Library Resources: Dual Enrollment Research Resources: Annotated Bibliography

What is an annotated bibliography?

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations for article, encyclopedia, web, and book sources. Citations are listed in alphabetical order.**

Each citation is followed by a brief (200-300 words) descriptive and evaluative paragraph called an annotation. When writing your annotation, the complete citation should always come first and the annotation follows.

Why do we do an annotated bibliography?

The general purpose of the annotation is to inform the reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.

What to write

General Annotated Paragraph

Explain the main purpose of the work.
Briefly describe the contents.
Indicate the possible audience for the work.
Note any special features (graphics, maps, references).
Warn of any defect, weakness, or suspected bias. Evaluate the source. How effectively does it convey the information? Why is it a strong source for your topic? (Or why isn’t it?)

*Your instructor may modify this format to be specific to the needs of the assignment.

Sample annotated paragraph in MLA format

Albanese, Andrew Richard. "Check it out: could the nomination of the next librarian of Congress

spark a political battle?" Publishers Weekly, 6 July 2015, p. 18+. Academic OneFile,

http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A421321682/AONE?u=mcc_glendale&sid=AONE&xid=7925c2f5. Accessed 27 Aug. 2018.

This source is a weekly news magazine that focuses on the international book business. This article addresses the retirement of the current Librarian of Congress after twenty-eight years. This position is appointed by the President; there have only been six people in this role since 1900. The current Librarian of Congress, James Billington age 86, has faced criticism by his peers, such has the Librarian of Harvard, for not embracing the digital revolution and the use of digital technologies. Another criticism is that the appointed person does not have to be a professional librarian; James Billington was a historian, and there hasn’t been a professional librarian leading the Library of Congress in 61 years. Leaders of the American Library Association are calling on the President to this time appoint a professional librarian with experience running a major library, experience in managing digital resources, and one knowledgeable of scholarly research and communication who will move the Library of Congress into the 21st Century. Due to recent controversies such as the Patriot Act and the Stop Online Piracy Act, this appointment may cause some political controversy. The audience for this work is anyone working in libraries, follows politics or copyright issues, or is generally interested in the Library of Congress and political appointments. The article fairly covers the issue, reflecting the potential issues the new Librarian of Congress and the President may face during the appointment process.

Create an Annotated Bibliography in NoodleTools

See the NoodleTools page on the Citation Help guide to create a NoodleTools account.

How to add or edit an annotation

Modified on: Mon, Jan 22, 2018 at 9:07 AM

Add an annotation

After you create a source citation, you have the option to add an annotation. Check with your teacher if you aren't sure whether or not to annotate your sources. We also provide some helpful hints here.

On the source form, to add an annotation, click the button "Save & Add annotation."

A pop-up annotation box will appear.

Annotations will auto-save as you type, which ensures you don't lose any work. To view earlier edits of your annotation, click "Manage versions" in the lower right corner of the box (1). A column of earlier versions will appear to the right of the annotation. Select the most recent edit (2).

To edit an annotation

On the Sources screen, to edit (or add) an annotation to any source, you can click the "Options" button next to the citation on the Sources screen, then choose "Edit Annotation" as shown:

Keep in mind that if you are writing long annotations (not just one or two sentences) in an MLA-style project, you'll want to choose the option under "Print/Export > Formatting Options... > Annotation Spacing" (see below) that changes the annotation formatting so that they start on a new line with more spacing.