Throughout the semester I’ve learned about a lot about properly citing sources. While not at the forefront of our class it was still a skill I improved on as the class progressed. Specifically, I found myself being more properly able to cite in MLA format, which was the main style we used in this class. There were a few things I learned in this class that relates to how to use MLA format in a formal essay. First off is through formatting. I’ve learned that you want to put indents before for each paragraph. I’ve learned how you want to use the header and footer tool in order to put my last name and page umber in the top right portion of the document. I’ve learned where to properly place the title, along with the professor, date, and course which goes in the top left above your essay. But the biggest thing I’ve taken from this course as is relates to properly citing in MLA is the works cited page. Before taken this class I had little to no idea how to cite properly in MLA format but know I have a general understanding of how to cite properly. This is shown in my works cited page for project 2 below:

Works Cited:

Turkle, Sherry. The Empathy Diaries: A Memoir. Penguin Press, 2022.

Haidt, Jonthan. Get Phones Out Of Schools Now. Atlantic.

While its not perfect, its a start. I forgot to put the date in which I accessed them which is something I’ve learned from and plan to apply in future writing projects. But I have the names of both authors, the title of their work, and the publisher which are critical . I’ve learned so much about citing properly throughout this class. It just adds to the many things I now know how to do when writing a properly structured essay!

The last thing I wanted to note as it relates to sourcing, is that I feel vindicated that In the sense that I knew how to quote properly in high school using MLA format. That really helped me in this class, as I didn’t have to touch up on how to quote quotes, correctly.

Lastly I’ve come to realize how important citing properly is. Its real is important to the integrity of your writing, and the other authors writing your choosing to use. I truly feel grateful that I’ve learned all of this in the class.