Students all over the world depend on citation generators for writing MLA citations. They find these machines very easy and hassle-free to use. However, there is a drawback to using these tools – your research paper will possess little to no originality.

Citation generators are one of the worst ways to cite a reference in the MLA style. Don’t get me wrong; citation generators were created for a good reason: To help students and teachers find the correct citation formats for their papers. However, there are plenty of disadvantages to using these generators.

In this article, We’ll give details on how you can avoid using these tools and learn how to cite an essay correctly, and learn how to create your research paper using MLA-style citations.

What is the Latest Version of MLA?

The MLA Handbook, Ninth Edition, appeared in the spring of 2021. MLA 9 is not drastically different from MLA 8. The Handbook delves into more than just citation style. Recommendations for inclusive language are included, and more plagiarism. The Handbook also features numerous citation examples to illustrate better modifications.

In particular, there is more detail in the most recent edition of the Handbook regarding container rules for MLA citations. The Ninth Edition provides much-needed clarity on various container-related issues, especially regarding digital resources. Instagram and Twitter posts, YouTube channels, online forums like Reddit, and virtual art exhibitions are all examples of the types of content that can be contained in this way.

The norms for URLs have also shifted as a result of the changes made for the Ninth Edition. URLs are no longer required because they are transient and not always available to the general public. Despite this, URLs are still encouraged in the Ninth Edition. Undergraduates should shorten URLs by including only the pertinent information and omitting query strings.

It is up to the institution. You can determine how students handle URLs. Hypertext Transfer Protocol is the only mandatory component of URLs. Some visitors can’t view the site without this.

How to Write Citations

The following are a few tips for writing citations:

• When you quote from a source, you need to cite it.
  The most common type of citation is a parenthetical citation. A parenthetical citation tells readers where you found the information in your paper.
• In the text, you put a parenthesis () with the author’s last name and page number or other location information at the end of the sentence that contains the quotation.
• If there are two or more authors with the same last name and they’re not listed in alphabetical order by the first name, then list them as “(Author1 et al.)” or “(Author1 & Author2).”
• If there are three or more authors with different last names, then use “et al.” at the end of each author’s name (e.g., “Smith et al.”).
• If no author information is provided for an article in a database, such as PubMed Central (PMC), you can look up the article and find it on its landing page.

Examples of Citations

APA Citation Style

The American Psychological Association (APA) style is the preferred citation style at US colleges, universities, and other higher education institutions. It is also used by many professional journals, especially in social sciences, health care, and medicine.

Harvard Reference Style

The Harvard reference style uses an author-date system to cite references in a paper. This means that you will write down all references (author name, year published) at the end of your research paper.

APA Reference Formatting

In this method, every source is given its number within each section of a work cited list. Each entry begins with a lowercase letter followed by Arabic numerals (for example, 1). The format for citing sources is as follows: Author’s Last Name, Author’s First Name (Year Published). Title Of Book/Article/Document [Medium]. City: Publisher

Types of Citations

There are several different types of citations that can be used in academic research papers:

1. Bibliographies are lists of books, articles, and other sources used for research. Bibliographies are used at the end of a paper to provide full details about where information was found.
2. Footnotes – footnotes are placed at the bottom of each page and give more detailed information about sources used in a particular section or paragraph. Footnotes should be used sparingly, as they can distract from your main points by taking up too much space on each page.
3. Endnotes are placed after all other material at the end of an essay or article (after appendices). Endnotes allow you to include more detail than would fit in footnotes but keep it separate.
4. In-Text Citations: In-text citations are used within a quotation or paraphrase to provide the reader with additional information about the source. For example, (Smith 7-8).
5. Parenthetical Citations: Parenthetical citations indicate where information comes from in a sentence by including the author’s name and page number(s). For example, (Smith 7).

How do you Teach MLA Citations?

The best way to teach MLA citations is to start with the basics. Begin by explaining an MLA citation and how it differs from other types of citations. Then, you can explain how to format your paper using MLA style.

Once you have covered the basics, you can begin teaching students how to find and use secondary sources for research purposes. Students must learn how to evaluate these sources to determine whether they’re trustworthy enough for their purposes.

The next step is teaching students about primary sources and why they are essential when researching. You might want to show them examples of primary sources and discuss what makes them different from secondary sources.

After this, it’s time for students to learn how to cite sources correctly. This requires them to learn about all of the parts that make up an MLA citation (author’s last name and first initial, year published, title of source in italics) as well as how each piece fits into place within a parenthetical citation (where you indicate where you found the information).

How Do I Cite a Website?

To cite an Internet resource such as a website or database, provide the author’s name (if applicable), followed by the title of the article/resource or database entry (if applicable), followed by its URL (if applicable).

Core Elements of an MLA Citation

When writing an MLA citation, you will use a format that can be used in any type of reference list. The core elements of an MLA citation include author, date of publication, title, publisher, and location.

The first element that you will write about is the author. This is the person who wrote the book or article you are referencing. Your list of works cited pages is usually in alphabetical order by last name followed by a comma and first name if there is one. You should also include any other titles, such as Dr., Mr., Mrs., etc. if they are present in the work referenced. If multiple authors are listed in work, they should be arranged alphabetically according to the last name.

The next part of an MLA citation is when you write the date of publication for the referenced work. This includes both when it was published as well as where it was published. For example: “Smith, Jane (2010). Title of Book or Article.” Once again, this information needs to be arranged accurately according to how it appears in the source material, so double-check before writing anything down on paper!

Here’s what you need to know about each element:

Author – The author’s last name and first initial (or initials). For example, Smith, J.

Title – The title of the book or article. For example: How to Cook a Goose by Jack Sparrow.

Publication date – The year published followed by a comma and publication city/state or city/country if it is not in New York City or London (UK). For example, 2009 New York City or 2009 London (UK). Do not use “n.d.”; instead, use “no date.” If no date is available, then use n/a (not available). For example: n/a.

How to Avoid Citation Generators

Citation generators are an excellent tool for students who need to cite sources but lack the skills and knowledge to do so. They can lead to plagiarism if not used properly. Here are some tips to avoid citation generators:

1. Do not simply copy and paste the citation from the list provided by the citation generator. Instead, make sure to write your citations by citing your sources correctly. This is an easy way to avoid plagiarism and ensure that your citations are accurate and readable.
2. Ensure your citations are complete by adding page numbers and other relevant information like journal titles and volume or issue numbers.
3. It is better not to use any citation generator for personal or commercial purposes as these tools are designed for educational purposes only.
4. Make sure that the website you’re using is trustworthy and reliable. If it seems like something might not be correct, then it probably isn’t!
5. You should also check out the reviews of other users who have used the site before to get an idea of whether or not it will be helpful for your needs.
6. To ensure that you do not rely on a single source for your research paper, it is advisable to use multiple resources for citation generation. You can use various sources of information and then compare them to get more information about your topic of interest.
7. Make sure that you check all the available options before choosing a specific resource as a citation source in your research paper. This will help you develop a unique citation rather than using the same one repeatedly.

Disadvantages of Using Citation Generators

• The web is filled with citation generators. These websites are made to help you get your paper done in a short time, but they can cost you more than you can imagine.
• There are many reasons why using citation generators is a bad idea.
• These websites do not have enough information on their databases, and most of the data is not up to date.
• These websites are unreliable sources for research papers because there is no guarantee that the information is correct or factual. Some sites may even contain plagiarized content from other websites or books.

 

How to Read Citations

As a writer, you need to understand citation style formats well. Citing references is the most crucial part of any research paper. Hence, it is essential to know how to read citations.

There are different ways of citing sources, including APA and MLA styles. However, one must know how to correctly read citations to write a quality research paper or essay.

The first step in reading citations correctly is knowing how they are written. There are two types of citations: parenthetical and footnote. They contain all information relevant to the source. In contrast, parenthetical citations break that information into separate parts within the text (Reeder & Weigand, 2010).

Footnotes are often preferred over parenthetical citations because they provide more space for additional information such as page numbers and titles (Reeder & Weigand, 2010). On the other hand, parenthetical citations allow for more flexibility in placement within an article which can improve readability (Reeder & Weigand, 2010).

In addition to these main differences between footnotes and parenthetical citations, some other things should be considered when reading these references.

How Do I Read Citations?

• Read the citation carefully.
• Note the author’s name and where the article was published.
• Look for the article’s date or when it was last updated.
• Check whether there is an author list, which includes all of the authors who contributed to writing the paper.
• Find out how many pages long it is and note down the page numbers for each section of the paper you wish to cite in your work.
• Find out what kind of reference is appropriate for your paper.
• Look up the reference in an index or table of contents to know where it appears in the book or journal article.
• Use the author-date system when giving citations using author names and dates (or other elements), e.g., Smith (1997). This means that if you are citing an article by John Smith (Smith, 1997), this should appear as Smith (1997).

Bottom Line

Knowing how to cite your sources is of utmost importance in writing and research. The problem is that most of us were never formally taught how to do it by our professors or teachers. Thankfully, with the Internet being such a valuable resource, all you need to do is search for the correct citation format for the type of paper you are writing and for the subject, and you’ll be good to go!