Avoiding Plagiarism
How to Cite Sources
Direct Quotations
When you use the exact words of someone else in your paper, this is known as a verbatim quote. The words must be put inside quotation marks, and the source must be cited.
Example:
“Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes.” (Wilde, 1892).
NOTE: Direct quotations should be used sparingly. No more than 10% of your paper should be made up of direct quotations. When you want to use the idea but not the exact words, then use a paraphrase or summary.
Method of Citation
The citation may be made as an in-text citation, a footnote, or an endnote.
Example of in-text citation:
According to Levy (1997), the tutor-tool framework is useful.
Example of footnote or endnote:
According to Levy, the tutor-tool framework is useful. 1
Bottom of page or chapter:
1Michael Levy, Computer-Assisted Language Learning: Context and Conceptualization (New York: Oxford), 178.
NOTE: In all cases, the source must also be included in the list of references at the end of your paper.
Style of Citation
The basic style guides are:
Modern Language Association (MLA)
American Psychological Association (APA)
IMPORTANT: Ask your teacher which style to follow for their course.
LICENSES AND ATTRIBUTIONS
Excelsior Online Writing Lab (OWL). Located at: https://owl.excelsior.edu/ . This site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-4.0 International License .