Regular comments for college papers in APA format/style.
APA format requires the use of a title page, in-text cites, and a references page. For more, please see http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
The title of the paper should be centered at the top of the first page — after the title page and abstract (if you use one).
Title page
Every scholarly paper should have a title page. It helps the reader prepare for the reading.
For more, please see http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
In-text cites
When you have read the work of another author and are paraphrasing what they have said in your paper, APA requires in-text cites, most often in this form (Author, Year). When you are directly quoting someone else (and have quotes surrounding their words), APA requires page numbers in this form (Author, Year, #). The absence of in-text cites indicates to the reader that all the words used in the paper indicated original or common thought and were the original words from the author.
For more, please see http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
References page
APA requires a references page (not one entitled “Works Cited” or “Bibliography”).
Unless otherwise noted, there is no natural minimum for references, but many of the best papers have, on average, 5-6 references per page. Most average papers have at least one reference per page. A few more references than the average would be beneficial.
References in APA format should be listed alphabetically, in order of the authors’ last name. References should include the author(s) full name, year, and many other bits of information.
For more, please see http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
Note that your references should not include the textbook, never a dictionary or encyclopedia like Wikipedia, and should be more scholarly than those found in Google. Textbooks are not a good reference, but they can be a source for references. Wikipedia (or any encyclopedia) is not considered a scholarly reference at the college level.
For more, please see http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is cheating. Many scholarly papers include a significant amount of others’ research, but they cite (give credit to) the originator. I don’t expect Graduate-level rhetoric in your papers – if I see it I may be suspicious.
Plagiarism includes copying directly from a website, a book, another student’s paper, or any other writing without giving appropriate credit. Many people work harder on making copied material look “good” than they would have if they had just written their own material. If you haven’t already spent time learning both APA format and looking up journal articles in the online library, please go there now. It is imperative to successfully completing this class, and this program.
Writing style
Work to improve the quality of your writing by reviewing numerous scholarly journals for the form, content, and writing style needed in this academic discipline.
For more, please see http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
Access to Scholarly references
If you are taking an online college class, you have access to an online library that few outside the University have access to. Please consider taking advantage of this access as you write your papers. The process of writing a research paper how you demonstrate that you have researched the topic you have using sources that are reliable and credible and that you are able to synthesize this knowledge. Your research paper should either provide information or persuade the reader. Your paper will not be informative or persuasive if the sources you have used are unreliable or lack credibility.
Unlike news articles, websites, and online encyclopedias, the articles published in scholarly peer-reviewed journals are subject to critique by a variety of the author’s peers. For the purpose of academic integrity, you should take advantage of these articles when possible. When searching in an online database form the school online library, simply check the box or tab for “peer-reviewed” and you can’t go wrong!
