An annotated bibliography includes: 1) A list of citations for resources on a topic 2) Annotations that provide an evaluative description for each citation to inform readers of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources Annotations should summarize topics and main arguments, assess the source, and reflect on the point of view, accuracy, currency and how helpful the source is. When assessing journal articles, one should consider factors like the author's credentials, when the article was published, the intended audience, and research methods used. Databases and the library website can help find additional sources to support ideas or use as evidence. Sources need to be properly referenced following styles like Harvard referencing. Students should seek help from information skills

1. What is an annotated
bibliography?
Holly Singleton
Information Skills Adviser

2. Today we will cover:
- What an annotated bibliography is
- What you need to include
- How to successfully assess journal
articles
- Searching for more evidence
- Where to get help if you need it

3. 1. A list of citations of books, journal
articles or other resources

4. 2. Each citation is followed by an
evaluative description – the annotation.

5. 3. The purpose of the annotation is to
inform the reader of the relevance,
accuracy and quality of the sources
referenced.

6. Annotations should:
Summarise (topics and main arguments)
Assess
Reflect
(point of view, accuracy, currency)
(How is this source helpful to you?)
Try not to just describe what the article is saying!

10. How do I assess a journal
article?

11. As you read your chosen articles ask yourself the
following questions:

12. WHO?
Who wrote the article? What are the author’s
credentials? Do they have the necessary
experience and qualifications to write on this
topic? Are they linked with a reputable
organisation or institution?

13. Look out for:
• Can you find any other articles or
resources by the author?
• Try to find out about where the author
works, or what their experience is – it may
not necessarily tell you this in the article!

14. WHEN?
When was the article published? Would the
article be considered current or out-of-date? Do
you think there is more up-to-date material
available?

15. Look out for:
• The publication date of the article (it
should be on the front page)
• Do a search for articles on the same topic
from the past 5 years – are they agreeing
or disagreeing with the information in your
chosen article?

16. WHAT?
What was the author’s purpose for writing this
article? Who is the intended audience?

17. Look out for:
• Think about the author’s written tone and
what the subject matter is – that will give
you a clue as to who the intended
audience is!
• Remember to read the article thoroughly
to understand its purpose – you may need
to read it more than once.

18. HOW?
If the article is a research study describe the
methods used in gathering the information.

19. Look out for:
• If the study is presented numerically – e.g. a
survey of a large number of people and the
results are shown in percentages – this is
known as quantitative research.
• If the study is telling us about people’s opinions
and feelings on a certain topic – e.g. interviews
with a few people – this is known as qualitative
research.

20. Look out for:
• Once you’ve identified whether research article
is quantitative or qualitative, you can start to
evaluate if these were the best methods to use
for this study.

21. Look out for:
• Try to evaluate how the research was
conducted: did the study involve lots of
participants, or not that many? Was the study
only carried out in a particular area?

22. How do I find other journal
articles to support what I say or
to use as evidence?

23. You may need to find and read other journal articles to
learn more about the topics of your chosen articles, and
also to help you assess them.
You can look for other journal articles through online
databases, found through the library website.

24. How do I reference my journal
articles?

25. The details you need to reference a journal article can normally
be found on the first page:

26. The format of your reference should look like this:
Surname, Initial. (Date) Title of the article,
Title of the journal the article came from,
volume number (issue number), page
number range.
An example with a real journal article:
Clarke, C. (2014) Promoting the 6Cs of
nursing in patient assessment, Nursing
Standard, 28 (44), pp. 52-59.

27. You can find a link to the full Harvard referencing style
guide through this link:
https://my.lsbu.ac.uk/page/referencing-your-work
Always refer to the guide to make sure you are
referencing in the correct way!

28. I’m struggling! Where can I go for
help?

29. Contact your Information Skills Adviser
LLR-hsc@lsbu.ac.uk
Book an appointment with us or just ask a
question!