Using references in your writing is one of the most effective ways to avoid plagiarism. So,
What are References?References are a way of saying where you found an idea or some information (usually a book or a journal). To put a reference In your writing, put some brackets and put in the family name of the author and the year the book or journal was published. For example, the highlighted "(Smith, 2018)" in this sentence:
"The electric fan was invented in 1889 (Smith, 2018)."
When do you Need them? Firstly, you need them to avoid plagiarism. This means, if the information you are giving is not your original idea or research, and it is not common knowledge, you should give a reference.
But, references are not just about avoiding plagiarism, you can also use them to show that you have done some good reading around. And, if you think the reader might want to find out more, put a reference.
So, as you will be doing a lot of referencing, you will need to keep good notes so you don't forget where you found something.
How do you Use them?You put the name and the date in your text, and then you put the full details of the book or journal in the References Section at the end of your assignment.
Every source you give in your text (often called the "citation") must also be given in full in your References section.
So, there should always be those two parts, Citations and References. When you make changes to your essay, check there aren't any stray references left in the References section.
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