Acknowledging your sources

Making academic opinions

We can use references to support our arguments.

Much of what we write about at university is not facts, rather it is perspectives. This is one of the reasons for using references.

We can make an argument (something we have decided from what we have read and thought about), and then use the evidence we have collected from our reading to support and verify the reasonableness of our position.

Example 1

A student was given the essay question:

Can anything be done to reduce student plagiarism?

During her research into this topic from many different sources, the student formed the following academic opinion:
Australian universities could teach students how to use citations in academic texts.
- We call this the student’s voice.

To support this view the student included in her notes a quotation from page 243 in an article written by Ranald Macdonald and Jude Carroll, ‘Plagiarism – a complex issue requiring a holistic institutional approach’ Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education Vol 31, No. 2, April 2006, pp233 - 425.
‘Institutions have a responsibility to put arrangements in place to support those still developing necessary skills.’
- We call this the researcher’s voice.

Task

Choose the statement which clearly shows both:

• The difference between the student's voice and the researcher's voice
• Correct referencing

1. Universities have a responsibility to put arrangements in place to support students still developing necessary skills, and I agree with this.
2. ‘Institutions have a responsibility to put arrangements in place to support those still developing necessary skills’ and to teach students how to use citations in academic texts (Macdonald & Carroll, 2006,p.243).
3. Australian universities could teach students how to use citations in academic texts. Macdonald and Carroll (2006, p. 243) argue that, ‘Institutions have a responsibility to put arrangements in place to support those still developing necessary skills’.

Answer key

1. This is not the best answer. Because the student has not used a reference it is not clear whose view is presented here. In other words, the reader can’t tell if it is the student’s view or if the view comes from a source. The student should have used a reference and quotation marks to show that the words come from MacDonald & Carroll (2006, p. 243). the phrase 'and I agree with this' is not necessary and sounds informal.
2. This is not the best answer. Although the sentence is grammatically correct and the reference is done correctly, this example does not separate the student’s voice from the researcher’s voice.
3. This is the best answer. The first sentence gives the student’s view, and the second sentence supports that view with a quote from the researcher. The reference is done correctly. Note, while this example uses a direct quote, it is also acceptable to use an indirect quote.

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Acknowledging your sources

Example 2

The following student paragraphs show different uses of references.

• Find the paragraph which has the most appropriate use of references. What evidence would you give to support your decision?
• Underline direct quotations and the referencing phrases which let the reader know the source of the views.

1. The behaviour of students and teachers in western nations can be quite different from that of students and teachers in Asia. In the west, it is one of the teacher’s tasks to encourage students to work independently, so that a teacher would not supervise a student’s private life even if it was for academic reasons. More importantly, the teacher’s esteem is not automatic but attained by his/her ability to organise and direct lectures or tutorials; therefore, the role of teachers in western societies is coordinating learning materials and guiding students. It is the students’ responsibility to attend lectures and tutorials, and to ensure they are on the right track to work individually by asking questions in class. Ballard and Clanchy (1991) mention that in the Australian education system, success and failure are attributed to the students themselves, rather than their teachers. Since the main expectation of those students is to improve critical and analytical thinking, the role of students is to participate in discussions and develop their ideas and further to obtain the ability to work individually.

2. The behaviour of students and teachers in western nations can be quite different from that of students and teachers in Asia. According to Ballard and Clanchy (1991), in the west, it is one of the teacher’s tasks to encourage students to work independently, so that a teacher would not supervise a student’s private life even if it was for academic reasons. They go on to explain that the teacher’s esteem ‘is certainly not automatic’ (Ballard and Clanchy 1991, p. 21) but attained by his/her ability to organise and direct lectures or tutorials. As a student from Japan, I have observed that in Australia, in order to gain students’ respect, teachers need to be good at coordinating learning materials and guiding students. At the same time, it is the students’ responsibility to attend lectures and tutorials, and to ensure they are on the right track to work individually by asking questions in class. Ballard and Clanchy (1991, p. 20) explain that in the Australian education system, ‘success and failure are attributed to the students themselves, rather than to their teachers’. Thus, it seems that, since the main expectation of Australian students is to improve critical and analytical thinking, their role is to participate in discussions, to develop their ideas and further to obtain the ability to work individually.

Answer key

The second paragraph is the best because the reference and sources for the ideas and original text are given.

• The first paragraph does refer to a source but it doesn't make clear which quotes and ideas came from this source.
• The second paragraph clearly demonstrates the source of the quotes and ideas and how the student writer knows such information. In this paragraph there is much use of referencing phrases. The direct quotes are clearly indicated with quotation marks.

Example answer

The behaviour of students and teachers in western nations can be quite different from that of students and teachers in Asia. According to Ballard and Clanchy (1991), in the west, it is one of the teacher’s tasks to encourage students to work independently, so that a teacher would not supervise a student’s private life even if it was for academic reasons. They go on to explain that the teacher’s esteem ‘is certainly not automatic’ (p.21) but attained by his/her ability to organise and direct lectures or tutorials. As a student from Japan, I have observed that in Australia, in order to gain students’ respect, teachers need to be good at coordinating learning materials and guiding students. At the same time, it is the students’ responsibility to attend lectures and tutorials, and to ensure they are on the right track to work individually by asking questions in class. Ballard and Clanchy explain that in the Australian education system, ‘success and failure are attributed to the students themselves, rather than to their teachers’ (p.20). Thus, it seems that, since the main expectation of Australian students is to improve critical and analytical thinking, their role is to participate in discussions, to develop their ideas and further to obtain the ability to work individually.