This is why it is crucial to make sure you are only using information from reliable sources. You should never consider Wikipedia as a reliable source when conducting research. Of course, Wikipedia has many safeguards in place to catch these errors, but the risk is still there that you might be receiving false information. The most common problem with citing sources in writing is that the information is untrue, made up, or taken out of context.ĭid you know that anyone (including you and me) can edit Wikipedia pages? That means that I could go in right now and edit key details about molecular biology without ever having taken a single course on the topic! This is just a really fancy way to say, “make sure your sources are legit.” The first and most important rule to using textual evidence is to become a strict vetter of sources. It is only after practicing these skills that textual evidence is easier to understand and more effective in writing. To use textual evidence effectively, writers must become investigators of their sources, determining credibility and application to their specific writing. Great essays are born out of writers critically analyzing the information they have and only including the most effective quotes and textual evidence. Great essays are not created because they have 35 quotes and pages of references. The world’s most elegant woman, Coco Chanel, once said, “Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off.” This same principle can be applied to using textual evidence. How Do You Get Better at Using Textual Evidence? It is highly unlikely that you would ever include textual evidence in a personal narrative.įrequent applications will consist of: analyses, compare and contrasts, research, argumentative, and tradition 5-paragraph essays.
Textual evidence is most commonly found in academic research papers. Introducing and analyzing textual evidence serves as the boats and bridges to get your reader to the evidence. You must think of all textual evidence like an island in your essay. You may also use the time after to discuss how it supports your claim. You must also analyze the textual evidence for your reader. A sentence like, “In the 2020 article, “Narwhals: Natures Unicorn”…” will let your reader know that you are using textual evidence. Whenever you include textual evidence, you must introduce where you found the information.
It is important to remember that you don’t want your textual evidence stick out in your writing. Whenever you use textual evidence, you must remember to cite your work to avoid plagiarism. Paraphrasing is a quick summary of what you read, but not directly quoting it.Indirect quotes are references to quotes from sources without stating exactly what it says.Direct quotes are word-for-word quotes from your sources.There are three different ways to use textual evidence in your writing: direct quotes, indirect quotes, and paraphrasing.
#Textual evidence example how to#
Your teachers will tell you which style to use, but there are resources such as Purdue OWL that outlines how to cite your work correctly. The best thing that you can do is find a resource that will help you in the specific formatting you’re working with.ĭid you know that there are more than five different writing styles (including MLA, APA, Chicago, and more)? There are many rules for using textual evidence in writing. When you are using textual evidence in your writing, you want to make sure it is your ultimate wingman (meaning, it’s making you look good). It also shouldn’t include an article about Narwhals that clearly explains everything there is to know about the creatures. Textual evidence should not include a random Facebook post about narwhals you saw. It could even include information from a trusted zoological study citing the unknown information about narwhals. This evidence could include articles from the New York Times about narwhals only being spotted by so many people in the world. If you were writing an essay on narwhals being the most mysterious animal on earth, you would want to find evidence that supported your claim. When you make a claim in an essay, you are telling your reader, “This is what I want you to think when you’re done reading this”. Textual evidence’s primary function is to defend your claim in writing.Ī claim, or thesis (or your point/opinion), is the compass for the entire essay. Textual evidence can also be used in research, argumentative, and compare and contrast essays. Textual evidence has many different functions, but primarily it is used to defend the writer’s claims. Through the use of textual evidence, they were able to write about these topics and have an expert’s on the topics to defend their research. My students were not doctors, nurses, or in the medical field at all.
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