How To Use Sources in Academic Writing-2020 No 4

HOW TO USE SOURCES
IN ASSIGNMENT
WRITING
2. INTRODUCTION
• Academic writing demands that reference system be

observed and associated scholars be synthesised.
• Most university assignments require students to draw on a
range of academic sources to support their claims, arguments
and ideas.
• These assignments must include references or citations in the
text and a list of references at the end, listing the sources of
information used.
1. PURPOSE
The purpose of the presentation is to enable the student

to:
• Understand how an academic assignment should be
presented;
• Learn about academic sources and be able identify
them;
• Learn about plagiarism and how it can be avoided;
• Understand the concept referencing;
• Learn how to apply the referencing techniques
correctly and
• Demonstrate ways of incorporating sources into
assignment writing.
3. WHAT IS A SOURCE?
• A source is any outside information ( print or non -print) that

you have to seek out.
• It is used to emphasise and support a point you make.
• Incorporating a source into writing helps to build the credibility
throughout your assignment by showing that your ideas are
not personal, but that you have taken an academic look into
the issues surrounding your topic.
4. WHY DO WE USE SOURCES/
REFERENCE?
Sources are used for the following reasons:
• To satisfy the requirements of academic writing.
• To show that your writing does not rely mainly on personal
opinion,
• They serve as authorities to support your claims.
• To enable the reader to verify quotations and/or information.
• To enable the reader to follow up and read more fully the
cited author’s arguments.
• To give the source of information credibility.
• To avoid plagiarism.
5. WHAT IS PLAGIARISM?
• Plagiarism is when you present another person’s words, ideas

or opinions as your own without acknowledging the source.
• It occurs when you use the exact words or expressions of the
original source without acknowledgement, even if you
summarise or paraphrase the original source.
• Whether intended or not, plagiarism is a serious offence
against academic honesty
• It can result in failing a course or even expulsion from the
university.
5. PLAGIARISM( CONTINUED)
Plagiarism is regarded as unethical and illegal because:
• It is dishonest;
• It is in conflict with academic integrity;
• It indicates disrespect for the rights of the original author:
• It is in conflict with the University’s values of trust and may
even tarnish its reputation.
6. HOW TO AVOID PLAGIARISM?
• Acknowledge all the sources of information you have

consulted.
• The original source of information paraphrased, summarised or

quoted must always be acknowledged. Even if you change
few words or the order of the original’s sentences.
• Enclose direct quotations in quotation marks.
• Any statistics, graphs , drawings or anything that is not

common knowledge. DO NOT ACKNOWLEDGE COMMON
KNOWLEDGE. Common knowledge is information that is
known by everyone, especially the community in which the
term is used. For example: “ The moon orbits the earth”.
HOW TO AVOID PLAGIARISM?
• Only hand in original work that you have prepared yourself.
• Submit your assignment with a DECLARATION signed by

yourself and a witness. Your study material includes it , if it does
not, you may access it on myUnisa at the beginning of each
academic semester under “Additional resources”.
• By including a declaration at the beginning of your

assignments or portfolios you idicate that the work submitted,
is your own work, you are also declaring that you are aware of
Unisa’s policy documents and that you are aware of the legal
consequences if found guilty of plagiarism
6. HOW TO AVOID PLAGIARISM
(CONTINUED)
Read the following documents:

 The Disciplinary Code for students which is given to every
student at registration . Study the relevant sections - the Code
Sections 2.1.13 and 2.1.4.
 The University ‘s Policy on copyright infringements and
Plagiarism.
7. SOURCES TO BE USED
The sources to used be include the following:

• Prescribed books or books written by academic authors
• Study material (Study guides, Tutorial Letters and myUnisa)
• Articles from academic journals
• Sources accessed via the internet ( Emails, Twitter and
Facebook)
• Government publications ( Acts, Departmental reports and
documents)
• Non- print media ( films, videos and television programmes)
• Masters dissertations and doctoral theses
Your study guide will list all the sources you must use.
The librarians are also there to assist with the location of the
relevant sources you might need.
8. REFERENCING
• Referencing is a standardised method of acknowledging the

sources of information and ideas that you have used in
academic writing.
• Referencing must be uniform and consistent.
• When using information from a source(referencing), ensure
that your voice is predominant in your writing as the reader is
more interested in your thoughts and ideas.
9. STYLE OF REFERENCING
• University of South Africa uses the Harvard method.

