Are you looking forward to writing a good assignment or dissertation which shall fetch you high marks along with applause? Then here is a good suggestion for you. Instead of writing a regular bibliography, you can use an annotated one that shall enrich your paper and make it more attractive. An annotated bibliography is a type of literature that provides a very brief overview of the topic that you have chosen from your research. Following each citation, you have to enter a short paragraph of information which contains the description and argument of the source referred. Such a section is termed as an annotation. It is rather a list of citations of the books, journals, and articles which you have used to write your thesis. While
, you have to make a brief summary of the research sources and look carefully at the value of the sources and reflect the validity of the origin materials thus chosen for. When you are writing an annotated bibliography, you shall have to consider purposes, format, writing style and examples to give your dissertation a full-fledged dimension. This article provides you with seven easy steps to write a comprehensive annotated bibliography that shall eventually turn out helpful in the future.
- Summarize the Sources: At the first instance, you have to choose the sources carefully and then make summaries out of these. You can do this by taking notes and pointing down important aspects of your sources. Make it such that anyone could understand what your work is all about by a mere glimpse of it.
- Citations: Citations reference from scholarly books, academic abstracts, scholarly articles, images of videos and websites. It is the list of the references that you are going to use which is required to support your argument. You have to cite the journals and periodicals using the style that has been asked for by your supervisor. The most widely used forms of citations are American Psychological Association (APA) and Modern Language Association (MLA) Some other popular forms of citations include the Chicago or Turabian Style, Associated Press (AP) style and Council of Science Editors. You have to make sure about the format of the citations. A general formal first includes the name of the author, then the full book title of the book or article, after that comes the date of publication of the latest revision of the book which can be found on the internet. You can organize your citations by using some methods such as by alphabetically, chronologically, by format, by the language or by sub-topic.
- Use an Annotated Bibliography: Using a little say, one-paragraphed information about your argument shall enrich your paper, and it shall also be easy for the readers. It also helps the reader to decide what sources they are going to use for further reference. In this regard, it should be noted that an annotated bibliography is not an abstract, Instead of providing a detailed summary, it is more informative and focused on a particular aspect of the topic. It shall be much better if you annotate each and every source of your bibliography.
- Assess the Author's Background and Credentials in an Annotation: In an annotated bibliography, using the author's experience and other credentials such as his or her educational and critical reviews. It shall be beneficial to both the readers and the writers. You can also mention the intellectual inclination of the author and the school of thought to which he or she belongs. This mere mention shall make your argument intellectually fertile and more enriched, and your thesis shall be accepted with a great applause.
- Make a list of the Central Themes and Main Arguments: By using these steps, you can give your readers a quick view of what your work is all about. You scan also outline the topic covered as they are used in your research question and make a molecular study about the work. You have to make it clear to the readers why you are using this particular book or article or journal to substantiate your arguments. Outline the importance of the particular source and make it easily readable by any range of readers. Make it approachable to all of them.
- Evaluate Each Source: Make a critical evaluation of each of the sources you are using. Under the subhead "bibliographically included" and make a note whether you the particular source has any glossary, index or bibliography. It there are any test devices or survey instruments, you should also make a note of that. You have to make velar the usefulness of a particular source in your research work. Let the readers know whether the information is biased or objective or whether it is reliable. Also, mention about the chronology of the books. It is important to note whether a particular source is current or outdated.
- Make a Proper Bibliography with All These Sources: After you are done with the evaluation of your source, you jot down all the sources and write an excellent bibliography out of it. Use these annotated sources in each of the points write it after each points. That shall enrich your article and make it more acceptable.
Thus, an annotated bibliography helps you to become a better researcher Here you will have to take your time and read the source and then summarize the arguments contained in it. On the one hand it takes the time to read a source and make an annotation out of it, but on the other hand, it should also be mentioned that an annotated bibliography saves your time to a great extent. Once you are done with writing an annotated bibliography, you can get relieved to a good deal, and never have to go through the source again as the ones which you have read lingers on your mind forever. Hope you find this article useful and write a great research paper with annotated bibliography with the help of it.