Quick Guide
- Keywords: Academic writing, referencing
- Learner English level: Intermediate+
- Learner maturity: Undergraduate
- Preparation time: 10-20 minutes
- Activity time: 30-40 minutes
- Materials: Worksheets containing three example texts (see Appendices) style guide (e.g., APA (7th edition)), way to display questions (board/slides)
This activity helps learners to understand when and how to include references in academic writing. Correct referencing is an essential skill, which may be unfamiliar to many students. This activity provides an opportunity to learn the rules through examining both good and bad models. It uses APA (7th edition) referencing conventions, focuses on traditional academic sources (books, book chapters, and journal articles), and should be adaptable to other sources and referencing styles.
Preparation
Step 1: Prepare an academic passage (100-200 words) on any topic, with three in-text references and a reference list. See Appendix A for my example text on the theme of Language Death. The in-text references should include: one reference to a general idea, containing author name and date (e.g., ‘(Harrison, 2008)’); one reference to a piece of specific information, including author name, date, and page numbers (e.g., ‘Báez, et al. (2018) [info] (p. 447)’); and one reference to a quote, including author name, date, and page numbers (e.g., ‘Crystal (2003), argues, ‘“[quote]” (p. 66)’). Use a resource such as the Purdue University APA style guide (Purdue University, n.d.) to check referencing conventions.
Step 2: Copy the passage and remove the references (see Appendix B).
Step 3: Prepare another passage on a new topic with three references. The in-text referencing should contain multiple errors, such as missing years or page numbers (e.g., “Crystal, p. 66”) The text should be designed so that correct answers can be inferred based on the reference list (see Appendix C).
Step 4: Make worksheets containing all three texts to distribute to students.
Procedure
Step 1: Instruct students to read Appendix B (the one with references removed) and discuss the following question (displayed on board or slide):
What information is missing from this passage?
Elicit that references are missing, making it difficult to know where information comes from.
Step 2: Ask students to read Appendix A (the one with references included), and discuss:
What information has been added to this passage? (Answer: references)
What do the numbers ‘447’ and ‘66’ indicate? (Answer: page references)
Why are the references different each time? (Answer: they apply to different kinds of information: an idea, specific information, and a quotation)
Elicit ideas and provide the correct answers.
Step 4: Ask students to look at the text again, and discuss:
What information do you need to give when you reference...
a) ...an idea?
b) ...specific information?
c) ...a quotation?
Step 5: Explain that for the general idea of a text, only a name and year are required. For specific information or a quotation, the page number is also required. Mention that “et al.” is used when there are more than two authors. Explain that there are two ways of giving a quotation. One is to give the name and year before the quotation and the page number after the quotation (e.g., ‘According to Jones (2006), “[quote]” (p.66).’). The other is to give the name, year, and page number after the quotation (e.g., ‘“[quote]” (Jones, 2006, p.66).’).
Step 6: Ask students to read the final passage (Appendix C) and work together to check the in-text references. Tell them to think about what kind of information is being provided in each case, to see if the in-text references are following the patterns they have studied, and, if not, to use the reference list to make corrections. For example, the reference to “(Crystal)” should read “(Crystal, 2003).” The publication year can be found in the reference list (see Appendix C for full answer key).
Step 7: Ask pairs to compare their corrections.
Step 8: Elicit answers and clarify, as required.
Conclusion
Through clear models, this activity helps students understand when and how to include references in their work. By working in groups and making corrections to references, the students will gain a deeper understanding of the rules of APA referencing than they would from simply following examples.
References
Purdue University (n.d.). APA formatting and style guide (7th edition). https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formattin...
Appendices
The appendices are available below:
