Purpose

The Annotated Bibliography assignment is an exercise in collection, curation, critical reading, and summary. Continuing with the same topic and research question you identified in the Topic Proposal assignment, you will compile a list of related academic and/or professional sources and write critical summaries of each source.

Audience

Think of your audience for the annotated bibliography as a well-informed member of the corresponding academic discipline’s discourse community who may not be familiar with your specific topic. Remember what you learned about perspective and bias to construct your identity as the writer in relation to your imagined readers.

Objectives

• Build a cohesive collection of academic and/or professional sources about a selected topic for future research
• Summarize the selected sources, identifying their purpose, major points, and contributions to the discipline’s knowledge on the topic

Process

1. Locate 8 academic sources published within the last 10 years about the topic you have identified for your research project.
   • Two of these sources may be professional sources published within the last 10 years about the topic you have identified for your research project.
2. Skim the articles you found to determine their relevance to the topic and potential usefulness for your future research. If necessary, continue searching and replace sources you originally found to complete your list.
3. After skimming and selecting your articles, carefully read each of them, taking critical notes as you read. When writing your notes include the thesis/argument, major findings/points, and gaps/flaws/limitations.
4. Write a one-paragraph summary of each source, identifying its purpose, major points, and how it fits with your research topic.
5. Write an accurate APA or MLA style citation of each source.
6. Write a 250-300 word introduction to your annotated bibliography in which you reflect on main ideas, trends, and divergences that you noticed in your sources.

Format

The completed annotated bibliography should include 8 source annotations and an introductory paragraph and should follow the following format guidelines:

• • Double-spaced, standard font and margins
  • APA or MLA style citations