ABSTRACT
The
paper examines the design and implementation of a computerized reference
management system. The research project was carried out to solve the
referencing/plagiarism problem students undertaking their research projects in
universities, polytechnics and colleges of education face. The research project
covered four (4) major referencing styles namely; MLA, APA, HARVARD and
CHICAGO.
The researcher aimed at building
a user friendly system where students can easily enter information sources for
accurate, fast citations using the appropriate referencing style approved by
their institutions. The implementation of the system was achieved using PHP and
MYSQL programming languages.
CHAPTER
ONE
INTRODUCTION
Referencing
simply refers to the process of citing or documenting the sources of quotes,
theories, ideas, illustrations and diagrams used in writing a university
research paper, essay, article, assignments etc (Archibong, 2014). Referencing
is an important task in the research writing process, as acknowledgements and
other necessary credits need to be given to sources or authors where
information is gotten from.
The
function of references is to allow the reader to identify the source of an idea
or locate a quotation. They should therefore be clear and consistent, and poor
presentation may be penalized.
References
should be numbered in the text and written out in full at the bottom of the
page as footnotes (Chernin, 1988).
You
should reference every piece of evidence you use and should also reference key
ideas and approaches drawn from the secondary literature.
Footnotes
are not included in the word count, but you must not include any material other
than references to secondary or primary sources. Any written material should go
in the main body of the essay or dissertation. You should also always reference
the book/article/source/lecturein which YOU discovered the information. Copying
out someone else’s footnotes is plagiarism (Laurens, 2009).
Reference
management software, citation management software or personal bibliographic
management software is software for scholars and authors to use for recording
and utilising bibliographic citations (Enrico,2013). Once a citation has been
recorded, it can be used time and again in generating bibliographies, such as lists
of references in scholarly books, articles and essays. The development of
reference management packages has been driven by the rapid expansion of
scientific literature.
These
software packages normally consist of a database in which full bibliographic references
can be entered, plus a system for generating selective lists of articles in the
different formats required by publishers and scholarly journals. Modern
reference management packages can usually be integrated with word processors so
that a reference list in the appropriate format is produced automatically as an
article is written, reducing the risk that a cited source is not included in
the reference list. They will also have a facility for importing the details of
publications from bibliographic databases.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
In
recent years, the issue of plagiarism has been a dominant concern for students
especially in higher institutions of learning (Neville, 2007). Some
students in Nigerian Universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of education find
it difficult to properly reference a source of information with appropriate
referencing styles approved by their institutions. However, there can be a fine
line between plagiarism and poor referencing practice, and learner development
and support units in further and higher education institutions report that
students often struggle to understand, not just the 'how-to', but the 'when to'
and 'why' aspects of referencing.
Referencing
sources in academic writing is such an integral part of academic writing that
academic practitioners do not always give it the central attention it
deserves. According to Angélil-Carter (2000), some students see
referencing or citations as a formality, hence they do not take it seriously.
1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The
main objective of the study is to design and implement a computerized reference
management system. Specific objectives of the study are:
1. To
design a system that will take up citation projects and store information
sources in a secured manner.
2. To
design a system that will enable users to reference quickly and accurately with
Modern Language Association (MLA) format.
3. To
design a system that will enable users to reference quickly and accurately
reference with American Psychological Association (APA) format.
4. To
design a system that will enable users to reference quickly and accurately
using the Harvard referencing style.
5. To
design a system that will enable users to reference quickly and accurately
using the Chicago referencing style.
1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The
study will aid students in properly referencing or citing information when
writing any academic paper.
The
study will contribute to the body of knowledge as it is relatively new. Student
researchers, who find the topic interesting, will use the paper as a guide in
developing other referencing systems.
1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The
study is limited to the design and implementation of a computerized reference
management system, using PHP and MYSQL programming languages. The implementation
will cover four (4) major referencing/citation styles namely: MLA, APA, CHICAGO
and HARVARD.
1.6 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
Financial
and time constraints were the major limitations to the study. Financial
obligations to get necessary software for the design aspect of the project were
a bit challenging.
Combining
the research project with lectures was also stressful on the researcher.
1.7 DEFINITION OF TERMS
Reference:
is a relation between objects in which one object designates, or acts as a
means by which to connect to or link to, another object.
Reference Management System:
Reference management software, citation management software or personal
bibliographic management software is software for scholars and authors to use
for recording and utilising bibliographic citations (references).
MLA:
Modern Language Association
APA:
American Psychological Association
System:
a set of things working together as parts of a mechanism or an interconnecting
network; a complex whole.
Academic Paper:
A research paper usually written at tertiary institution.
REFERENCES
Angélil-Carter,
S. (2000). Stolen Language? Plagiarism in writing. Harlow: Pearson education.
Archibon,
A.A (2014). Ref 101: The Nitty-Gritty Of Referencing In Research. Retrieved
from
http://nairaproject.com/blog/complete-guide-on-how-to-reference-in-research.html
Chernin,
E. (1988). "The 'Harvard system': a mystery dispelled", British
Medical Journal. October 22, 1988, pp. 1062–1063.
Enrico,
F (2013). "Usage of Reference Management Software at the University of
Torino". JLIS.it. University of Florence. 4 (1). doi:10.4403/jlis.it-8679.
Retrieved 29 June 2013
Laurens,
M.E. (2009). Maturation, fecundation, and segmentation of Limax campestris, Binney",
Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College, Volume 6, p.
194.
Neville, C. (2007). The Complete Guide
to Referencing and Avoiding Plagiarism. Maidenhead: Open University Press.