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Citation, Research, and Collaboration

Citation, Research, and Collaboration

Citation
Most students do not deliberately plagiarize (present the ideas and words of others as their own). Most often students do not fully understand what is involved in adequately citing their sources (giving credit to their sources in an accepted academic format). We have developed a handout called “Citation Basics” to answer the most commonly asked student questions. This handout also includes further helpful online and print resources:

Citation Basics citation basics

The best visuals add interest, break up blocks of text, and also add information. The handout "Anatomy of a Visual" answers questions about how to add citations to a visual:

Anatomy of a Visual anatomy of a visual

As a guideline, we often tell students that they must credit their sources, unless the information is common knowledge; however, determining what constitutes common knowledge is more complex than we sometimes acknowledge. To help students, we developed a handout called “Clarifying Common Knowledge.” This handout also includes online sources for developing a more complete understanding of plagiarism and even a short online quiz offered by MIT.

Clarifying Common Knowledge clarifying common knowledge

Research
After talking with many students about their research projects, we developed a “Basic Research Tools” handout to provide tips for success, and online resources for citation format and for evaluating the quality of research sources. However, we highly recommend that students utilize the expertise of the Research Librarians at LBCC. They provide friendly, hands-on support, whether students are trying to narrow a research topic or find reputable resources for a research paper.

Basic Research Tools basic research tools

Collaboration
Increasingly, teachers ask students to work together in teams; this teamwork approach reflects our more globalized workplaces. In response to this shift, various forms of technology have been developed to facilitate and improve collaboration. To acquaint students with resources ranging from instant messaging programs to collaborative writing software Greg Rathert, now a professor at Anoka Ramsey Community College, developed a useful handout for our Writing Center.

Online Collaboration Resources collaboration