Annotated Bibliography

Annotated Bibliography Feb 3, 2011

Today’s Value • Due nextTuesday: annotated bibliography • Evaluate 6 sources on one topic • Due theTuesday after next: 1500 word literature review • Evaluate 8 sources on one topic • As you research for your BA4: annotated bibliography • make notes of key issues and opinions • Compare and contrast sources • Consider possible themes for Draft 1.1: literature review

What is an Annotated Bib? • Each entry in an annotated bibliography consists of two elements: • an initial citation in MLA format (see Ch. 18 of your e-handbook) and • 100 – 150 word evaluation of each source, in which you will evaluate the source’s • Relevance, • Accuracy, and • Quality • The focus of your annotations should be on evaluating the quality of the sources. • Evaluation may also include a brief summary of key points of each source’s content. • Your bibliography should contain a minimum of six annotated entries. • Your sources should be scholarly or other reputable or credible articles located through the TTU library databases.

1st: Topic Questions?

Topics Revisited:The No-Go List • No conservative or liberal agendas (this includes anti/pro politicians in general) • No Bowl Championship Series (BCS) • No dangers of texting while driving or web speak/texting as language • No steroid use in any sportNo lowering the drinking ageNo legalization of marijuana (or any illicit narcotic)No abstinence-only programsNo prayer in public schoolNo school uniforms • No shootingNo drinkingNo smoking • No killing/death penalty

Step 1: Scholarly Research

Step 1 What is a scholarly source?

Scholarly Source 1: Journal • A scholarly journal is generally published by and for experts. • In order to be published in a scholarly journal, an article must first go through the peer review process • Peer Review: when a group of widely acknowledged experts in a field reviews it for content, scholarly soundness and academic value. • Articles in scholarly journals should present new, previously un-published research. • Scholarly sources will almost always include: • Bibliography and footnotes • Author's name and academic credentials 1

Scholarly Source 2: Books • Books are scholarly publications when they are not written for a general audience • Books on scientific topics, with extensive reference lists, with clear and rigorous research are scholarly • Reference books like encyclopedias and dictionaries do not qualify • Books published by or at universities are usually safe • Books published by or for academics (professors, scientists) are usually safe too 1

NOT a Scholarly Source Popular magazines range from highly respected publications such as ScientificAmerican and The Atlantic Monthly to general interest newsmagazines like Newsweek and US News & World Report. Articles in these publications tend to be written by staff writers or freelance journalists and are geared towards a general audience = not scholarly. Articles in popular magazines are more likely to be shorter than those in academic journals. Most magazines articles do not go through a peer review process and rarely contain bibliographic citations. 1

Step 2:Source Evaluation

Why Evaluate? • There is no single perfect indicator of reliability, truthfulness, or value. • You must make an inference from a collection of clues or indicators, based on the use you plan to make of your source. • If, for example, what you need is a reasoned argument, then a source with a clear, well-argued position can stand on its own, without the need for a prestigious author to support it. • If you need a judgment to support (or rebut) some position, then that judgment will be strengthened if it comes from a respected source. • If you want reliable facts, then using facts from a source that meets certain criteria of quality (e.g. scholarly sources) will help ensure the probability that those facts are indeed reliable. 2

Scope • What is the breadth of the article, book, website or other material? • Is is a general work that provides an overview of the topic or is it specifically focused on only one aspect of your topic? • Does the breadth of the work match your own expectations? • Does the resource cover the right time period that you are interested in? 2

Audience • Who is the intended audience for this source? • Is the material too technical or too clinical? • Is it too elementary or basic? • You are more likely to retrieve articles written for the appropriate audience if you start off in the right index. • For instance, to find resources listing the latest statistics on heart disease you may want to avoid the Medline database which will bring up articles designed for practicing clinicians rather than social science researchers. 2

Timeliness • When was the source published? • If it is a website, when was it last updated? • Does this date coincide with any significant events in the world or the field that seem particularly relative? • Avoid using undated websites. • Library catalogs and periodical indexes always indicate the publication date in the bibliographic citation. 2

Authority • Who is the author? • What are his or her academic credentials? • What else has this author written? • Sometimes information about the author is listed somewhere in the article. • Other times, you may need to consult another resource to get background information on the author. • Sometimes it helps to search the author's name in a general web search engine like Google. 3

Documentation • A bibliography, along with footnotes: • indicates that the author has consulted other sources and • serves to authenticate the information that he or she is presenting. • In websites, expect • links or footnotes documenting sources, and • references to additional resources and other viewpoints. 4

Objectivity • What point of view does the author represent? • Is the article an editorial that is trying to argue a position? • Is the website sponsored by a company or organization that advocates a certain philosophy? • Is the article published in a magazine that has a particular editorial position? • Consult these resources which indicate whether a publication is known to be conservative or progressive, or is affiliated with a particular advocacy group. 4

Primary Research • Primary research presents original research methods or findings for the first time. • Examples include: • A journal article, book, or other publication that presents new findings and new theories, usually with the data 4

Secondary Research • Secondary research does not present new research but rather provides a compilation or evaluation of previously presented material. • Examples include: • A scientific article summarizing research or data, such as in Scientific American, Discover, Annual Review of Genetics, or Biological Reviews • An encyclopedia entry and entries in most other reference books • A textbook 4

