It is important for instructors to post requirements on the first day of class. One of the biggest problems I notice is that some students neglect to read theses requirements. Students may be used to writing in a certain way. They may not realize that there is a set of guidelines that may be unique to each course. Therefore, I create a list of things that I feel will help students to do their best in my course. The following is an example of some of things I include in the first day posting for my students.
Welcome to class. Students usually call me Dr. Diane. To find out more about me, please click on the following link: Introducing Dr. Diane. It is very important that you read the following guidelines for how I expect papers to be submitted in class:
- All papers must be submitted in APA format. For an example of a paper in APA format click here. I do not require an abstract, but papers should contain a title page and a reference page. These two pages do not count toward minimum page or word-count requirements. For help with setting up papers in Word, click here.
- All papers must be written in third person. Please do not submit papers in second or third person. Examples of first person include words like: I, me, we, us, our. Examples of second person include words like: you and your. I do not want you to write in first or second person because it is important, at this level, to learn to write in a scholarly third-person tone.
- All papers should be submitted in an introduction/body/conclusion format. Introduce and summarize the paper in the introductory paragraph. Remember that all paragraphs should include around 4-8 sentences. If any questions are asked in the assignment instructions, address them in the body of your paper. Do not respond in a question and answer format. Questions should not be included in your paper. For a quick video explanation of how to properly set up a paper, click here. If PowerPoint presentations are required, click here for more information.
- Support all major points and any information that is not common knowledge with paraphrased citations. Do not list the author and year at the end of the paragraph and assume it “covers” the entire paragraph. You need to cite in proper APA format. Do not include direct quotes. Instead, paraphrase your citations. An example of a paraphrased citation is: Hamilton (2013) explained that it is important to paraphrase citations rather to include word-for-word citations. For more information about paraphrasing, click here.
- Use scholarly peer-reviewed sources when you cite. Please use the school’s library to access these sources. For an explanation of sources you should not use, click here. For an explanation about distinguishing scholarly sources, click here.
- For additional help with writing and formatting in APA, please check out: Dr. Diane’s Writing and APA Help Page.
