Citation Practice



Document your Sources

MLA Citation Examples & Practice

MLA Citation Example for a BOOK

Title. (Italicized). Publisher.

Friesen, Chuck. Jerk, California. New York: Speak. 2008. Print.

Author. (Last name, First.)

Year published.

Publishing City: (include colon)

Format.

MLA Citation for a reliable WEBSITE

Mitchell-Boyask, Robin. “Study Guide for Homer’s Odyssey.”

College of Liberal Arts. Temple University, Jan. 2002.

Web. 9 Nov. 2010.

Color Key

Author

“Article Title.”

Web Page Title.

Publisher or Website Sponsor,

Copyright or Date of Last Update

Format of source. (i.e. Web)

Date of Access.

Citation Practice

A. Website Source: Medal of Honor about the history of the Medal of Honor, given to military heroes.

B. Now it’s time to practice. Below is background information about your resource. If you need help as you do this, here’s a link to Purdue University’s MLA Citation page at

PRACTICE EXAMPLE:

Resource: Website

Title: Odysseus

Author: Joel Skidmore

Publisher: Mythweb

Last Updated: July 30, 2010

Date Website Visited: Nov. 2, 2010

Open (or create) your Noodletools Account (), and click on the “Bibliography” button. Create a New Project (using MLA Advanced) and name it “Practice.” Use the Practice Example information above to create a NoodleTools citation for that website.

Parenthetical In-Text Citations

A Parenthetical In-Text Citation is used when paraphrasing or directly quoting a source within your paper. Below are two examples of in-text citations, one a paraphrase and the other a direct quote. In-text citations are the bread-crumb trail that lead to the complete citation on the Works Cited page. NOTE: In-text citations put the period of the sentence AFTER the closing parenthesis, even if you are directly quoting something.

a. PARAPHRASING IN-TEXT EXAMPLE: The example below is from the “Study Guide for Homer’s Odyssey” web article written by Robin Mitchell-Boyask.

In the Council of the Gods on Mount Olympus, Homer introduces all types of gods to the reader (Mitchell-Boyask).

b. DIRECT QUOTE IN-TEXT EXAMPLE: The example below is from the “Study Guide for Homer’s Odyssey” web article written by Robin Mitchell-Boyask.

“Penelope is upset at the song of a bard who tells of the sufferings of the heroes” (Mitchell-Boyask).

For more on Parenthetical In-Text Citations: “MLA Parenthetical Reference Rules” on the Surveys/Resources link

NOTE: At the end of this document is a sample MLA paper, complete with in-text citations and a Works Cited page.

Continuing Your Research

Saving to Student Docushare

AT HOME ACCESS to Online/Subscription Databases

This link will take you to the East High Media Center At-Home Access page. You will need passwords to use the databases from home. Password information is available on this link.

SAMPLE MLA PAPER

w/in-text citations and a Works Cited page

Jon Doe (Student’s First Last Name)

Ms. Sage (Teacher’s Name)

Class Name (English 9)

21 May 2010 (Day Month Year)

Cell Phones Should Be Banned In School

There are many kids who have cell phones and they use them every day. Nick wanted a cell phone so he could call his girlfriend, Jen. He worked in a hospital cafeteria just to be able to afford to buy a used cell phone. One day the phone rang and a nasty voice on the other end threatened him. The dangerous games began in the book, Hell Phone, by William Sleator. Then the cell phone became a real danger to Nick. It is a proven fact that cell phones are dangerous when used while driving. They can also be risky to others especially when they are used during school time. Kids use cell phones in school, even when the school rules say they should not be used during school hours. Students hide phones in their lap or sweatshirt and they text. Sometimes students ask to go to the restroom so they can check their messages or make calls. Think that doesn’t happen? Try again. In a study conducted by Pew Internet, 54% of teens that own a cell phone text daily. An average of 80% of all females who own a cell phone receive and send texts daily. For males, the number is smaller, at an average of 30% sent and received each day (“Teens and Mobile”). Cell phones can lead to real problems and can lead to real issues for kids; therefore cell phones should be banned during school.

A good reason for banning cell phone use during school hours is that cell phone use can lead to criminal behavior. One criminal behavior is harassing someone else using a cell phone. Teens can be ticketed and jailed for harassment if they send demeaning or threatening messages, either voice or text-based, on their cell phones. This past year, over a quarter (26%) of teen cell phone users reported having been harassed by someone else through their cell phone. Girls are significantly more likely to experience this (30%) than boys (“Teens and Mobile”). Teen sexting is becoming a leading problem with teens using cell phones. Ex-boyfriends and jealous girls were cited as the main culprits focused on teen cell phone sexting crimes (Celizic). In an article written for MSNBC

“The punishment doesn’t fit the crime,” Walters told Lauer, addressing the growing number of teens and young adults being charged as sex offenders for sexting pictures. “These child porn laws were designed to punish a very different behavior” (qtd. in Celizic). Clearly, a ban on cell phones would help eliminate the growing numbers of teens affected by harassment of any nature.

