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| From The English Companions, an Anglo-Saxon history society website |
(Originally written for my DD101 students, bless them. NB - DD102 students, some of the ideas here are the same but they come from a different set of text books.)
Referencing is like writing in Runes to many students - an incomprehensible and arcane knowledge which they had previously thought was only practiced by characters in Lord of the Rings. For many of my colleagues, referencing has always seemed obvious so they are a bit bemused by how confusing the students find it. However I too used to wonder when to use 'cited' and when to say 'quoted'; I too felt like someone stumbling through Mordor towards the Black Gate (Tolkein 1966), wondering why on Middle Earth you would have to give the place of publication in the final list.
I usually start explaining referencing by considering why we bother. When you can see the purpose of it, it's much easier to get your head around why it's done in the way it is done.
