Doing your Best Work, Part I: Quick Tips for a Successful Discussion Board
Assignment
Good morning to you!
This series of messages is designed to help you do your best work as a student in this course, and
I suspect this advice will be useful to you in other courses as well. I will issue these messages
daily for the first week, so please review them and follow the guidance therein.
To begin, I wanted to mention some of the typical errors I see when grading discussion board
posts so you can avoid them when submitting yours. If I highlight a word or phrase in bold, pay
particular attention to that item as you're proofreading your work before submitting it.
Use citations and references. Think of each post and reply as a mini-research paper, with
citations in the main text and a bibliography at the end. I recommend the author-date
style, which means the use of parenthetical in-text citations, mainly because most
students try to use lists of footnotes or endnotes as their bibliography, and that is not the
correct way to list your references. Let's say you have 3 footnotes for quotes or thoughts
taken from the same book or article. Your list of footnotes will reflect those three
citations, but your bibliography should only reflect one reference since they all came
from one source. If you use parenthetical in-text citations - for example, a quote from the
Gingrich book on page 83 would result in a citation that looks like this (Gingrich 2011,
83) - you don't need a list of footnotes or endnotes, and you won't mistakenly use a
footnotes/endnotes list as your bibliography. Does that make sense? A parenthetical in-
text citation lists the author(s) and year of publication, without punctuation between
them, and a page number if applicable, separated from the previously listed information
by a comma. Your parenthetical in-text citations should look just like the one I provided
as an example, and if the citation is at the end of the sentence, the period goes after the
citation.
Use the right number of sources. Your original post should have at least three (3)
authoritative sources. General references, like the dictionary or the Bible, are not
regarded as sources although you may use them in the content of your discussion
board, and Wikipedia is not a viable source - even Wikipedia says so . At least one (1)
of those sources should come from the textbooks, one (1) from the assigned presentations
and articles, and one (1) from a scholarly source derived from your own research on the
topic, in other words, from somewhere other than the textbooks, assigned reading or
presentations. If a textbook reading is not assigned for a particular week, then any other
source will suffice. Your replies should have at least one (1) source.
Proofread your work. At this stage of your academic career, you should all be decent
writers, and most of my students write coherently enough to be understood. I often find a
little sloppiness, however, in the writing I read -- typographical errors, run-on sentences
without commas to break them up, incorrect verb tenses and the like. I suggest you read
back to yourself what you've written before you submit it or have a friend you trust
proofread your work. This is a 300-level course, and everyone should be capable of
writing at a college level by now.
Respond to your classmates' posts. I've noticed that some students respond to their
classmates' posts by echoing their own original post. Try to respond directly to your
classmates, and offer your thoughts and analysis of their words. Your response shouldn't
echo either your post or your classmate's -- you should give your thoughts about their
words, bringing something new to the discussion. That's what your reply is supposed to
be, after all -- a discussion. You wouldn't repeat back to someone what they just said to
you in a conversation, nor would you say the same thing to two different people who've
just conversed with you. Offer something new to the discussion.
These tips will make your discussion board assignments so much better. And just in case you
missed the link in the tips above, click here to learn why Wikipedia is not an authoritative
source. This Wikipedia article also gives some decent research advice. If you have any questions
or concerns, please ask!
Doing your Best Work, Part II: Advice on Turabian Style Citations and
References
Good morning, all,
I get a lot of questions on the specifics of the Turabian writing style. I thought I'd share
some tips with you in the hope that it might be helpful in your writing going forward.
In your main text, you have two options in the Turabian style to cite direct quotes or paraphrased
material taken from a source. One is called the author-date style, and this is a parenthetical
citation similar to that used in the APA writing style. The differences are in punctuation and the
information provided. For example, if you cite the Newt Gingrich book, an APA citation would
look like this:
(Gingrich, 2011, pg. 54)
In the Turabian style, it would look like this:
(Gingrich 2011, 54)
At the end of your text, you would provide a list of references – a bibliography – and it
would look like this for the Gingrich text you cited in your main text:
Gingrich, Newt, and Vince Haley. 2011. A Nation Like No Other: Why
American Exceptionalism Matters. Washington, D.C.: Regnery Pub.
