The reasons why accurate referencing is essential for academic
work are not immediately apparent, particularly for students new
to higher education. This essay will, therefore, examine why
referencing is an essential part of academic writing and in the
process address the question: ‘what is the point of referencing?’
The student
introduces the
main reasons for
referencing.
There are three main reasons for referencing. Firstly, referencing
helps student writers to construct, structure, support and
communicate arguments. Secondly, references link the writer’s
work to the existing body of knowledge. Thirdly, only through
referencing can academic work gain credibility.
Summarises the
structure of the
essay.
This essay will discuss these three aspects of referencing in detail,
examine their validity, identify how referencing affects a writer’s
writing style, and show how referencing helps students to present
their own ideas and opinions in assignments.
Engages with the
first of the reasons
for referencing:
construction of
arguments. The
student draws on
the work of a
Becker (1986) believes the construction of arguments is the most
important function of referencing systems. There are four
dimensions to this. Firstly, drawing on existing literature,
academic writers can construct their own arguments - and
adopting a referencing system supports this process. Secondly, it
published writer
(Becker) in support
of the four points
made.
Note the
systematic way the
ideas are
presented: