Sample Assignment: Developing an Annotated Bibliography
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An annotated bibliography is a list of sources with a short summary or annotation for each entry. This common assignment quickly informs a reader about the direction of your research. It also shows your mastery of two major research skills: identifying a source and writing a summary.
For a sample source evaluation, see Sample Assignment: Preparing a Source Evaluation in Ch. 32.
For more on MLA and APA formats, see Chs. 36 and 37.
To develop an annotated bibliography, find out which format you’re expected to use to identify sources and what your annotations should do—summarize only, evaluate, or meet a special requirement (such as to interpret). A summary is a brief neutral explanation in your own words of the source’s thesis or main points. In contrast, an evaluation is a judgment of the source’s accuracy, reliability, or relevance.
Martina Schwartz prepared an annotated bibliography for her research question, How can education be improved in Native American communities? She identified each source as primary (a firsthand or an eyewitness account) or secondary (a secondhand analysis based on primary material), summarized it, and described how she expected it to support her position. The following is a portion of her annotated bibliography.
Brayboy, Bryan McKinley Jones.“Culture, Place, and Power: Engaging the Histories and Possibilities of American Indian Education.” History of Education Quarterly, vol. 54, no. 3, 2014, pp. 395-402. Wiley Online Library, doi: 10.1111/hoeq.12075.
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Secondary source. Brayboy, an anthropologist, writes that learning happens not only in the classroom but also in every aspect of life. I plan to use Brayboy’s claim to support my argument that education must be reformed to be more cultural and holistic in order to have improved outcomes in Native American communities.
“I will stop 1,800 kids from becoming dropouts.” American Indian College Fund, 2012, creativity-online.com/work/american-indian-college-fund-help-a-student-help-a-tribe-3/26344.
Primary source. One of a series of print ads that encourages donations to this fund that assists Native Americans in attending college. According to the text below the photograph, the subject (“Allen”) is a student studying early childhood education at a college in Washington. Allen is quoted as saying that children who grow up on reservations don’t have positive role models from their own culture, which makes it difficult from them to be successful. I will use this ad as an example of how educational charities aim to help Native American communities.
United States, Executive Office of the President. 2014 Native Youth Report. The White House. Dec. 2014, www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/20141129nativeyouthreport_final.pdf.
Secondary source. This report interprets numerous statistics and facts (primary evidence). It includes extensive information about education along with data about poverty and nutrition rates. This piece argues in favor of increased tribal control over education and stronger integration of Native American cultures and languages in the classrooms. I will use this report to demonstrate that education needs to be targeted to the needs of the Native American community.
Learning by Doing Writing an Annotation
Learning by Doing
Writing an Annotation
Select one of your sources (or a reading from this book) and write a few sentences to describe what the source covers and why it is relevant to your project. If your instructor has specified a particular approach, tailor your annotation to follow those directions. Exchange annotation drafts with a classmate or small group, and discuss ways to clarify contents or relevance.