direct quotes should be reserved for source material that is especially well-written in style ... The College Writing Ce
MLA 8TH EDITION: IN-TEXT CITATIONS AND SAMPLE ESSAY Listing your sources at the end of your essay in the Works Cited is only the first step in complete and effective documentation. Proper citation of sources is a two-part process. You must also cite in the body of your essay the source your paraphrased information or directly quoted material came from. These citations within the essay are called in-text citations. You MUST cite all quoted, paraphrased, or summarized words, ideas, and facts from sources. Without in-text citations, you are technically in danger of plagiarism, even if you have listed your sources at the end of the essay. In-text citations point the reader to the sources’ information in the works cited page, so the intext citation should be the first item listed in the source’s citation on the works cited page, which is usually the author’s last name or the title if there is no author, and the page number if provided.
There are two ways to cite your sources in-text: Option 1: Parenthetical citation: In parentheses at the end of quoted or paraphrased material. Example with a page number: In regards to paraphrasing, “It is important to remember to use in-text citations for your paraphrased information, as well as your directly quoted material” (Habib 7). Example without a page number: Paraphrasing is “often the best choice because direct quotes should be reserved for source material that is especially well-written in style and/or clarity” (Ruiz). **OR** Option 2: Within the sentence, through the use of a “signal phrase” which signals to the reader the specific source the idea or quote came from. Include the page number(s) in parentheses at the end of the sentence, if provided. Example with a page number: According to Habib, “It is important to remember to use in-text citations for your paraphrased information, as well as your directly quoted material” (7). Example without a page number: According to Ruiz, paraphrasing is “often the best choice because direct quotes should be reserved for source material that is especially wellwritten in style and/or clarity.” See our handout “Signal Phrases” for more examples and information on effective ways to use signal phrases for in-text citations. 1
Do you need to include a page number in your in-text citation? Yes: Hard copy (printed on paper) sources: Books Magazine Journals Internet or digital sources that are scanned-PDF files that show the actual printed page with numbered pages
No: Internet or digital sources with a continuously scrolling page with no page numbers
Commonly used in-text citations in parentheses: Type of Source Parenthetical In-Text Citation One author with page number (Blake 70). One author with multiple works (Harris, Using Sources 13-14). Two authors, no page number (McGrath and Dowd). Three or more authors with page number (Gooden et al. 445). No author, no page number (“Cheating”). [**First word(s) of the title of the article] Two sources each with one author and page number (Jones 42; Haller 57). A person quoted in another work (qtd. in Lathrop and Foss 163). Video or audio sources (“Across the Divide” 00:06:25). Government source (United States, Dept. of Health and Human Services, Center for Disease Control and Prevention). Notes on Quotes:
Block quotation format: When using long quotations that are over four lines of prose or over three lines of poetry in length, you will need to use block quotation format. Block format is indented one inch from the margin (you can hit the “tab” button two times to move it one inch). Additionally, block quotes do NOT use quotation marks, and the parenthetical citation comes AFTER the period of the last sentence. Please see the following sample essay for an example block quote on page 5.
Signal phrase examples and ideas: Please see the following sample essay for many different kinds of signal phrases and parenthetical in-text citations, which correspond with the sample works cited at the end. The College Writing Center also has an additional handout on signal phrases with many different verb options.
This document was developed by the
College Writing Center STLCC-Meramec revised 3/2017 HSC
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Jean Sherry [Updated from the original] Professor Meyer English 101: 652 25 Aug. 2009 Academic Integrity: A Sample Essay with Works Cited The University of Virginia, whose student honor code dates from 1842, weathered a plagiarism scandal in May 2001, when 122 students were accused of copying research papers (“Cheating”). Virginia is not unique. Increasingly, universities are taking a get-tough stance against student plagiarism and cheating. Why? College students are welcomed into a worldwide academic community, one with a collegial atmosphere and high standards of academic integrity. Plagiarism is a serious violation of this integrity. In the words of a University of Colorado professor, plagiarism is “literary theft” (Silverman 12). At St. Louis Community College (STLCC), the Faculty Resource Guide states: “Plagiarism is a serious academic offense. A student who deliberately or unintentionally submits as his or her own work an assignment which is in any part taken from another person’s work, without proper acknowledgement, is guilty of plagiarism” (15). But how can instructors know that students are submitting their own work, not papers bought on the Internet? Researchers make three suggestions: teach students how to research, assign unusual writing topics, and make students use a plagiarism detector. Instructors must actively teach research and documentation. They cannot assume that students have had this training because elementary school students sometimes copy whole articles from encyclopedias verbatim (MLA Handbook 55). High school and college students often modify this practice and copy whole paragraphs without giving credit to sources. Students unfamiliar with research need practice exercises to help them decide what needs citing (Harris, Using Sources 13-14). Such practice is crucial since research shows that “some students . . . view almost anything . . . on the Internet as general knowledge that does not require citation” (McCabe and Drinan B7). Some STLCC English students must staple copies of sources used to their completed papers; they must also highlight information used so that 3
