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When writing an assignment, you can face with the problem of using citations in text. There is a couple of ways to insert references and citations in your academic paper, and one of them is using footnotes.
But first, let us take a look at what are the citations. The citation can be understood as a reference to information taken from another text. It can be direct when the information is transcribed literally, indirect when the transcript is free or citation of the citation when the information is not taken directly from the original, but from an intermediate source.
Footnotes in the assignment are usually the direct citations and references placed at the bottom of the page. The main function of the footnote within an academic work is to weave considerations and provide further insights. The footnotes are responsible for aggregating information to content without necessarily interrupting the reasoning in a paragraph.
How to do footnotes in assignment easily?
The footnotes are classified into reference notes and explanatory notes. The reference notes are those that appear in the academic text to give credit to the bibliographic source. This same information also needs to be included in the reference list at the end of the paper. Translations to foreign languages can also be addressed through a reference note. Students often confuse footnotes and endnotes. That is why we propose you to read about the difference between footnotes and endnotes.
When writing a reference note, one must include the author’s last name and the date of publication. In the case of a material searched on the internet, the note must also have the full link address and date of access to the referenced content. Remember: the first citation of a publication should always be complete.
The explanatory notes refer to comments, points of view and personal observations made by the author. The explanatory notes can be used by the author to make comments, clarifications, and observations. They also serve to reference unpublished works or data obtained through personal communication.
Footnotes are located on the lower edge of the same page on which they occur in the text. They are usually separated from the text by a continuous line and typed in single space with a smaller character than the one used for the text.
In cases where the reference notes are written by title, it is recommended that the footnote cover the first word referring to the title, in capital letters, followed by ellipses, then the date of publication and page.
It is also advisable to insert in a footnote the surname of the author in capital letters, the title of the work in italics and the page.
It is common to observe the use of certain Latin words, expressions or abbreviations in academic texts, but it is advisable to avoid the constant use of this type of terms since it can impede the reading of the work. Bibliographic indications may be repeated as many times as necessary.
When you need to use footnotes in the assignment, you should remember the main points, mentioned below:
- the footnote should be short. Instead of leaving the full text in the footnote, use direct and indirect quotes;
- always place the notes at the foot of the pages, consecutively numbered with the use of Arabic numerals;
- for the reasons of not interfering with the structure of the context, footnotes should be mentioned separately not to interrupt the logical sequence established in the academic text;
- write footnotes in smaller letters than the one used in the original text, with simple space between the lines;
- all footnotes must include the author’s surname, date of publication, as well as other information facilitating the location of the work cited.
We hope this article was useful for you and now you will know exactly how to use the footnotes in your assignment. Good luck!