22.1: The Classroom Lecture and Activity

Integrating Sources

SLOs-Support students in developing research questions, finding and evaluating sources, and integrating appropriate sources into their writing. -Integrate students’ own ideas with those of others, using an appropriate documentation style (i.e., MLA or APA) 

The way in which you integrate source material depends heavily on two things. First, the style that you are using, and second, the idea you are trying to support or emphasize in a paragraph. Let’s briefly discuss style. There are many different styles of documentation (APA, MLA, Chicago Style, ASA, etc ) and it will depend on the class, discipline, or career you are in to determine which style to use. Therefore, it is important to know that you are not expected to memorize every single aspect of a style especially when you are still seeking a undergraduate degree.  What you can do is familiarize yourself with some go to resources for various styles so that you can refer to them when you need to.  Typically, going to the website of the particular style will give you the information you need; however, there are many online writing labs and style guide books that are sometimes more helpful. In this lesson, you will learn the basics of MLA (Modern Language Association) which is the standard style for English courses. Please read the MLA information in 22.2 before doing the activity.

The next important aspect is to be careful how you actually put source information into your paragraph. Paraphrases, summaries, and direct quotes are all considered using source information and should be cited using a style of documentation. Each one can be inserted differently, so it is important to think about the flow of your writing.

Paraphrases: These are ideas of the author, but written in your own words. Typically, a paraphrase summarizes singular idea.

Example:

While reading may be the core of literacy, Naomi Baron argues that literacy can be complete only when reading is accompanied by writing (194).

OR

While reading may be the core of literacy, literacy can be complete only when reading is accompanied by writing (Baron 194)

In the first example above, the student is stating Baron’s ideas using her name, so the paraphrase is cited only with the page number. In the next example, the student leaves out the name completely, and without the citation, the reader would assume this idea is the students’. Or if the student meant to cite the information but forgot, it is still considered plagiarism. Therefore, it is the second type of paraphrasing that you should double check to make sure you have inserted the citation in order to avoid plagiarism.

Summaries: Summaries are also the ideas of the author and written in the student’s own words. The biggest difference between summaries and paraphrases is that summaries tend to comprise of multiple ideas or maybe the full stance from an essay. This means that you may find yourself writing more than one sentence and then the line between your ideas and the author’s ideas can get blurry. In order to prevent plagiarism and confusion for your reader, start summaries with a solid introduction. Then at the end, make a clear transition away from the source information back to your own ideas or analysis. Make sure you have read, annotated, and understood the article. Here are some tips:

• Introduce the article using the author, title, and where it was published. 
• Use a verb that matches the tone of the article or what the author’s purpose is. 

• • • Here are some verbs: 

advocates - argues – asserts – believes – claims –complains - endorses - implores - insists – observes –reports – suggests – rejects – urges - warns 

• Use your own words to restate the main ideas of the article. Remember, the summary should still be written from the author’s perspective. 
• Do not add your opinion in the actual summary.

Here is an example:

Source- “Certainly teachers, parents, and the educational system all bear some of the blame for the cheating mentality that has taken hold of our kids. It will most definitely take the efforts, not only of the students themselves, but also of every adult who cares about kids to shake loose that hold. Parents need to teach their children from a very early age that cheating is wrong. We need to teach it in the same way we teach them about drugs or smoking or stranger danger. Teachers must teach students what constitutes academic dishonesty and be more vigilant about catching cheaters. We have to hold them to a higher standard of academic integrity. And our educational system must stop treating kids like sources of data to be mined and instead instill in them a passion for learning, for true education” (Hudgens). 

Summary - Hudgens suggests that even though students need to make some effort to learn, it is also the responsibility of the educational system to help students embrace learning, the teachers to catch more students who are cheating, and the parents to teach about cheating at home. 

Integration: When you insert a direct quote, you should do four things. 1. Introduce the quote. 2. insert quote using quotation marks, 3. add in-text citation as needed 4. explain, analyze, or connect the quote back to main ideas.

Here is a student example:

Moreover, banning books restricts access to different thoughts, opinions, and knowledge, which can hinder personal growth and limit the understanding of different perspectives. According to Alex Gino, author of Melissa, “Hiding the beautiful range of humanity from young people does not keep young people from being themselves. Instead, it makes the road for queer and trans people to find themselves harder and more damaging, and leaves a large majority of cisgender people who don’t know us, and therefore are much more likely to fear, and hurt, us. Positive representation saves lives,” (qtd in Friedman, Johnson, and Magnusson 16). Alex Gino is right that banning books of different thoughts, opinions, and knowledge can cause more damage to young adults. For example, if a young Mexican girl is having family problems, trouble finding her own identity, trying to fit in the family dynamics, wanting to go college, and being depressed, reading “I am not your perfect Mexican daughter” by Erika L. Sanchez will provide different thoughts and solutions to help her overcome the problems she is facing. And for those who may not be in that situation, they can build empathy by reading the story.

Classroom Activity: 

Look at the excerpt from a draft of a student essay and their Works Cited page. Based on what is cited and highlighted in yellow in the essay and the information on the works cited page, how should the student cite the material? You may need to click to on the article link to get full information. (If the class already has articles they are working with, students should practice citing that information in MLA.)

STUDENT DRAFT EXCERPT

Example \(\PageIndex{1}\)

Tamia Grant

English

Writing Diagnostic Revision

It is important to address what led to society's current state, the worldwide economic shift in inflation caused by Covid-19. Did you know the daily cost of living has been its highest since 1981 ? Laponsi, Maryalene and Alberstadt, Hannah. https://www.usatoday.com/money/bluep...-increase/.USA Today, 2023. Production prices are skyrocketing which is why grocery stores and gas stations are forced to increase their prices to cover merchandise and make profit Bureau of Labor Statistics. Https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cpi.pdf U.S Department of Labor, 2023. With everything being so high, people are weighing one bill over the next as expenses increase worldwide. The average Chicagoan who makes $20/hr receives their check on Friday and spends it by Monday and are barely making it as they have to cover groceries, childcare expenses, rent, home and self care essentials, gas, etc. We need a source to alleviate financial burdens and promote food security.

Many people today are struggling silently as they push forward trying to make a way out of none. People who experience hardship often experience it alone in their own household, and those who do reach out for help often exhaust their ask. With the help of public food sheds there are a number of problems that can be solved. Firstly, the one to two sheds will be set up in each neighborhood of Chicago. There will be deliveries made weekly to these locations and workers will stock the refrigerators and divide food into portions to be dispersed evenly. This step alone will offer accessibility, employment, and volunteer opportunities to the community.

https://blockclubchicago.org/2019/12...cal-market-ope ns-as-hundreds-of-residents-celebrate/

https://www.cnet.com/health/nutritio...tian-cracks-th e-code

Https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cpi.pdf https://www.usatoday.com/money/bluep...ving-increase/

https://www.ted.com/talks/shari_davi..._the_governmen t_spends_public_funds