This table shows the Feedback Letters in the left column. The Feedback Letters are also a link that will take you to the specific section of the Evidence Checklist on this webpage.
Feedback Letter |
How to Work to Prevent the Problem With Links If You
Want Them |
NS = Fact is Not
from an approved Source |
Read the
right stuff—the right time and the right place and the right person or type
of persons--for the question: 1.
Turn to the
pages that I identified for you to read. If I did not specify pages to read,
use your index to locate the content. If you still cannot find the pages, ask
for help. (Distance learning classes also have ways to ask questions in the
Discussion tool.) 2.
Do not let yourself open other sources.
Do not tell yourself the fib that you
are just checking the Internet to make something clearer to yourself. Do
not let bad data in a good mind. Read to
understand (to figure out, not just repeat mindlessly) the evidence that the
author is providing you: 1.
If you have no
method that works for you, try the method
for preparing to write a practical essay to read and determine possible things you will cover.
(It you also need an example on a brain trick for reading, you will find one in that link.) 2.
Always double
check to be sure your brain is not
assuming. Use only the facts you
found in the source. If you remember something being true, do not use it until you carefully verify
it in the required source. If you cannot find it to verify it, ask me for
help in finding it or do not say it. |
QP = Quotation
includes Plagiarized text |
Before you
worry about quoting something, click here to see
the basics of facts and: ·
citations (how
you show exactly where the reader can find the fact) ·
quotation marks
(how you show who owns what words) Then do the
preventions with: ·
NS (read
required sources carefully and figure things out) ·
NT (select
specific facts to reveal the truth) Once you are
sure you want to quote (to use the author’s exact words), then use the brain
trick in QC. |
QC = Quotation is Changed from the source. |
The rules for showing what you have taken out (…) of
the author’s words or put in ([ ]) are complex and for most of us they are
not worth learning. This trick
lets you be accurate but avoid learning those rules: 1.
Choose 3 to 6
words to quote and change nothing (not an ing or an ed, not a
comma, nothing) between the first and the last word. 2.
Put a “ before the
first word and a ” after the last
word. 3.
Place those
words with the “”within your sentences. 4.
If something
sounds awkward about your sentences, then change your own words—the only words you
have a right to change. |
NT = Fact is Not
True. It is not verifiable using
the probable page in the source. |
Do the
preventions with NS (read required sources carefully and figure things out) |
1.
First,
concentrate on the question. What is the prof (or the boss) asking for? Click here for
the goal of all writing in this course. Caution:
In this course, I provide all essay questions ahead of time for two reasons: ·
So you have a chance to know what you need to read ·
So you can ask a question if you do not understand my question 2.
Second, do two
things at the beginning and end of your reading: ·
Before you start to read, stop and be sure what you are reading is
appropriate for that question. (Once you start writing, you will not catch
your error.) Examples: Do not use
information about New England to answer a question about the South or
information about ranchers to answer a question about farmers. ·
Before you stop reading, look to see if some other things happened or if some
things changed. 3.
Third, when you
read, observe carefully and constantly. ·
Notice words
that reveal limitations of a fact. Examples:
·
Notice the
sentences (and sometimes pages) before and after what you are reading. Example: A truth that requires three
sentences can be a falsehood if you only notice one of those sentences. Caution: You are not summarizing or paraphrasing a
section of words. You are figuring things out so you can briefly answer a
question in a common sense way. Just because some fact is in that section of words does not mean it belongs in
your answer. If the fact does not
apply to the question, do not bring it up or you will look like you misread
or miswrote (wrote without thinking). |
|
W? = Where
is the specific page where this is supported in our textbook? |
1.
You do not
have to cite pages when you write your essays that end a Unit. On the other hand, if I cannot
recognize your facts as being from our textbook or from my resources in the
course, I will ask you name the specific page where the facts came from. 2.
If you follow the method provided with NS, you
will have your reminders for what content you plan to cover and the page number where you can
find that content. When you are
figuring out the content and planning what you will write, double check
to be sure: ·
The facts that
you write in your own words are in the source. ·
The facts that
are in the author’s words are unchanged between the opening quotation mark
(“) and the closing one (“”) For some
people, touching the fact in the source and in your list of what you plan to
cover helps them. This visual might help. If you decide to do the alternative third
assignment which does require citations, I will provide instructions for you. |
The submission of a paper with words from an author without quotation marks can be the professor's evidence that you plagiarized. Some may not notice, but some may call it plagiarism. Some professors may label your work as “half-copy” plagiarism (term from The Bedford Handbook, page 692) if you:
· Either copy an author’s phrases without quotation marks (“”)
·
Or use the author’s sentence and just swap a few
words with what you think are synonyms
Caution: If you think saying the name
of the source means you can copy another’s words without quotations marks, look
at this table.
What are the rules for citation and use of quotation marks? The rules vary depending upon whether you are writing:
· A fact from the source in your own words
· A fact in the author’s words (you are quoting):
What
Kind of Fact Are You Using |
Do
You Need Citation (Page # etc.)? |
Do
You Need Quotation Marks (“”)? |
A fact in your own words |
Yes—although I do not require that in the Blackboard’s tiny box for essays |
No |
A fact in the author’s words |
Yes |
Yes |
If you are confused about this, look at these examples.
