Giving credit where credit is due

And get a distinction!
This post from special guest Liz Smith - Sustainable Engineering Practice Course Coordinator.

There's a good deal of anxiety attached to referencing when you do it for the first time. Students often ask questions like:

• How can I put it in my own words?


• How do I reference when there doesn't seem to be a date/author/page number?


• What if I plagiarise?

Before we get to the 'P' word, let's have a look at the first couple of questions.

Firstly, it's a good idea to get away from notions of putting work in your 'own words'. It's much better to read the work and then summarise it in note form. Alternatively, ask yourself 'what does this mean' or 'what is the author actually saying'? Once you've done this, ask if it is similar or different to what other authors have said and integrate these into your work. For example:

According to Engineers Australia (2000) the role of the Engineer is to... This links to recent work by Jones (2005, p. 7) who found...

Paraphrasing is the best way to go. Direct quotes are fine when used very sparingly and with plenty of interpretation.

Secondly, some references are downright quirky in terms of how you go about citing them in text and at the end of text.

Where there is no date, it is useful to use something like this:

(Jones, n.d.)

Where there is no apparent author, see if there is a publisher (such as Commonwealth of Australia; Engineers Australia) or write:

(Author Unknown)

No page number is not so significant - especially if it is a website (online materials often don't have page numbers). Also, if you are citing from a large body of work in an overall sense, you don't need a page number. This is usually required where you have taken specific information from a specific page or pages.

The good news is that Learning Advisers (from Learning Connection) and librarians have written a Harvard Referencing Guide. If you go to the last few modules of this online resource you will find all sorts of common and quirky examples (such as how to reference a conference paper; thesis and so on).

Now to the 'P' word.

Of course, plagiarism does occur as a direct result of dishonesty. However, mostly it occurs because students lack the confidence to cite correctly and appropriately. This comes with practice and also by keeping notes (a reading log) of who said what when. Also, take note of other peoples' writing and how they use sources.

Make the best use of the resources available to you and pretty soon, you will find that referencing (and the art of paraphrasing) comes a whole easier to you. Writing always has its challenges, but by second and third year, it will become second nature.

Best of luck!

Liz Smith

Post your referencing queries and comments by clicking on 'comments' at the bottom of the blog posting. (You can do this anonymously or with a nickname.)