Annotated Bibliography Project Plan

What is it?

A bibliography is a list of sources (books, journals, websites, periodicals) that a writer has used for researching a topic. Bibliographies are sometimes called "references" or "works cited" depending on the style format you are using. A bibliography usually just includes the bibliographic information (i.e., the author, title, publisher, etc.). An annotated bibliography includes additional information about each source — often summaries or reviews of the work.

The annotations for your bibliographies will include first the bibliographic citation, followed by a summary, evaluation, and a reflection.

Your annotations need to:

  • Summarize: What are the main arguments? What is the point of this book or article? What topics are covered? If someone asked what this article/book is about, what would you say? Your summaries should be detailed, but not overly wordy. Be thorough and concise. It is possible.
  • Assess: Evaluate the source. Is it useful? How does it compare with other sources in your bibliography? Is the information reliable? Is this source biased or objective? What is the goal or purpose of this source? Evaluate each source using the CRAAP test.
  • Reflect: Once you've summarized and assessed a source, you need to ask how it fits into your research. Was this source helpful to you? How does it help you shape your argument? How can you use this source in your research project? Has it changed how you think about your topic?

Why write an annotated bibliography?

To learn about your topic.
Writing an annotated bibliography is excellent preparation for constructing a source-based argument. Just collecting sources for a bibliography is useful, but when you have to write annotations for each source, you're forced to read each source more carefully. You begin to read more critically instead of just collecting information.

It can also help you formulate a thesis. A very important part of research is developing a thesis that is debatable, interesting, and current. Writing an annotated bibliography can help you gain a good perspective on what is being said about your topic. By reading and responding to a variety of sources on a topic, you'll start to see what the issues are, what people are arguing about, and you'll then be able to develop your own point of view.

Format

The bibliographic information
The bibliographic information of the source (the title, author, publisher, date, etc.) needs to be written in MLA format and be listed in your document in alphabetical order. For help with formatting, consult the Purdue Online Writing Lab.

The annotations
The annotations for each source are written in paragraph form just beneath the bibliographic citation. You will need to write three paragraphs about each source — first the summary, then the evaluation, then the reflection. The lengths of the annotations can vary, but aim for at least 250 words per source.

Number of entries required
For this paper you will need to annotate seven sources. Four of your sources need to be from the end of the arrow on page 86 of your textbook — scholarly books or journal articles. You will need to use the library search or Google Scholar. Three of your sources can be from a little further up the arrow (newspaper or magazine articles, etc.).

Other constraints

  • Start a new page on your wiki name page titled Annotated Bibliography followed by your name.
  • Each bibliographic citation should be heading level 2.
  • The register of this needs to be formal and academic and written in Standard Edited American English.

Have at least three entries ready for peer review by Thursday, February 19 at noon for peer review.
This project is due in its entirety on Tuesday, February 24 at midnight.
Late work policy is located in the course syllabus. Have it done on time.

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