That’s the author-date style of citation. What some choose to use is the notes-bibliography
style. You have a number, usually in a superscript font (1), that marks the quote or paraphrase to
be cited. In a short text like a discussion board post, you would then have an endnote that
corresponds to the number; longer texts, such as a research paper, would have footnotes at the
bottom of each page where the citation is given:
1 Newt Gingrich and Vince Haley, A Nation Like No Other: Why
American Exceptionalism Matters (Washington, D.C.: Regnery Pub., 2011), p. 54.
Note that it’s not a “last name, first name” format for your footnote/endnote, and also note
that it provides a page number. Let’s say you then want to cite another quote from the same book.
If the next footnote/endnote comes from the same source, it would look like this:
2Ibid., 67.
If you cite another source after the first Gingrich citation but then reference the Gingrich
book again, it would look like this:
3Gingrich, A Nation Like No Other, 67
You can cite a source multiple times in your text, and you can have multiple
footnotes/endnotes from the same source, as I’ve illustrated. At the end of your document,
however, you would provide a list of all the sources you used in your text, and this would be
your bibliography (I’m flexible – you could also call it “works cited” or “references”). Each
source is listed only once, even if it is cited multiple times in your main text. The Gingrich book
you cited in your main text would look like this in your bibliography:
Gingrich, Newt, and Vince Haley. A Nation Like No Other: Why
American Exceptionalism Matters. Washington, D.C.: Regnery Pub., 2011.
Note the date placement is slightly different than it would be if you were using the author-date
style. It’s a subtle difference, but it’s there. Also, since it refers to the entire book, not a specific
portion of it, you don't have page numbers; those are reserved for your footnotes/endnotes.
Generally, for discussion boards, I encourage students to use the author-date style because,
that way, your parenthetical citations are embedded in the main text and the only list you have at
the bottom will be your bibliography. If you use the notes-bibliography style, you will essentially
have two lists at the bottom of your thread, the first one being your endnotes and the second
being your bibliography. It can be done, but it gets cluttered and a little awkward-looking.
Forgive me if my explanation is repeating something you already know, but in my experience,
many of our online students are returning to their education after many years and have not
written an academic work in some time, and this refresher on citations and references could be
useful to them.
There are multiple online resources out there on Turabian style formatting, including
some on the Liberty University website, and you should also have the style guide as one of your
texts. Here are a couple of sample papers with notations that I think will help you as well,
especially with the research paper due at the end of the course:
Research Paper with Footnotes
Research Paper with Parenthetical Citations
My suggestion is that you print out these papers and have them at your side during your writing
assignments. If you follow the guidelines and examples therein, you will always get a perfect
score for your citations and references!
Doing your best work, Part III: How to Cite Blackboard Videos in Turabian
Good morning, all,
A common question I get from students taking courses with us is, "How do I cite
Blackboard videos in Turabian?" If it's a YouTube video or something similar from the Web,
there are a number of examples to which you can refer.
Finding examples of Blackboard video citations in Turabian, however, is a challenge, and
it’s made even more complicated if it’s an interview. Here’s what I recommend.
If it’s a video interview retrieved from Blackboard, your bibliography should state:
• Last Name, First Name of Interviewee
• Video Title
• The Name of the Interviewer
• The Date (If Available)
• Blackboard Site Accessed
• URL for Blackboard Site
For example, here is a sample citation for a video from Module/Week 3's reading and study
assignments. If you were going to use the author-date style, your parenthetical citation would
look like this:
• (Gingrich 2011)
Your reference entry in your bibliography would look like this:
• Gingrich, Newt. 2011. Documents of the Exceptional. Interview by Johnnie Moore.
Liberty University Blackboard site. https://learn.liberty.edu/.
If you used the notes-bibliography style, your endnote would look like this:
• 1Gingrich, Documents of the Exceptional.
Your reference would look like this:
• Gingrich, Newt. Documents of the Exceptional. Interview by Johnnie Moore. Liberty
University Blackboard site, 2011. https://learn.liberty.edu/.
If it’s not a video interview, you would remove the reference to the interviewer. The date is
located at the end of the video; look at the copyright indicator at the bottom.
