Week 10 – Paraphrasing and Quotation
This week, we learned about paraphrasing and quotation. It included aspects of academic writing, which was really helpful for utilizing my reference list.
Importance of Evidence:
- Academic writing must be supported by data, facts, quotations, arguments, statistics, research, and theories.
- Evidence adds substance to your ideas, shows how your thinking fits with or differs from others in your field, demonstrates your understanding, and shows the breadth of your research.
Supporting the Discussion:
- Methods to incorporate others’ work: summarizing, synthesizing, quoting, and paraphrasing.
- Use a combination of these methods to develop your arguments and ideas.
- Avoid creating a patchwork of others’ ideas; instead, show how the information supports your arguments.
- Use tools like Citavi and Zotero to organize sources and manage citations.
Paraphrasing vs. Summarizing:
- Paraphrasing: Putting specific passages into your own words, typically similar in length to the original.
- Summarizing: Condensing the main ideas or themes of a text, shorter than the original.
Summarizing Others’ Work:
- Condense key points in your own words and include in-text citations.
- Avoid excessive detail and focus on relevance to your argument.
Synthesizing Others’ Work:
- Combine information and ideas from multiple sources to develop your argument.
- Group sources by themes or viewpoints and write about them collectively.
- Include references and avoid listing authors separately.
Quoting Others’ Work:
- Copy text exactly, using quotation marks and citations.
- Avoid overusing quotes and always explain their significance to your argument.
Paraphrasing Others’ Work:
- Express ideas in your own words while maintaining the original meaning.
- Avoid using the same structure or too many original words.
- Include citations and explain the relevance to your argument.
Paraphrasing Tips:
- Do not use paraphrasing software.
- Understand the text fully before paraphrasing.
- Write your paraphrase without looking at the original text.
- Ensure the paraphrase reflects the original meaning in your own style.
- Include an in-text citation and explain the significance of the information.
As it was my first time writing academic content, the quotation part was quite challenging. For citation rules, Nigel suggested referring to CiteThemRight (https://www.citethemrightonline.com/category-list?docid=CTRHarvard). This resource provided all types of citations, which I could refer to when I got confused about citation order.
For example, I had to cite an episode of a Netflix series. Since it was a separate episode of a multi-series show, I was confused about how to cite it. I searched on CiteThemRight for the correct format. I found the tab for programs viewed via streaming services and got the exact information on how to cite it. Following this, I added it to the bibliography list: ‘Joan is Awful’ (2023) Black Mirror, series 6, episode 1. Zeppotron. Available at: Netflix (Accessed: 13 June 2024).
While writing the report, another question arose about how to cite a book where the book’s author and each chapter’s author are different. I asked Nigel if I could follow the collected book format, but after checking the details, it seemed more like an edited book. So, I followed the citation order for chapters or sections of edited books. Since it wasn’t available on JSTOR, EBSCO, or Google Scholar, I added an accessible link. Following this, I added it to the bibliography list: Singh, A., (2024) ‘The Dark side of Entertainment Technology’, in Sabahrwal D., Sood R. and Sood S. (2024) Media and Al: Navigating The Future of Communication. Shahdara, Delhi: Post Script. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/381229239_Media_and_Al_Navigating_The_Future_of_Communication (Accessed: 15 June 2024)
Now, my report is going well. I hope I can manage to complete it on time.
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