English 102 Annotated Bibliography Assignment

The library project for this course is an annotated bibliography of 6-8 information sources, all of which relate to a topic of your choice. 

Begin with an introduction explaining the scope of your topic to familiarize the librarian and your instructor with the focus of your research.  The introduction may be two or three paragraphs long.  List the items alphabetically by author, using MLA style bibliographic format.  Each item must be followed by:  an annotation or descriptive and critical evaluation of

• the resource demonstrating clearly how this item related to your topic (see sample annotations)
• photocopy of the title and verso pages of each book cited, or the first page of each article
• include a brief explanation of the process through which you found the item – catalog search, database search, works cited of another article or book, referred by instructor, etc, as well as the search terms used.  (see sample annotations)

The purpose of the final project is for each student to demonstrate an understanding of the research skills covered by the library instruction component of this class.  You must use the Dominican University library resources (periodical databases and online catalog) to locate the majority of your sources.  Sources may include: books, scholarly articles, reputable magazines and newspapers.  You will need to include at least 4 scholarly journal articles and at least one book (recently published or classic book in the field).  Feel free to use the bibliographies of articles assigned for class as jumping off points for locating other scholarly articles on your topic.  

The final projects must be typed.  Projects are due Tuesday, November 27, by 5:00 p.m.   

What you need to turn in

1. Two hard copies of your bibliography + One copy attached [as a Word document] to an email sent to mssimpson@dom.edu
2. Brief (2-3 paragraph) explanation of your topic
3. Citations for all of your sources in correct MLA bibliographic format
4. Annotations with both description and critical evaluations of each source
5. Short explanation of how the resource was located – e.g., Academic Search Premier, Dominican University Online Catalog, recommended by professor, etc., as well as the search used to retrieve relevant materials. 
6. Photocopies of each title and verso page (for books) and the first page of each periodical article included in the bibliography 

In the event that you do not pass the assignment, resubmissions are due 7 days after the assignment is returned. 

Suggestions for Writing Annotations

Content – What is the resource about?  Is it relevant to your research?

Purpose – What is it for?  Why was the book or article written?

Usefulness – What does it do for your research?

Reliability – Is the information accurate?  Do other sources support the

conclusions? 

Authority – Is it written by someone who has the expertise to author the

information?  What are the author’s credentials?

Currency – Is it new?  Is it up-to-date for the topic?

Ease of use – Can a “real person” use this resource?  What is the reading level

of the resource?