In this article, a student writer discusses how mastering various study skills – referencing and paraphrasing in particular – can contribute towards your academic success.
The following article will discuss how study skills can be applied to achieve academic success. It will focus on two key skills, activities related to the main topic of discussion, and their importance, which is the purpose of the article. Study skills are a structured plan that individuals use around their learning journey. This includes time management, managing stress, analysing, being organised, reading, preparing for exams, evaluating, planning, consistency, and note-taking (Godfrey, J., 2014).
Introduction
Study skills are not a subject, but they are simply a skill that you practise and develop. Study skills are essential because they contribute to the expansion of an individual’s academic work through the effective absorption of new information, organisation of the information, and retention of information. Study skills are not only useful for students; they are also transferable to education, the workplace, and everyday life. Good study strategies enable deeper learning development in the long term for an individual (Cottrell, S., 2019).
The main body will explain the two chosen study skills, which are referencing and paraphrasing. It will elaborate on how paraphrasing and referencing can achieve intertwined academic writing. It will cover how they help to impact and enhance academic studies, as well as providing references to support the information provided. The findings will then be summarised via the conclusion.
Referencing
The first study skill activity to be discussed is referencing. References consist of a list of sources that are cited within the primary content of an assignment to form citations or in-text citations, mentioned at the end of an assignment in the form of a reference list (Manchester Metropolitan U., 2019).
There are four main referencing styles: Harvard System, Modern Humanities Research Association System, American Psychological Association, and Modern Languages (Williams, K., 2017).
Most organisations and schools use the Harvard referencing style, which is mostly used to cite university courses such as health and social care, nursing, and social work. People should always check with their organisation or school to confirm which referencing style they will need to use (Neville, C., 2010).
When composing researched work, there must be acknowledgment of the source that originally wrote the content (Kent U., 2012).
The importance of referencing is to avoid any plagiarism, any allegations of copyright infringement, to show proof of sources, and to help readers find the original text of a written piece of work easily. Individuals need to learn how to use different referencing styles and apply them to their written content correctly (Study Moose, 2016).
The impact that referencing has on learning is that it shows that someone can independently research and show evidence of where they got the information, as well as showing that the individual has explored widely for the chosen subject, thus making the information more valid (Richard Pears & Graham Shields, 2019). Providing references shows that the source is reliable. It also shows that you understand the nature, strengths, and limitations of the source, which is a transferable skill for the individual to obtain. It also shows authority and sincerity in the student’s work, as well as showing that you have explored widely on the chosen topic, thus making the information more valid (Kate & Mary, 2017).
Referencing is essential for academic writing as individuals are able to demonstrate the depth of their essay and ultimately put their work into context. Students and other individuals should always show academic integrity when writing their essays. Hard work and honesty are very important in academic writing (Sussex U., 2020). This study skill is a good way to share knowledge and to give the writer support in their written text. People can reference books, journals, pictures, articles, or websites. Here is an example of how to reference a book: Author surname, initials. (Year) Title. Edition. Place of publication: Publisher (Pellegrini & Mbeteh, 2017). To get the best out of referencing, students should follow the right referencing guidelines.
Paraphrasing
The second study skill activity to be discussed is paraphrasing. This is when an individual expresses another person’s written work in their own words but keeps the definition the same. Students and people who are rewording a text should keep it simple and straight to the point (Staffordshire U., 2019).
This skill shows that a person has a clear understanding of the topic they are studying (Richard & Graham, 2017).
Paraphrasing is an art that ambitiously aims to improve writing, speaking, reading, and listening skills, which are essential tools for academic writing, as well as being transferable to an individual’s employability skills (Mohamed Alajmi, 2019, p.275).
Paraphrasing helps with academic writing by ensuring an individual’s work does not contain any plagiarism. Plagiarism is when someone copies another person’s work or art directly and claims it to be their own. Anybody who uses information from a different source must remember to reference and cite their work correctly, even if it was rephrased into their own words (Chuong, H., 2017).
There are other ways people can use to express an author’s work, such as summarising and quoting; however, paraphrasing is one of the many preferred skills used in academic writing. This skill impacts learning by enabling thinking, expressing, and understanding researched information at a higher level (Gimenez, J., 2018).
Paraphrasing can be accomplished through a complete paragraph or sentence. There are advantages and disadvantages when paraphrasing. Individuals need to be careful as they can easily copy the original text of another writer directly without referencing, or they can change the definition of the original text. The advantage of paraphrasing is that it is a faster way to remember researched information and develop the knowledge of an individual. Paraphrasing is similar to critiques because it is regularly used to check understanding of an assignment. People paraphrase because their rewording is easier to remember than the original writer’s, they are showing their academic skills, or the quotation from a text might be too long. To begin a paraphrase, individuals must read the text of someone else’s work several times for their understanding and then proceed with writing it out in their own words, keeping in mind to cite and reference that information and not change the meaning of that content (The Open U., 2016).
Good paraphrasing includes similar ideas to the original text, rephrasing or rewording, minimising lengthy wording, keeping the definition of the original, and maintaining the sentence formation. This will show proof that the person has the skill to research and use informative work independently (Godfrey, J., 2014, p.20). Students should always show honesty in the work they present, as academic integrity is important.
Conclusion
Based on the points discussed, both referencing and paraphrasing are two essential tools to have during a student’s journey to academic success. The two skills are interlinked and therefore do not contradict one another, as one depends on the other. However, the individual’s work can be affected if they have misinterpreted the writing from the original source. The benefits of using paraphrasing go beyond an academic setting (Nelson, T., 1879).
Paraphrasing can also be used in a professional setting as a tool to encourage new developments in research topics. This means that once a student masters how to use paraphrasing efficiently and correctly, they can apply it to the next stage of their life, showing academic success (Nieuwerburgh, C., 2017).
To produce a successful essay or assignment, students need both paraphrasing and referencing skills, as these demonstrate techniques, effort, and understanding of academic writing. These skills build confidence and provide good written text for the reader. The two skills help individuals in education become much more effective in their academic studies (The Open U., 2020).
When writing an essay, referencing and paraphrasing form a strong combination for individuals to use. If paraphrasing and referencing existed without each other, academic writing would not be as successful as it is now. People would quote directly from other sources and claim it as their own work. It would be hard for the original source to claim their ideas, there would be no proof of where people got the information, individuals would lack confidence in writing assignments, and people would fail to show their understanding of a researched text. When paraphrasing, individuals need to reference, and when referencing, there should be a backup passage to support the reference. This is where the two are joined to form a perfect assignment or essay. Combining these skills in academic writing makes an informative and impressive essay, determining an individual’s level of academic understanding in the topic studied. People should never write unnecessary information or repeat the same information word for word when paraphrasing. This would be direct quoting from the original source and would constitute plagiarism (Fergusson, K., 2016).
Study strategies, referencing, and paraphrasing all link together to create successful academic studies. Over time, these skills will become easier, as they are often used in the study world.
To conclude this article, the combination of paraphrasing and referencing works together to ensure the best outcome for academic success, a higher grade, and an improved understanding of the topic discussed. Paraphrasing and referencing are important tools for students during their studies. Study skills help individuals develop deeper learning. Individuals must reference and cite their work correctly to avoid plagiarism. Academic integrity is good practice, especially at university. Referencing helps people demonstrate the depth of their essays and put their work into context. Good paraphrasing practice rewords others’ ideas while keeping their meaning intact. Different referencing styles exist, but individuals must ask their organisation which style to use. Study skills, including planning, time management, analysing, and managing stress, are essential for academic success.
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