Center for Writing and Learning Support
The Center for Writing and Learning Support offers students "individual and small group consultations both online and in-person, writing workshops about general writing issues or those particular to a specific class assignment, handouts on aspects of the writing process, links to helpful websites and bibliographic resources, bi-monthly Writers’ Gatherings, and much more."
Visit the Center's website at https://www.pts.edu/Center-for-Writing-and-Learning-Support, or stop by the Center for more information or to schedule an appointment.
Citation Information
Turabian
In general, papers here at PTS require Turabian style citations, using Kate Turabian's A Manual for Writer's of Research Papers, 9th Ed. The Turabian guide is essentially an abbreviated, student-specific manual based on The Chicago Manual of Style (currently on it's 17th edition), which can also be used as an alternative.
- Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) - Chicago StylePurdue University's OWL is a great resource for accurate, user-friendly citation assistance.
- University of Chicago Turabian Citation GuideThe U of Chicago Press publishes Turabian's manual and outlines the basics in this online guide.
SBL
While not the predominant style at PTS, SBL (Society of Biblical Literature) style may be required in specific classes. It can be found in THE SBL Handbook of Style, 2nd Ed.
- Student Supplement for the SBL Handbook for Style, Second EditionThe linked online student guide is a useful resource on the SBL style basics.
Information Literacy
In 2016, the board of the American College and Research Libraries (ACRL) adopted a Framework for Information Literacy. The Framework is a set of interconnected core concepts that serve as a guideline for students in higher education and their instructors as they encounter and evaluate information. The six concepts, or "frames," are as follows:
- Authority is Constructed and Contextual: Information resources reflect their creators’ expertise and credibility, and are evaluated based on the information need and the context in which the information will be used. Authority is constructed in that various communities may recognize different types of authority. It is contextual in that the information need may help to determine the level of authority required.
- Information Creation as a Process: Information in any format is produced to convey a message and is shared via a selected delivery method. The iterative processes of researching, creating, revising, and disseminating information vary, and the resulting product reflects these differences.
- Information Has Value: Information possesses several dimensions of value, including as a commodity, as a means of education, as a means to influence, and as a means of negotiating and understanding the world. Legal and socioeconomic interests influence information production and dissemination.
- Research as Inquiry: Research is iterative and depends upon asking increasingly complex or new questions whose answers in turn develop additional questions or lines of inquiry in any field.
- Scholarship as Conversation: Communities of scholars, researchers, or professionals engage in sustained discourse with new insights and discoveries occurring over time as a result of varied perspectives and interpretations.
- Searching as Strategic Exploration: Searching for information is often nonlinear and iterative, requiring the evaluation of a range of information sources and the mental flexibility to pursue alternate avenues as new understanding develops.
You can learn more about the Framework here, or in the PDF document provided below.
Writing and Research Books
Quality Research Papers by Call Number: BL41 .V94 2014ISBN: 9780310514022Publication Date: 2014-02-11This updated third edition of Quality Research Papers gives improvements and added material for such things as the expanding field of online research and doing church-related research in a professional manner. Because so many new developments have taken place in the field of research, especially in terms of electronic research, this handy reference explores the ways to do research on the internet, including how to document such research. Quality Research Papers offers great opportunities to students today to determine which resources can be used and which should be rejected.
Research Strategies (6th Ed.) by Call Number: Z710 .B22 2017ISBN: 9781532018039Publication Date: 2017Online resources have given us access to more knowledge than ever before. We're buried in data, and defining what is and what is not genuine information becomes more of a challenge all the time. In this fifth edition of Research Strategies, author William Badke helps you make sense of all of the available information, shows you how to navigate and discern it, and details how to use it to your advantage to become a better researcher.
The Craft of Research by Call Number: Q180.55.M4 B66 2008ISBN: 9780226065656Publication Date: 2008-04-15The Craft of Research explains how to build an argument that motivates readers to accept a claim; how to anticipate the reservations of readers and to respond to them appropriately; and how to create introductions and conclusions that answer that most demanding question, "So what?" The third edition includes an expanded discussion of the essential early stages of a research task: planning and drafting a paper.
A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, Ninth Edition by Call Number: LB2369 .T8 2018ISBN: 9780226494425Publication Date: 2018-04-16This new edition of A Manual for Writers filters decades of expertise into modern standards. While previous editions incorporated digital forms of research and writing, this edition goes even further to build information literacy, recognizing that most students will be doing their work largely or entirely online and on screens. Chapters include updated advice on finding, evaluating, and citing a wide range of digital sources and also recognize the evolving use of software for citation management, graphics, and paper format and submission. The ninth edition is fully aligned with the recently released Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition, as well as with the latest edition of The Craft of Research.
Writing Theology Well 2nd Edition by Call Number: BR44 .Y34 2015ISBN: 9780567499172Publication Date: 2015-09-24A working guide for students conducting theological writing and research on theology and biblical studies courses, this book integrates the disciplines of writing, rhetoric, and theology, to provide a standard text for the teaching and mentoring of writing across the theological curriculum.As a theological rhetoric, it also encourages excellence in theological writing in the public domain by helping to equip students for their wider vocations as writers, preachers, and communicators in a variety of ministerial and professional contexts.
What Is Plagiarism?
Plagiarism is essentially when you copy a piece of writing from someone else and present it as your own work. Plagiarism is not allowed at PTS (or any academic institution). The following Internet resources provide more information, and can help to further clarify this important issue.