I hope this is helpful to you!
Doing your best work, Part IV: What Must I Do to Succeed at Liberty
Good morning, all,
One of my students asked me a simple yet excellent question: What must I do to be
successful at Liberty University and in this class? After giving the question much thought, I came
up with the following keys to success at Liberty University:
Connect - Unlike many online universities, Liberty University, to the extent that
technology allows, goes the extra mile to make you feel like part of the community here
on campus. Our Office of Online Student Life offers numerous ways for you to get
connected to what's happening at Liberty University. I encourage you to visit it and check
out all the ways you can become an active participant in the great work God is doing here
at Liberty. We also have an app for your smartphone, Liberty Today, that provides you
with a wealth of campus information and services, including Blackboard access,
streaming events, and even your degree completion plan. We also have a social media
site, Yammer, where students can form groups and communicate with one another. There
are several groups available to Helms School online students, including groups for pre-
law, criminal justice, international relations and public policy students. There are
numerous ways to become a fully participating member of the Liberty University
community - you just need to join!
Research - When I was a college student, academic research meant going to the
library and culling through the stacks of books, journals, periodicals, newspapers,
microfiche and other items they kept on the shelves. Today's online research tools are
amazing, and as a student at Liberty University, these resources are mostly free. Visit
the Jerry Falwell Library online , click on the "Research" menu at the top of the page,
and check out the various research resources available to you. We even
offer online assistance if you get stuck. Of course, if you're a research pro, you can
just enter your research parameters into the search box and go!
Write - Research and writing are indispensable skills to the successful college
student, and Liberty University not only offers excellent online research tools, but
also services to help you become a better writer. Check out our Online Writing
Center for personal assistance with your written drafts, live chats for quick questions
on grammar and formatting, and various quick references and writing aids.
Schedule - Time management is another indispensable skill for a successful college
student, but it is especially vital for the online student, since you don't have scheduled
class times, and most of you have full lives outside of your academic pursuits. The
best online students are planners and self-starters who manage their time well. If you
aren't wired that way, find someone in your circle of family or friends who is, and
give them permission to hold you accountable to a schedule. It will take a lot of stress
off of you as you proceed through the term.
Study - Good study habits are the best way to ensure you do your best on every
assignment. These include:Doing the assigned readings and watching or listening to
the assigned presentations each week, taking good notes as you go,
oReading, comprehending and following assignment instructions,
oProofreading your work before submission, and
oReviewing and applying assignment feedback from your instructor
so you can improve on subsequent assignments.
I often suggest to my students that they print out the instructions and rubric for each
assignment and use it as a checklist while preparing their submission, so they are assured of
meeting all the assignment requirements. You may have other tips and tricks for effective
studying, but the important thing is that you study well. Again, if you aren't typically a well-
organized person, find someone who is that can help you.
Liberty University also offers another free service, Tutor.com, to assist you in your
studying. If you need tutoring support, reach out to them 24/7. They even have a mobile app so
you can schedule tutoring times and utilize their resources on the go!
Communicate - Never let a question about the course or a particular assignment go
unasked. Contact your instructor and ask your question. They will respond within 36
hours of your inquiry, and if it's urgent, they should get back to you immediately.
Assisting you so you can succeed in the class isn't just their duty, it's their calling as
Christian instructors. James 3:1 reads, "Not many of you should become teachers, my
fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly." Our
instructors were chosen not only for their academic credentials and experience in their
respective disciplines but for their walk with Jesus Christ. They are here to help you, so
don't hesitate to communicate with them.
Pray - We don't believe you are here with us by accident. We believe in an intentional
God, and we believe you were sent to us to prepare you for your calling in life. That's
why it is vital that you dedicate each day to the Lord and His glory, and ask Him to
bless it. Pray to Him, get to know Him through His Word, and quiet yourself so you
can listen for His guidance. That is good advice not only for success at
Liberty University, but in life.
We are dedicated to your success, so please use us to help you succeed. I look forward to
teaching you in this course!
In Christ,
Ron Miller
Online Dean
Helms School of Government
(434) 582-2193
LIBERTY UNIVERSITY
Training Champions for Christ since 1971
