrated within the discussion of the research itself. Other articles might not discuss methods explicitly, but rather the reader can gain the methodology used by
analyzing the article on their own.
James K.A. Smith’s “Annotating Texts: Some Suggestions (with Pictures!)” from his blog Fors Clavigera(Aug 26, 2012):
How to Annotate Texts (Links to an external site.)
“How to Read a Scholarly Article” video published by Western University Library (2 min 34 sec):
http://www.lib.uwo.ca/tutorials/howtoreadascholarlyarticle/ (Links to an external site.)
“How to Read a Scholarly Article” PowerPoint published by DeVry University (August 5, 2013):
http://library.devry.edu/pdfs/How-to-Read-a-Scholarly-Article.pdf (Links to an external site.)
Evidence: Strategic Summary
After reading and annotating your articles…
Continue filling out your annotation matrix
Write a summary of each article so that you remember what it was about and how it could be useful for your research paper
As you write your summary, reflect on how you will write about this source strategically for the research paper? Will you be using it….
For direct evidence?
For explanation of the problem?
For historical explanation?
As a model for your argument or analysis?
To respond to or critique the argument?
To respond to and further the argument through your own analysis?
To address contradictions or counterclaims?
To pose new questions?
To apply the research to another set of data?
In another way? (Note that this is not an exhaustive list!)
Date
Annotated Bibliography
(Preliminary) Title of Your Paper
Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Journal Title, vol.#, no.#, publication date, pp.#. Database Name, permalink/doi.
Indent your summary right underneath the citation; no extra spaces. Continue writing your summary like this. Write 1-2 paragraphs.
Start your next paragraph right underneath the summary; no extra spaces. Write 1-2 paragraphs assessing and evaluating the source. Keep the indent the same the whole
way through. Start the next citation directly underneath, with the indent all the way to the left. No extra spaces.
Lagesen, Vivian Anette. “A Cyberfeminist Utopia? Perceptions of Gender and Computer Science among Malaysian Women Computer Science Students and Faculty.” Science,
Technology, & Human Values, vol. 33, no. 1, 2008, pp. 5-27. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/29734019.
In her article “A Cyberfeminist Utopia? Perceptions of Gender and Computer Science among Malaysian Women Computer Science Students and Faculty” (2008), Vivian Lagesen
argues against the common idea in Western cultures that computer science is inherently a masculine discipline by looking at women in computer science education in
Malaysia. The author begins by describing in more depth the common claims about why women are excluded from technological fields such as the association of
“technoscience” and the abilities of men, discriminatory practices in computer science, and the idea that computer science is inherently a masculine discipline.
Lagesen then critiques this idea by looking at Malaysian women and the culture difference that may cause less Western women to go into this field. In order to know
more deeply the reason behind their choice of computer science, Lagesen interviews female Malaysian students about choosing that route. The vast majority did not view
it as special or out of the ordinary in any way and as a result the author examines the reasons this is so. The conclusion of the article is that two major reasons
that Malaysian women are equally represented in computer science are that they don’t have a hacker or computer geek stereotype and they believe in the value of hard
work and are willing to invest in it.
This source is credible because it is a scholarly article published in a journal called Science, Technology, & Human Values. This source differs from the other sources
in my bibliography because it examines Malaysian women in computer science education rather than American women which is the focus of my article. While this may seem
unrelated to my research, it is relevant because it allows me to both look at a society that models the goal of my essay and it helps me to understand what assumptions
I might already have about women in technology or STEM because of the society I live in. This helps me shape my argument by showing that the idea I am arguing in my
essay is attainable and women are not inherently unequal in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
