Barbara Fister’s “Why the
‘Research Paper’ Isn’t Working” touches on something that gave me a very hard
time when I first returned to school—citations. Until I got used to HOW I was
supposed to cite things—meaning after I bought the better citation handbook by
Diana Hacker—I was terrified to quote lest I did something wrong when I got to
the “Works Cited” section, looming over me with all those specific rules, at
the end. Fister’s love of the idea presented by Nick Carbone: “…students first
learn to write using sources the way people outside academia do—drawing them
into the text as journalists and essayists do” is shared by my former freshman self.
However, had I not had to
plunge forward and learn the different rules of citing, as well as the correct
form of entering quotes (which had not changed very much since I was in high
school—only the movement towards MLA) I would have had a terrible time as I
moved into the classes where I was required to include annotated bibliographies
and other more complex citations! I admit, the freshman me often skimmed the
surface a little or did not include a piece that looked too threatening to
cite, but again, it is a necessary evil and avoiding it completely until later
might be a huge mistake. Fister’s suggestions about calling it a presentation are
useful in that it makes for a more interesting approach to the assignment, and
a slightly more cautious stroll into the citation arena could prove helpful to
many students—even including a quick reference guide for them to follow. I had
one wonderful professor who did that, after I had the Hacker book, but I know
it was a life saver for many students in that class, and they kept it handy for
other papers.
Practice makes everything become easier and the process,
unfortunately, has to be learned. From recent experience I can attest that
waiting does not make it any better.
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