• However , it is the prerogative of the lecturer or module
coordinator to prescribe the style to be used. Also consult
your study guide.
10. TYPES OF REFERENCES OR
CITATIONS
Two types of references(citations) can be distinguished, namely:
• In-text references , found in the middle of a text. It may be in
sentences or paragraphs.
• In a list of references at the end of an assignment. It is

detailed.
Note:
In- text referencing includes the author’s surname, date of
publication and the page number of the source.
In the list of references, the author’s name, date of publication,
title, place of publication and the publisher’s name are included.
11. REFERENCING TECHNIQUES
• In-text referencing
Example: Barker (2013:13) defines organisational
communication as…
• In the list of references
Example: Barker, A. 2013. Integrated organisational
communication. Cape Town: Juta.
Note:
These two types of references go hand in hand. Whenever you
reference in the text, you should also have a corresponding entry
in the list of references at the end of your assignment.
Observe the punctuation. Full stops (.)and colons(:) are used in
specific positions
These are citations of printed material. In non-print sources, some
of the elements are missing.
12. REFERENCING TECHNIQUE
• Citations included as part of a sentence may be at the

beginning or at the end of a sentence or a paragraph:
Example 1: Van der Walt (2013:23) argues …
Example 2: Downward communication ensures
that employers act… (Botha 2002:10).
Note:
When a citation is placed at the end of a paragraph, it
should appear at the end of the last sentence before the
full stop. In short, the full stop always follows after the right-
hand bracket of a citation.
12. REFERENCING TECHNIQUE
(CONTINUED)
• If a source has multiple authors, then the authors should be listed in a

citation and in the list of references in the exact same order in which
they are listed in the source. Never change the order in which the
authors of a source are listed.
• When a source has three or more authors, the surnames of all the
authors must be listed in the first citation to the specific source in a
document. Thereafter, only the surname of the first author is shown in
all subsequent citations. The surnames of the second and later
authors are replaced with the abbreviation et al.
• First citation:
Walter, Zwane and Zuko (2012:128) emphasise the …
• Second and later citations:
Walter et al. (2012:130) also mention …
13. WHAT TO AVOID?
• Never refer to an author’s first name or to the title of a source

in the main body of an academic document.
Example 1:
In his book Integrated organisational communication, George
Angelopulo (2013: 27) maintains that … (incorrect)
Example 2:
Angelopulo (2013: 27) maintains that … (correct)
13. WHAT TO AVOID? (CONTINUED)
Never include the initials of authors in citations; only their

surnames.
Example 1:
According to C. Seti (2016:3), qualitative research …
(incorrect)
Example 2:
According to Seti (2016:3), qualitative research … (correct)
14. WAYS OF INTEGRATING SOURCES
WITH TEXT
There are three methods of incorporating sources into
assignments effectively:
14.1 Summarising
14.2 Paraphrasing and
14.3 Quoting
14.1 SUMMARISING
• It is necessary when you present an entire work or section of

that work in a condensed or shortened form.
• Summarise when you explain the main ideas from the other
source of information.
• A summary should be half of the words of the material being
summarised.
• Citation information must be included .
14.2 PARAPHRASING
• This is an important skill for writing an assignment.

