Now that you have completed reading most of your Introduction to Information Literacy for Students textbook, you have the necessary comfort level and familiarity with the library to approach this library assignment. Budget for 2-3 hours of work. You will use both the online and the physical library at Marymount California University. 

This library assignment introduces you to some of the resources offered by the Marymount Library. Learning to use the library -- to go beyond Google, your course textbook, and the professor's lecture -- supports learning and inquiry and helps you transition from high school "search" to college-level "research." 

For the annotated bibliography assignment, follow the guide lines listed below on this page. 

Before submitting your assignment, use the assignment checklist to ensure you've included all of the required sections found on the left side of this page.

This library assignment contains many research skills that you will need, to be an effective researcher here at Marymount California University. Some of these research skills include: finding books, citing sources, summarizing information, and evaluating materials for your research need.

For this assignment you will search the MCU Library catalog and academic databases for the following four sources:

• One physical book using the MCU library catalog and retrieve it from our library
• One eBook using the MCU library catalog
• One article in Academic Search Premier database
• One article in ProQuest Research Library database 

An annotated bibliography is a combination of the words annotation and bibliography. An annotation is a short summative and/or evaluative paragraph. One of the purposes of writing an annotation is to inform the reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited, and to state how this source will be used in or relevant to the paper or project. 

A descriptive annotation describes the source itself without summarizing the actual argument, hypothesis, or message in the content. It describes what the source addresses or covers, what subjects or topics are included, and any special features, such as  appendices or bibliographies. What it does not include is any criticism of the content. 

This type of annotation seeks to answer the question: "Does this source cover or address the topic I am researching?" 

A bibliography is a list of references that helps a reader identify sources of information. An annotated bibliography is a list of references that not only identifies the sources of information but also includes a short evaluation summary of each source.   

Your annotated bibliography will be made up of sources relevant to your research question you have been exploring these past 6 weeks and will include a summary of each source. As you research your topic, develop an annotated bibliography of relevant sources. Your final annotated bibliography should include annotations for 4 sources that represent multiple perspectives on your research topic. ​

Here are some guidelines set by the Marymount Library: 

    1. Write a Statement of Scope. Write a brief introductory statement to explain what your annotated bibliography is covering (one to two sentences).  The statement of scope provides some general insight that should connect all the subsequent material (view example).  

    2.The first part of the annotated bibliography entry should contain a citation written in the following documentation style (ask your instructor if they prefer a different citation style such as MLA or APA):      

For a physical book or eBook:

Author's last name, Author's first name. (Year Published). Title of book. City, State: Publisher.              

For an article: 

Author's last name, Author's first name. Title of article. Name of periodical, year of publication. Remember: Annotated bibliography should be arranged alphabetically. 

     3. The second part is your annotation. It should summarize the material contained in the source. You may want to include the following: 

• What does the source address or cover? 
• What subjects or topics are included (e.g. review the table of contents in a book or the main headings in an article)?
• How does this source relevant to your career research topic? 

    4. The third part of your assignment will include proof or records of your sources found in the MCU library catalog and academic databases. Label this section A-F and include the following bold headings in this section of your paper:   

A. Copy of the front and back cover of the physical book (Note: including the call number sticker which is most of the time located on the spine of the book). (view example) 

B. Physical book: record copy from the MCU online library catalog (view example).

C. eBook: record copy from MCU online library catalog (view example). 

D. First page of eBook: record copy from MCU online catalog (view example). 

E. Article #1: record copy of first page from Academic Search Premier (view example).

F. Article #2: record copy of first page from ProQuest Research Library (view example). 

• Double-space the text of your paper, and use a legible font (e.g. Times New Roman). The font size should be 12 pt.
• Set the margins of your document to 1 inch on all sides.
• Create a header (use your last name) that numbers all pages consecutively in the upper right-hand corner, one-half inch from the top and flush with the right margin (e.g. Rodriguez 1) (view example).
• In the upper left-hand corner of the first page, list your full name, your instructor's name, the course, and the date. Again, be sure to use double-spaced text (view example). 
• Indent the four annotation paragraphs one half-inch from the left margin. Use the tab key as opposed to pushing the space bar five times (view example). 
• Write a brief introductory statement to explain what your annotated bibliography is covering (one to two sentences). Title this section: Statement of Scope. The statement of scope provides some general insight that should connect all the subsequent material (view example). 
• Below the statement of scope, center the title: Annotated Bibliography (do not bold text)           (view example). 

See Sample Assignment and Rubric section below to view a full MCU Student Annotated Bibliography Example assignment and download a word document template. This will help you gain a better understanding of the guidelines and format of the paper listed in this section and get you started.