Citation - the "act of mentioning [either quoting directly or describing indirectly, in your term paper] something from a book or other source as an example or to support an argument" (Oxford Canadian Dictionary). The word is also used interchangeably with "reference" to mean the actual parenthetical material (Author, 1999) or the foot/endnote.1
Dewey Decimal System - a numerical system of classifying and arranging books in a library. Follow this link to see a summary of the Dewey Decimal System. Compare this system to the US Library of Congress Classification System described below. This system is widely used in school and public libraries.
Footnote/Endnote and Bibliography - A method for referencing citations in a term paper that places information about the author, title, publisher and pages at either the bottom (foot) of the page or at the end of the paper, before the bibliography. This style of referencing has been superceded in the social sciences by the APA style (or a variant) and in Literature studies by the MLA style. It remains the style of choice in History, Art History, Philosophy and other Humanities, especially where papers are based on archival materials. Most often indicated by a superscript number (e.g.2) located in the text near the material it supports. Follow this link for a more detailed discussion of this form of referencing.
Hypothesis - "a supposition made as a starting point for further investigation from known facts" or "a proposition made as a basis for reasoning, without the assumption of truth" (Oxford Canadian Dictionary).
Library of Congress Classification System - An alphanumeric (letters and numbers) system of classifying and arranging books in a library. It was developed by the American Library of Congress and is the most widely used system in college and university libraries. Follow this link to see a summary of the subject categories of this system. Compare this system to the Dewey Decimal Library Classification System described above.
MLA - Acronym for "Modern Language Association." In discussions of term paper writing, MLA refers to the second most influential style of in-text or parenthetical referencing that places emphasis on the title of the work for cross-referencing the citation in the paper with a "reference list" at the end of the paper. (Compare APA.)
Referencing - A term used to refer to the inclusion of detailed information about the source of quotes, ideas, or illustrations you insert into your term paper. Referencing styles vary across disciplines but the most common are parenthetical or in-text (APA (American Psychological Association) and MLA (Modern Language Association)) and Footnote/Bibliography styles.
Stacks - The collection of bookcases, shelves and other storage units containing a library's collection, both circulating (which can be taken out of the library) and non-circulating (which must be used in the library).
Term Paper - A term paper is written assignment that asks students to apply ideas, theories, concepts, or principles learned or studied in class to a new situation.
Theory - "a supposition or system of ideas explaining something, especially one based on general principles independent on the particular things to be explained" (Oxford Canadian Dictionary).
Thesis - "a position to be maintained [supported] or proved" (Oxford Canadian Dictionary). A thesis is an answer to a judgement-type question.
Thesis statement - A very short summary of the thesis, often in one or two sentences. Your thesis statement should appear in the first couple of paragraphs of your term paper.
Type One Questions - Questions that generally have one right answer. Most often they ask who? what? when? or where?
Type Two Questions - Questions that ask for statements of personal opinion or preference. Also include questions that ask for descriptions of personal experience. Answers to Type Two questions are generally not useful for supporting answers to term paper questions, though they may be used as illustration or as examples. Most often they ask what do you think? what do you like? what is your favorite. . .? what was it like for you?
Type
Three Questions - Questions that do not, generally, have one right
answer. Type Three questions are also known as questions of judgement.
They most often ask why? To answer this type of question, you have to suggest
an answer and support it with evidence.