• It refers to rephrasing your text in your own words without
changing the author’s intended meaning.
• The text is same length as the original .
• Paraphrase when the information presented by the other
author would be hard for the reader to understand or when
you need to synthesise source material to demonstrate your
understanding of what the author is saying.
• Citation information must be included.
14.3 QUOTING
• When you quote, you include the words or ideas of others in your text
exactly as they have expressed them.
• A direct quote uses the author’s exact words and is noted by using
quotation marks (“ ”).
• It is especially important to use signal phrases when directly quoting so

your reader knows where the quote comes from.
• You should use direct quotes when you cannot paraphrase without losing
meaning, when the quote encompasses the main point of what you are
trying to say or if the original words are needed for purposes of analysis or
discussion or when defining a concept.
• Make sure you introduce the quote so the audience knows it is coming,
indicate who said the quote, and connect the quote to the rest of your
assignment.
14.3 QUOTING
• Quote the original author’s exact words, including any spelling

or grammar errors.
• If the original wording contains spelling or grammar errors,
indicate these errors out by placing the word [sic] in square
brackets in the quote directly after the error.
Example: “It is a common practise [sic] to…
(Botha 1999:14).
• If one leaves out part of the original text in a direct quotation,
this is indicated with an ellipsis (…).
Example: “ Marketing campaigns aimed at promoting…
must also be considered” (Van der Walt 2013:147).
14.3 QUOTING (CONTINUED)
• A long quotation:
If you have to use a long quotation, for instance, a quotation of
more than three lines, write it using a double indentation without
quotation marks .
LONG QUOTATION
Example:
• Hofstee (2014:56) has the following to say about the goals of a
postgraduate dissertation :
Dissertations are written in order to demonstrate competence to
examiners so that they may, in good conscience, award you the
degree that you enrolled for. Given that truth, in order to
maximise your chances of getting the degree, your primary goal
should not be making the major contribution in your field; It should
not be to dazzle the people in your department with your
brilliance –it should be to hand in a solid work within a reasonable
amount of time.
15. MAKING CITATION FIT INTO
WRITING
• You can make your citation fit into the flow of your writing by
choosing specific verbs .
• Do not repeat the same verbs such as “writes" and “states”.
• There is a wide choice of such verbs.
• Use a dictionary to select the verb you intend to use.

16. VERBS FOR CITING SOURCES
Some useful verbs are:

explain assume acknowledge emphasise claim contends
declare postulate assert conclude mention report agree
consider find
17. CONCLUSION
• The presentation elaborated on the presentation of

assignments which must include the sources of information
that support ideas and arguments. These sources must be
acknowledged to avoid plagiarism, which is regarded as an
offence. Students are required to apply the correct
referencing techniques and select the correct ways to
incorporate their selected sources into their assignments.
• Every slide contains important information which can be used
when writing an assignment.
• Make sure you understand this information and that you are
able to apply it to your work.
‘I hope you have enjoyed the presentation’

Good Luck

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HOW TO USE SOURCES

• Academic writing demands that reference system be

The purpose of the presentation is to enable the student

• A source is any outside information ( print or non -print) that

• Plagiarism is when you present another person’s words, ideas

• Acknowledge all the sources of information you have

• The original source of information paraphrased, summarised or

• Enclose direct quotations in quotation marks.

• Any statistics, graphs , drawings or anything that is not

• Only hand in original work that you have prepared yourself.

• Submit your assignment with a DECLARATION signed by

• By including a declaration at the beginning of your

Read the following documents:

The sources to used be include the following:

• Referencing is a standardised method of acknowledging the

• University of South Africa uses the Harvard method.

• In a list of references at the end of an assignment. It is

• Citations included as part of a sentence may be at the

• If a source has multiple authors, then the authors should be listed in a

• Never refer to an author’s first name or to the title of a source

Never include the initials of authors in citations; only their

• It is necessary when you present an entire work or section of

• This is an important skill for writing an assignment.

• It is especially important to use signal phrases when directly quoting so

• Quote the original author’s exact words, including any spelling

• Do not repeat the same verbs such as “writes" and “states”.

• There is a wide choice of such verbs.

• Use a dictionary to select the verb you intend to use.

Some useful verbs are:

• The presentation elaborated on the presentation of

‘I hope you have enjoyed the presentation’

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