What
the Author Wrote |
What
Words You Want to Write |
Do
You Need Quotation Marks (“”)? and Why |
the Mississippi River |
the Mississippi River |
No – Proper nouns belong to all of us. |
the green, roaring river |
the river |
No – Common nouns belong to all of us. |
the green, roaring Mississippi River |
the roaring Mississippi River |
Yes <Notice this. – These are the author’s unique string of words so you identify them as not your creation with “”: Trade was harder because of the “roaring Mississippi River.” |
|
roaring |
Yes <Notice this. – This is the author’s labeling of a condition and it is easier to use the author’s word with “”. The author explained that the “roaring” river made trade more difficult. |
With
something that people talk about in many ways, sometimes it helps to state what
is not the goal. With writing in this course,
you:
·
Are not
summarizing or not paraphrasing the textbook.
·
Do not need
to repeat every fact or word in the textbook.
·
Are not
showing your personal writing style while stating your feelings or your
opinions.
Instead,
in this course, the goal of all writing assignments is for you to do
activities that help you learn the history of our nation. One of the most
powerful ways to learn something is
to try to teach it. You will succeed
in these assignments if you do these things:
·
If you read
carefully and work to understand what happened and ask if you need help.
·
If you figure out
what essential facts that you would teach your cousin.
·
If you figure how
you could organize those facts as simply and as accurately as you can.
·
If you write in a
common sense way as though you are teaching your cousin history that he or she
needs to understand.
Because
the goal of writing is to help you learn our nation’s history and the priority
is for you to be accurate, I grade your writing by comparing what you wrote
side by side with the facts in the textbook. With essays submitted, I use a
method that lets me quickly identify all of the submissions where the students
wrote on the same question.
1. I download those submissions, print them, and place
them side by side:
·
On the left, the
textbook opened to the probable section or sections students should have
used. ·
On the right,
the submissions of students’ papers on that question. |
2. I use the Evidence Checklist and its 2-letter
abbreviations for feedback (shown below) and grade each student’s submissions
one by one.
3. If there are multiple possible questions, I then
repeat the steps above with the next question.
With
the two essays for the Unit exams, I grade one of the questions using the
method above. Unless I find problems such as factual errors in that essay, I
grade the other one without the textbook side by side with your paper—a quicker
method.
th the e
I
use the Evidence Checklist to grade on common standards (accepted rules or models) for academics and for jobs
that depend on evidence:
·
The word evidence
emphasizes that you must have proof for what you say—some fact from our
approved source that anyone using that source can see for himself or herself.
·
The word checklist means a list of steps or
things necessary for success (such as a pilot’s checklist for takeoff).
This
is both a checklist (on the left) for success with evidence and a way to
give feedback (on the right) about your use of evidence as a 2-letter
abbreviation. Each checklist item:
·
Begins with an
informal statement of a common standard that applies to academics and to jobs
·
Below that are our
specific requirements, identified with the underlined phrase In
this course.
Do each of the things on the checklist below or you
may see the letters on the right as Feedback on your paper. |
Feedback Letters |
|
1. |
For
your source of facts, you use only
sources your professor (or boss) accepts as reliable.
In this course, the only
sources are the textbook chosen by the History Department and the sources provided at our Course Website. Do not use Internet websites, another textbook, or any other
source—including your own memory. |
NS =
Fact is Not from an approved Source |
2. |
You must follow common
standards to reveal to your reader who created the words and/or found the
facts you are using in your writing. This is a requirement in courses and in
some jobs. In
this course, you may: ·
Either write
facts in your own words ·
Or you may use exact sentences or phrases from the
textbook placed within quotation marks according to the specific rules for
quotation marks (“”) to reveal ownership that are covered in The Bedford Handbook ·
In this course, you may not
copy an author’s phrases without quotation marks. You also may not replace a few words in an
author’s sentence. Both are what The
Bedford Handbook calls “half-copy” plagiarism (page 692). |
QP = Quotation includes Plagiarized text |
3. |
You
must follow common standards to reveal any changes you made to the author’s
words. This may not be just a punctuation error. You may be misleading your
reader about the evidence.
In this course, if
you use another’s words, you must be sure either not to change them or—if you
change them—to follow the specific rules in The Bedford Handbook to reveal those changes to the reader. |
QC = Quotation is Changed from the source. |
4. |
You must use reliable
sources to verify what you write—to confirm its accuracy. In
this course, if you cannot verify
the fact, do not write it and do not assume that the source agrees
with you. If you are certain something is true and you cannot find it clearly
in our sources, ask me for help.
·
If a question is about something specific (such as a time,
type of person, or region), verify that the source is about that specific
thing. ·
If the source covers facts about two or more sides or positions, do not
include only one side as though the other did not occur. |
NT =
Fact is Not True. It is not verifiable using the probable page in the source.
|
5. |
With most written work for professors (or bosses), if
asked, you must be able to state exactly where
(a specific page) in the source
that each fact came from—whether
you wrote the words or the author did. With many college assignments, you
must provide citations and use a specific standard (such as MLA, APA, or the Chicago Manual
of Style). In this course with most
written assignments, you do not need to provide citations (the specific page number from our
textbook) unless I cannot recognize
where the fact came from. If I
cannot recognize where the fact came from, then you must show me
the location on the page. It cannot be a vague statement: if a reasonable
person using a reliable dictionary and reading the entire passage would not
agree that you have evidence for what you say, then neither will I. If you ask to do the more challenging alternative
assignment instead of the essays for Unit 3, then you must cite according to
the instructions. |
W? = Where is the specific page
where this is supported in our textbook? |
Copyright C. J. Bibus, Ed.D. 2003-2013 |
2013 |
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