I've been a librarian at Roosevelt University for over two years, but I'm also a graduate student. I'm working on a Master's Degree in English along with a Certificate in Women's and Gender Studies here at Roosevelt and like many students I'm often doing research and writing papers.
I came across a citation tool quite awhile ago and have been using it ever since, so I thought it would help if I shared this tool with you. It's called knight cite and is put out by Heckman Library at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Knight Cite creates citations in MLA, APA, and Chicago style and all you have to do is fill in the information.
Don't get too excited - Knight Cite won't do all of the work for you. You do need to understand the difference between the journal title and the article title, you need to know whether your source is print or electronic, and whether it's a magazine or a journal. You get the idea. Here is a helpful hint: If you find an article on one of Roosevelt's databases, make sure to choose Electronic for the type of source, and then either magazine, journal, encyclopedia article etc. And when Knight Cite asks "Was this source found using a database?" choose YES, and then fill in the correct database name and URL.
Here are two examples; can you identify all the parts of this MLA citation?
"Milk, Harvey (1930 - 1978)." World of Criminal Justice, Gale. Farmington: Thomson Gale, 2002.Credo Reference. 04 December 2008 <http://www.credoreference.com/entry/4827961.
Is this source print or electronic?
What is the title of the source?
What is the title of the article?
Who is the author?
What type of source is it? Book, journal, dictionary, newspaper...
How about all the parts of this APA Style Citation?
Gerdes, L. (2008, November 10). Food Costs Rise for College Students. Busincess Week Online, 7. Retrieved December 3, 2008, from Academic Search Premier.
Is this source print or electronic?
What is the title of the source?
What is the title of the article?
What type of source is it? Book, journal, dictionary, newspaper..
Who is the author?
Click 'continue reading' for the answers.
"Milk, Harvey (1930 - 1978)." World of Criminal Justice, Gale. Farmington: Thomson Gale, 2002. Credo Reference. 04 December 2008 <http://www.credoreference.com/entry/4827961/.>.
Is this source print or electronic? It's an electronic source; an online database called Credo Reference
The title of the source is World of Criminal Justice (remember Credo Reference is the database used to access the source)
The title of the entry is "Milk, Harvey (1930-1978)
Who is the author? There is no author listed because it's an encyclopedia-style source
The title of the source is World of Criminal Justice (remember Credo Reference is the database used to access the source)
How about all the parts of this APA Style Citation?
Gerdes, L. (2008, November 10). Food Costs Rise for College Students. Busincess Week Online, 7. Retrieved December 3, 2008, from Academic Search Premier.
Is this source print or electronic? It's an electronic source, a magazine accessed through a database.
What is the title of the source? The title of the source is Business Week Online
What is the title of the article? The title of the article is "Food Costs Rise for College Students"
What type of source is it? Book, journal, dictionary, newspaper.. It's a magazine
Who is the author? The author is L Gerdes
Good luck with your research!
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