APA Formatting
By: Angela Dela Cruz
After years of writing in MLA format, APA formatting is a new way to construct our papers. This is understandable as our papers are more research-driven which is expected since many individuals are studying sciences. In a video by Tom Kluxen, we learn how to write in APA format and he teaches us how to find the right sources.
APA stands for the American Psychological Association, and the school of social and behavioral sciences tends to use this format. The two key components of APA is to cite references properly to prevent plagiarism, and to have a specific format for the cover page. A general template of this format consists of the title page, abstract, body, then references. The overall guideline includes a size 12 font usually in Times New Roman, double spaced with a one inch margin, and a running head on the upper left with the page numbers on the upper right. The running head is a short version of the title in all capital letters, and on the title page it will say "Running Head: _EXAMPLE_"but on the rest of the pages it is just "_EXAMPLE_". The title page also includes the title with the writer's name underneath, and then the name of the university underneath that, and this is all centered. The abstract is a little summary of the paper and has phrases such as "This paper examines ___", giving readers a brief synopsis without giving data or information.
Sometimes it is helpful to do some research before even starting the paper in order to expand your idea, build a thesis, and to solidify what you're arguing. It is important to find good sources of data to make sure that the information is relevant and current due to the fact that science is constantly being updated. Statistics in the 1950's are not the same as present facts and figures, which is why it is important to see how recent an article or document is. A good source of data can come from peer-reviewed sources, academic articles as well as the Stockton database, which is a good center of information. Academic journals are the most reputable because it indicates that there was a scholar in the field, one who is in the same level as the writer, that checked their work.
The Stockton Database is a great area to obtain references because users are able to specify what they're searching for. If you search up a word under quotations in the search engine, such as "overpopulation" and "health science", it will bring up all the articles that mention those words. This type of search method is named Boolean searching, which narrows and specifies research since users are able to add or omit what they want to see. It is also efficient to use since it searches from all of Stockton's databases such as science, health, history, and more.
In addition, citations are a big part of APA formatting. There are so many ways alone to do in text citations that a current book on how to do them might be needed since there are approximately 60 different types of source citations. Writers should stay away from citation generators and stick to Purdue Owl because it is easier and updated. In text citation requires the year, the author's last name, and the page number if there is one, for direct quotes and even for paraphrasing.
Lastly, we read chapter 6 of lol...OMG and it speaks about being conscious of the content we put online. Realistically, people do not think about every possible detriment before posting something online, but they can think about what they might not want to post in the future. We have to ask ourselves certain questions when choosing what we publicize; for example, we have to ask ourselves "Is now the right time?". I have seen many Facebook statuses of people who are mad at others and getting emotional, and by asking ourselves "is now the right time?", we can prevent ourselves from posting something foolish or private. Sharing our location is also something we might want to keep private for safety reasons, or choosing to share a location you were previously at instead of currently at would be a better option. People also need to be aware of the controversy they might start regarding their posts. There is a fine line between public and private in the digital world, and people tend to overshare since it is so effortless. Since many of the users are so young, we have to warn them about the dangers of trusting people too much because the internet is a means of revenge. It is better to not send something that you are afraid to be out in the open in order to protect your name and your reputation.
Lastly, we read chapter 6 of lol...OMG and it speaks about being conscious of the content we put online. Realistically, people do not think about every possible detriment before posting something online, but they can think about what they might not want to post in the future. We have to ask ourselves certain questions when choosing what we publicize; for example, we have to ask ourselves "Is now the right time?". I have seen many Facebook statuses of people who are mad at others and getting emotional, and by asking ourselves "is now the right time?", we can prevent ourselves from posting something foolish or private. Sharing our location is also something we might want to keep private for safety reasons, or choosing to share a location you were previously at instead of currently at would be a better option. People also need to be aware of the controversy they might start regarding their posts. There is a fine line between public and private in the digital world, and people tend to overshare since it is so effortless. Since many of the users are so young, we have to warn them about the dangers of trusting people too much because the internet is a means of revenge. It is better to not send something that you are afraid to be out in the open in order to protect your name and your reputation.
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