instructors know they quoted, paraphrased, or summarized accurately, without plagiarizing. Instead of just dumping in quotes, students should learn the most basic rule of research: source material, whether quoted, paraphrased, or summarized, supports a writer’s thesis by anticipating a reader’s questions and need for proof. Thus, students should ask what a reader needs to know and which source best delivers that information. Students need this hands-on practice in researching. Another strategy for thwarting plagiarism is to rethink essay assignment topics: educators like retired English professor Robert Harris challenge instructors to stop assigning the same boring topics every semester (Plagiarism 124-5). Many STLCC instructors have already gotten creative. For example, history students have researched genealogy and compiled their family trees. Psychology students have analyzed gender stereotypes in color, theme, and sentiment of “Congratulations on Your New Baby” cards. These students must do their own writing—these quirky topics decrease chances that students can simply buy papers off the Internet. Educators also advocate using plagiarism detectors as a “psychological deterrent” (Gooden et al. 445). These programs, such as Turnitin, flag suspicious wording so that students can rewrite in their own vocabulary and voice. Instructors want to reach inexperienced writers who plagiarize mistakenly. Teacher John Waltman defines intentional plagiarism as “wholesale copying . . . with the intention of representing [work] as one’s own” and unintentional plagiarism as “careless paraphrasing and citing . . . such that improper or misleading credit is given” (qtd. in Lathrop and Foss 163). According to Dr. Vicki Ritts, professor of psychology at STLCC, some student plagiarists exhibit the illusion of invulnerability— the “other students might get caught, but not me” attitude. Lafayette High School uses plagiarism detectors “not to hurt students, but rather to teach them,” says English teacher Diane Tinucci (qtd. in Plattner W4). Intentional plagiarism disheartens instructors, who call it “an act of aggression, a taunt behind a title page” (Silverman 12). Instructors see writing essays as an opportunity for students to learn about a topic. Writing tasks can’t be outsourced. Yet some students ask why—if they’re too busy and find the
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instructor too demanding—they can’t have someone write for them. Appalled by the problem, universities are tackling student dishonesty: Many . . . colleges . . . have begun . . . to fight cheating by educating both faculty members and students on academic integrity. . . . “We need to pay more attention as students join our communities to explaining why this is such a core value—being honest in your academic work and why if you cheat that is a very big deal to us,” said Kathleen Deignan, Princeton’s dean of undergraduate students. . . . “We live in a world where . . . [moral rightness] is negotiable. . . . Academic institutions need to say, ‘This is not negotiable.’” (Rimer B7) Inexperienced writers often plagiarize by mistake. Obviously, the penalty varies with the severity of the offense and the writer’s intention. In some cases, the unintentional plagiarist might be allowed to revise the paper. The intentional plagiarist will fail the course. Why? Members of the academic community do their own work in order to learn; students should as well. Simply put, trying to pass someone else’s work off as your own is stealing.
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Works Cited “Cheating Scandal Met Its Foil in U. Va. Leader.” University of Virginia News, 6 May 2002, www.virginia.edu/topnews/releases2002/hall-may-6-2002.html. Gooden, Angela, et al. “Learning to Make a Difference.” College and Research Libraries News, vol. 64, no. 7, 2003, pp. 443-454. Faculty Resource Guide. St. Louis Community College, 2010. Harris, Robert A. The Plagiarism Handbook: Strategies for Preventing, Detecting and Dealing with Plagiarism. Pyrczak, 2001. ---. Using Sources Effectively: Strengthening Your Writing and Avoiding Plagiarism. Pyrczak, 2002. Lathrop, Ann, and Kathleen Foss. Student Cheating and Plagiarism in the Internet Era: A Wake-Up Call. Libraries Unlimited, 2000. McCabe, Donald L., and Patrick Drinan. “Toward a Culture of Academic Integrity.” Chronicle of Higher Education, 15 Oct. 1999, pp. B7, www.chronicle.com/article/Toward-a Culture-of-Academic/15639. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. 7th ed., Modern Language Association, 2009. Plattner, Diane. “Rockwood’s New Plagiarism Software Keeps an Eye on Students’ Work.” West Newsmagazine, 11 Nov. 2002, pp. W4. Rimer, Sara. “A Campus Fad that’s Being Copied: Internet Plagiarism Seems on the Rise.” New York Times, 3 Sept. 2003, pp. B7. Ritts, Vicki. Personal interview, 3 Dec. 2002. Silverman, Gillian. "It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Plagiarism Buster! Brandishing a Red Pen in Place of a Red Cape, I Fight to Rescue Words from Literary Bandits." Newsweek, 15 July 2002, pp. 12. Academic OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=GPS&sw=w&u=morenetsccol&v=2.1&id =GALE%7CA88731568&it=r&asid=461c2a2f719bad646c3e970a8c586047.
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