Hi,
I'm giving a class on referencing next week. One question students seemed
quite concerned about last time is when NOT to include an in-text citation.
The pat answer is that they don't incude one when what they are saying
is "common knowledge", but how do you define that? It seems to me that
common knowledge is quite subject-specific and dependent on the level of
the student.
I'm thinking in particular of my undergraduate computing students and
their "essential text" books which are often the sum of the reading they
will do for a particular module.
For example, consider the following extracts:
"In addition to the hardware requirement, your computer system also
requires software. Software consists of the programs nthat tell the
computer what to do" (Englander 2003: 13)
Here, I'd say that the hardware/software distinction is common knowledge
and, if reworded, such a statement wouldn't require an in-text citation.
But what about:
"Alphanumeric data inputs and outputs are represented as codes, one code
for each data value. Three commonly used code systems for interactive input
and output are Unicode, ASCII, and EBCDIC. Within these codes, each
character is represented by a binary number, usually stored 1 or 2 bytes
per character" (Englander, 2003: 82)
I don't think this is common knowledge in any general sense (not in my
social circle, anyway), but presumably it does constitute common knowledge
amongst experienced computer scientists and is replicated in other text
books. So, should a first-year undergraduate - coming across this
information for the first time and translating it into their own words -
include a citation? And if they should, what about an MSc student?
I suppose another pat answer is that students need to learn to "use their
judgement" - but how do you teach such an intuitive skill in the context of
an IL class?
Quoted extracts from:
Englander, I. (2003). The architecture of computer hardware systems: an
information technology approach. 3rd edition. Chichester: Wiley.
Peter Williams
Subject Librarian for Architecture and Computing
University of East London
Library and Learning Centre
Docklands Campus
4-6 University Way
London E16 2RD
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020 8223 2961
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