Annotated bibliographies
As part of your studies you may be asked to write an annotated bibliography.
What is an annotated bibliography?
A bibliography is an alphabetical list, by author, of the sources (books, journals, websites, etc) you have used to research and write your assignment. A bibliography usually includes information such as the author, title, publisher and date. An annotation is a concise summary and/or evaluation of the value or relevance of each source. An annotated bibliography combines these two elements and provides bibliographic information plus a summary and/ or evaluation of each of the sources you have used.
Why do we write annotated bibliographies?
You may be asked to write an annotated bibliography for several reasons:
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To provide a review of the literature on your subject
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To demonstrate the quality and depth of your reading
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To show the scope of sources or research available, e.g. journals, books, websites
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To inform the reader of the relevance, accuracy and quality of sources that may be of interest
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To explore and organise sources for further research
How to write an annotated bibliography
There are two main sections to each annotated bibliography entry:
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The bibliographical information - The reference
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The explanatory paragraphs - The annotation
An annotated bibliography demonstrates the quality and depth of your reading.
The reference
Citing or referencing information usually provides the reader of your bibliography with the following details:
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Who wrote or produced the resource
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The year when it was written
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The title of the book, article, website or video
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Where the information is located (in a book, journal article, web site, video)
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Publication details (where and when the book was published and who published it)
It also provides evidence of research and makes it possible to revisit sources when writing your research report. When you cite information it is important to present this information consistently.
The annotation
Depending on the requirements of your assignment, you may be asked to include sections in your annotated bibliography such as an introduction or a comment on the credibility of the source.
Parts of the annotation
This is a break down of the possible parts of an annotation with possible sentence starters:
The publication you are going to discuss.
Example of an APA reference:
Drewery, W. (2004). Human development in Aotearoa: A journey through life. McGraw-Hill.
An introduction/overview of the publication.
Example sentence starters:
• In this article, Drewery (2004) reviews/examines/reports/describes/researches…
• The author's purpose is to/investigate/challenge/highlight/reveal/show/define…
• This article outlines/looks at/focuses on/contrasts/aims to...
Summary of the publications content
Example sentence starters:
• The main findings of the study include/are/show/identify...
• The author describes/relates/demonstrates/concludes/compares/argues...
• The research methodology comprises/uses/includes...
Credibility of the publication and authority of the author
Example sentence starters:
• The author provides a strong theoretical…
• One limitation of this study is...
• There is a lack of supporting evidence which...
Relevance and currency of the publication
Example sentence starters:
• It is relevant to the writer’s own research because…
• This article will assist…
• Because the article is recent and from a reliable source…
• As the results of the research cannot be...
Attribution