Websites • In evaluating a website, these are some questions that you can ask yourself: • Is there an author of the document? Can you determine the producer's credentials? • If you cannot determine the author of the site, then think twice about using it as a resource. • Is the site sponsored by a group or organization? • If it is sponsored by a group or company, does the group advocate a certain philosophy? • Try to find and read "About Us" or similar information. 5

Websites Cont’d • Is there any bias evident in the site? • Is the site trying to sell you a product? • Ask why the page was put on the web. • Is there a date on the website? • Is it sufficiently up-to-date? • If there is no date, again, think twice about using it. • Undated factual or statistical information should never be used. • How credible and authentic are the links to other resources? • Are the links evaluated or annotated in any way? 5

The CARS Checklist: Rapid Evaluation

CARS: The Basics • Credibility, Accuracy, Reasonableness, Support • Designed for ease of learning and use. • Few sources will meet every criterion in the list, and even those that do may not possess the highest level of quality possible. • If you learn to use the criteria in this list, you will be much more likely to separate the high quality information from the poor quality information.

Credibility • Author's Credentials • The author or source of the information should show some evidence of being knowledgeable, reliable, and truthful. Here are some clues: • Author's education, training, and/or experience in a field relevant to the information. • Look for biographical information, the author's title or position of employment • Author provides contact information (email or snail mail address, phone number) • Organizational authorship from a known and respected organization (corporate, governmental, or non-profit) • Author's reputation or standing among peers. • Author's position (job function, title)

Indicators: A Lack of Credibility • You can sometimes tell by the tone, style, or competence of the writing whether or not the information is suspect. • Here are a few clues: • Anonymity • Bad grammar or misspelled words. • Most educated people use grammar fairly well and check their work for spelling errors. • An occasional split infinitive or comma in the wrong place is not unusual, but more than two or three spelling or grammar errors is cause for caution, at least. • Whether the errors come from carelessness or ignorance, neither puts the information or the writer in a favorable light.

Accuracy • The goal of the accuracy test is to assure that the information is actually correct: • up to date, • factual, • detailed, • exact, and • comprehensive. • For example, even though a very credible writer said something that was correct twenty years ago, it may not be correct today. • A reputable source might be giving up-to-date information, but the information may be only partial, and not give the full story.

Indicators:A Lack of Accuracy • In addition to an obvious tone or style that reveals a carelessness with detail or accuracy, there are several indicators that may mean the source is inaccurate, either in whole or in part: • No date on the document • Vague or sweeping generalizations • Old date on information known to change rapidly • Very one sided view that does not acknowledge opposing views or respond to them

Reasonableness • The test of reasonableness involves examining the information for • fairness, • objectivity, • moderateness, and • consistency.

Indicators:A Lack of Reasonableness • Writers who put themselves in the way of the argument, either emotionally or because of self interest, often reveal their lack of reasonableness. • If, for example, you find a writer reviewing a book he opposes by asserting that "the entire book is completely worthless claptrap," you might suspect there is more than a reasoned disagreement at work. • Here are some clues to a lack of reasonableness: • Intemperate tone or language ("stupid jerks," "shrill cries of my extremist opponents") • Overclaims/Exaggerations ("Thousands of children are murdered every day in the United States.") • Sweeping statements of excessive significance ("This is the most important idea ever conceived!") • Conflict of Interest ("Welcome to the Old Stogie Tobacco Company Home Page. To read our report, 'Cigarettes Make You Live Longer,' click here." or "The products our competitors make are dangerous and bad for your health.")

Support • The area of support is concerned with the source and corroboration of the information. • Much information, especially statistics and claims of fact, comes from other sources. • Citing sources strengthens the credibility of the information.

Indicators:A Lack of Support • As you can readily guess, the lack of supporting evidence provides the best indication that there is indeed no available support. • Be careful, then, when a source shows problems like these: • Numbers or statistics presented without an identified source for them • Absence of source documentation when the discussion clearly needs such documentation • You cannot find any other sources that present the same information or acknowledge that the same information exists (lack of corroboration)

BA4

BA4 Brief Assignment 4 is due Tuesday BEFORE 11:59PM As always

BA4 • Objective: • To demonstrate your ability to gather, filter, and evaluate source material for your literature review • Purpose: • You will need to locate and evaluate the sources you plan to use in your literature review draft 1.1; this assignment will help you become more proficient at doing so. • Description: • To complete this assignment, prepare an annotated bibliography. Each entry in an annotated bibliography consists of two elements: an initial citation in MLA format (see Ch. 18 of your e-handbook) and a 100 – 150 word evaluation of each source, in which you will evaluate the relevance, accuracy and quality of the source. The focus of your annotations should be on evaluating the quality of the sources, but your evaluation may also include a brief summary of key points of each source’s content. Your bibliography should contain a minimum of six annotated entries. Your sources should be scholarly or other reputable or credible articles located through the TTU library databases.

BA4 Annotated Bib Explained • Each entry in an annotated bibliography consists of two elements: • an initial citation in MLA format (see Ch. 18 of your e-handbook) and • 100 – 150 word evaluation of each source, in which you will evaluate the source’s • Relevance, • Accuracy, and • Quality • The focus of your annotations should be on evaluating the quality of the sources. • Evaluation may also include a brief summary of key points of each source’s content. • Your bibliography should contain a minimum of six annotated entries. • Your sources should be scholarly or other reputable or credible articles located through the TTU library databases.

Annotated Bibliography