Intro to using MLA style

1. What is MLA Style? And Why Does It Matter?

2. What is “MLA” style? And why does It matter? Image: : “MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers,” by bjornmeansbear, Flickr.com http://www.flickr.com/photos/bjornmeansbear/4145102215/ Creative Commons License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en

3. When you’ll use MLA style for this class In all formal papers, whether researched or not In the research project: On the proposal/annotated bibliography In the rough draft On the final draft of the paper

4. MLA Style Developed by the Modern Language Association (MLA) Used in English and some other humanities courses Sets standards for: How documents are formatted How sources are identified

5. Other Academic Styles Other disciplines have their own styles, including: American Psychological Association (APA) used in social sciences Chicago Manual of Style (CMS or “Chicago”) used in history and some humanities A main purpose of all styles is to prove where your research came from

6. MLA style information is easy to find Style information can be found from many sources, both print and online, including: Your Writing Today textbook (Ch. 27) Your Writer’s Reference handbook (MLA tabbed section) The Reynolds library Citing Sources page http://library.reynolds.edu/research/cite/default.htm An online writing lab such as the OWL@Purdue http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/

7. MLA citations can be generated electronically Citations can be automatically generated by citation “machines”: EasyBib Noodle Bib Express Knight Cite Word processing programs, such as MS Word But beware . . .

8. Challenges and cautions You can’t replace your own work with a machine. Automatically generated citations: Need the right input to create the right kind of citations Frequently include errors or omissions Usually are created in the wrong font and font size to match your paper For all of these reasons, you need to educate yourself on the basics of MLA citation

9. Your turn! Begin to get familiar with MLA documentation: Review Ch. 27 in Writing Today and the MLA tabbed section of the handbook Look at the citation information from the library and from the OWL@Purdue With a basic understanding of MLA conventions—and how to find what you need for your particular citation—you’ll soon be able to use correct MLA style for your English papers.