SAP101 Assessment 2: Additional notes
What is an annotated bibliography?
A bibliography (reference list) is a list of citations to sources (books, articles, films, websites, etc.)
that you’ve used when researching a topic for an assessment. An annotated bibliography includes a
summary and evaluation of each source. These annotations are written in paragraph form and
should include the following information:
1. an explanation of the main purpose of the source
2. a short summary of key findings or arguments of the source
3. the academic/intellectual credentials of the source. Does it appear in a peer-reviewed
journal? Is the author someone who has expertise in the area?
4. any shortcomings or biases you notice
5. the value of this work as a contribution to the topic you’re exploring.
An annotated bibliography is made up of two parts:
1. A reference:
a. this will present the details of your source (eg a journal article or a book chapter) in
APA7 format
. references will be a
anged in alphabetical order by the author’s surnames, just the
same as you do in the reference list for other assessments
2. An annotation:
a. This would include one or more of the following:
i. A summary or description of the source
ii. An evaluation and analysis of the study
iii. A reflection on how useful this article
ook chapter is to your research
The use of questions is important for studying. When you ask questions about what you are
studying, then you will begin to understand the topic.
Note: As you read each source, you need to focus on the main ideas. Remember, you don’t need to
summarise everything in your annotated bibliography as it will generally only be a single paragraph.
One way of writing summaries is to use the 5WH approach below as this can help you to
ainstorm
ideas for your assessment questions and will guide your research.
Who? Did the study / was studied
When? Was it written / over what period of time
Where? Country
egion/setting/
Why? What issue(s) were addressed
What? What were the results/conclusion(s)
How? Does this information relate to what I already know or to my own personal
experience