Cell phones are also used by teens to cheat on tests and quizzes during school. A Common Sense Media poll cited in Phi Delta Kappan found that 35% of teens admitted to using cell phones to locate test answers. The article went on to state, “parents appear to be clueless about the prevalence of cell phone cheating” ("Using Technology to Cheat:")

In the article “Shady Shortcuts”, the same poll from Common Sense Media, the following statistics were presented on teen’s unethical use of cell phones:

Percentage of teens that think it’s okay to use cell phones during quizzes and tests to:

Send pictures of quiz or test to friends . . . . . . . . . . . . 23%

Look up notes or information stored . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22%

Text friends about answers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20%

Look up answers online . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19% (4)

Lincoln Public School Assistant Administrator at Lincoln, Nebraska’s East High School, Dave Bell, was interviewed and said, ”Not here,” when asked if any students had been reported for using cell phones to cheat. The biggest issue at East High School as stated by Bell was texting in class (Bell).

A final issue is that cell phones can lead to disciplinary actions from school. Bell stated that the East High policies on cell phone abuse in school is okay for now, but he looks forward to stricter guidelines next year (Bell). At other school districts, like the Abilene Independence School District and the Klein Independent School District in Texas, students have been assessed a $15 fine that abuse cell phones in school. In the Klein district alone, over $100,000 has been assessed. The money has been used for enrichment activities from what the school could normally offer, like pizza parties, college scholarships, and other student rewards (Cash 7). A student in Bowling Green, Kentucky, admitted cell phone texting was an addiction, averaging 13,000 texts a month, many done during class time (“School”). That same student said, “When you have your phone, it’s an urge to text and you have to control yourself not to get it out and text.” (qtd. in “School”). In the same article, “School Texts”, parents were taking advantage of parental controls on cell phones by setting time limits on when the phones can send or retrieve texts. At most school districts cell phone policies begin with a warning and confiscation, with repeat offenses leading to in-school and out of school suspension. This could cause significant issues for students who would lose time in class and have infractions on their record.

Cell phone abuse by teens in schools is a significant problem. With over three-fourths of all teens using cell phones during school time, issues such as harassment and sexting, using a cell phone for cheating on tests and quizzes, and school disciplinary actions are becoming more common. For these and other reasons, cell phone use in schools should be banned. Jon Akers, Kentucky Center for School Safety, offered some final reasons why cell phones should be prohibited in K-12 schools. He lists 12 problems caused, including bullying, cheating, secretly taking inappropriate photographs, and even facilitating drug deals at school (“School”). It is important for schools to address cell phone use during school hours as the risks and the issues can lead to cheating, abuse, and loss of valuable time for students.

Works Cited

Bell, Dave. Personal interview. 17 May 2010.

“Cash calls: should students be fined for using cell phones at school?(DEBATE).” Current Events, a Weekly Reader publication 28 Sept. 2009: 7. Student Resource Center Gold. Web. 14 May 2010.

Celizic, Mike. “Teen ‘Sexting’: Youthful Prank or Sex Crime?” Today: Parenting. , 10 Mar. 2009. Web. 19 May 2010.

“School texts :(: Educators differ on how to handle cell phones in classrooms.” Daily News (Bowling Green, KY) 18 Mar. 2009: n. pag. Student Resource Center Gold. Web. 20 May 2010.

“Shady Shortcuts.” Current Health 2, a Weekly Reader publication Mar. 2010: 4. Student Resource Center Gold. Web. 14 May 2010.

“Teens and Mobile Phones.” Pew Internet and American Life Project. Pew Internet, 20 Apr. 2010. Web. 19 May 2010.

“Using Technology to Cheat: Teens with Cell Phones Send 440 Text Messages a Week and 110 a Week While in the Classroom.” Phi Delta Kappan (Oct. 2009): 6. Student Resource Center Gold. Web. 19 May 2010.

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Title is centered.

Opening sentence calls attention to topic.

Signal phrase names the source. Author is unknown. Website article title is given.

PARAPHRASE.

MLA Rule 4.

Thesis is short and makes the MAIN point.

Reason #1 in a concise statement.

Supporting evidence—based on research.

PARAPHRASE.

MLA Rule 4.

Supporting evidence—based on research.

PARAPHRASE

MLA Rule 1.

DIRECT QUOTE.

MLA Rule 9.

Reason #2 in a concise sentence.

Supporting evidence— based on research.

PARAPHRASE AND DIRECT QUOTE.

MLA Rule 4.

Supporting evidence—based on research.

LONG QUOTE.

MLA Rule 2.

Supporting evidence—

based on research.

Interview-Direct Quote.

MLA Rule 2.

Reason #3 in concise sentence.

Supporting evidence based on research. INTERVIEW.

MLA Rule 2.

Supporting evidence

Based on research.

PARAPHRASE.

MLA Rule 1.

Supporting Evidence—based on research.

MAGAZINE ARTICLE.

MLA Rule 4.

QUOTE OF QUOTE.

MLA Rule 9.

PARAPHRASE

MLA Rule 2.

Closing Reason in concise sentence.

Supporting Evidence—based on research.

PARAPHRASE.

MLA Rule 4.

Restatement of Thesis in different words.

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