Since around grade 11, I’ve been quite rigorously citing my sources and referring to relevant scholars and researches for my essays and other coursework as a requirement for showing evidence for my research. But after attending the ASTU 100 classes with Dr. Moberley Luger as a part of my CAPS stream and reading the second chapter from the book ‘An Introduction to Academic Writing’ by Janet Giltrow (et al.), I’ve realized that there are more reasons for citing than the ones I knew about during my high school years. Now I see more to it than just a requirement or to avoid plagiarism, although those are big components of it.

Giltrow and her co-writers mention in the chapter ‘Citation and Summary’ and we also discussed it in our ASTU class that citation practices are there to also show the previous contributions that have already been made in that area of study. I see it as that at the university level it is a bigger picture, there is a larger area of knowledge where individuals or groups are discovering parts of that field and adding to it and filling in the picture.

I’ve also learnt a new terminology from the book mentioned earlier, the ‘reporting expression’, which essentially means that the citations are there to “report sources of information”. The reporting expression gives other scholars and contributors a stand in that area of study where they’ve put their work in to and present them as a part of the collective group that has built knowledge around that certain area/topic.

In conclusion, I feel that the class discussions and reading from the textbook have given me a broader perception of the purpose of citation and the important role it plays in summaries. I don’t just view it as a requirement anymore; it’s a useful, necessary and important aspect of a scholarly paper that gives a strong foundation to one’s contribution and help build a stronger area of knowledge in that collective group.

Sania S.