Referencing is a key academic practice for researchers. Through correct referencing, you acknowledge the author/s contribution to your understanding, and give your reader the opportunity to reproduce your research by following the same cited texts. You also show that you can work with accuracy and rigour by learning and following a set of rules.
Referencing is the acknowledgement of other people’s work and ideas
Academic assignments often involve investigating topics and gathering ideas, data, images, and other evidence to understand and support a position. Every time you use the ideas of someone else in your own work, you need to tell the reader where the information came from. This is where referencing comes in.
Referencing has two parts:
In the body of your work, any time you want to use a direct quote from someone else, talk about their ideas more generally, or incorporate a piece of their creative work into your own, you’ll include a citation or footnote. These offer your audience key pieces of information about the source of an idea, such as the author’s surname and the year of publication. This may not be necessary in years 7-10, check your task notification carefully!
At the end of your work, you’ll attach a reference list or bibliography, which provides the complete publication information for the sources you’ve cited. Every citation will refer to an entry in the reference list.
There are a few different referencing systems used at Pymble. Each systems have a particular format for creating a bibliography. There are two main styles you'll come across in your time at Pymble, check your task notification for information on which style you should use.
All subjects in years 7 - 10 will require students to use the APA7 referencing system. This system uses in-text referencing, as well as creating a bibliography.
Some senior subjects, including History, use Chicago 17. This system uses footnote referencing, as well as creating a bibliography.
It is encouraged that students use Zotero in to help them manage their sources and create correct citations and bibliographies. It's important to check that all source information has come across correctly when using an automated referencing tool.
Academic integrity refers to an ethical and honest approach to learning and research. It isn’t just about following the rules; it’s about developing your skills, critical thinking, and problem-solving abilities.
How to show academic integrity:
