Footnotes and Endnotes

What are Footnotes and Endnotes?

Footnotes are the notes found at the foot, or bottom of a page. They are usually separated from the main text on the page by a space or line and are smaller in print size than the main text.

Endnotes are found at the end of a chapter, article or section. They contain the same information and features as footnotes, but are on a different page to the text to which they refer.

Footnotes and endnotes offer more information about some aspects of the main text. They can be a reference, some more facts related to a topic or a commentary on that topic.

Footnotes and endnotes always comment on something in the main text, and are connected to that part of the text by a number or a symbol. Footnotes and endnotes often (but not always) contain information that is not necessary for the text itself, but can add to the understanding of certain aspects of the text.

What do I do when I see them?

Read them. Information which is placed in a footnote or endnote is information the author thought was relevant, even if it did not necessarily belong in the main part of the text.

Sometimes very useful and relevant information can be held in a note - sometimes the notes have exactly the information you need, even though the main text doesn't.

Footnotes and endnotes often hold the reference for a quote or statement, and will help you follow your line of research.

Can I cite/quote them in my assignment?

Yes, a note is as legitimate a source of information as the rest of the text - although some referencing styles have certain rules for citing from a footnote or endnote. You should check your styles guide to see what these rules are.

Can I use footnotes or endnotes in my own assignments?

Sometimes.

Some styles won't let you cite your references in text, and insist you use footnotes and endnotes for your citations. Other's frown on the use of footnotes and endnotes, preferring that all information be held in the main text or in an appendix. Check with your lecturer or tutor to see what is expected of you.

Remember, you can only use footnotes or endnotes, not both. Check which one belongs with the style you are using, or which one your lecturer prefers.

Footnotes, endnotes and appendices are often outside of the word limit, as well, so you should check with your lecturer to see if they count towards the word limit or not.

Further Reading

Mock, William B.T. (2006). When a Rose Isn't 'Arose' Isn't Arroz: A Student Guide to Footnoting for Informational Clarity and Scholarly Discourse. International Journal of Legal Information, 34 (1) 87-97. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1019891

Cermak, B. & Troxell, J. (2006). A Guide to Footnotes and Endnotes for NASA History Authors. Available at: http://history.nasa.gov/footnoteguide.html

Ohrstrom Library Staff. (1999). Giving Credit to Sources: Footnotes. Available at http://library.sps.edu/reference/Hypertext_tutorial/ht_footnoteform.shtml

When and how do I use footnotes or endnotes? http://www.noodletools.com/kb/index.php?article=61

Why use journals?

Once upon a time students asked me why they should use journals when all of the information should be in a book some where. These days they ask me why they should use journals when all of the information should be on a website some where.

Well, there are a number of very good reasons why journals should be at the top of your "must see" list whenever you do any research. Here are some of them:

Journals have the latest research. Information will appear in journals years before it turns up in a book - and if new studies reveal that the old information is incorrect, those studies will be published in journals fairly quickly, while the books will take a lot longer to correct.

Some articles will only appear in journals. Not everything that is published in a journal will make it to a different form of publication (no, not even on the web). A lot of the best research will only ever appear in journals.

Journals can be more trustworthy than other sources. Peer reviewed journals have been checked and vetted by a number of other experts in the fields. Books don't always have the same checks and balances (it depends on the publisher), and web pages can be downright dangerous (although some are trustworthy). Information in a peer reviewed journal is usually a safe bet.

Journals are indexed. Most journals - especially peer reviewed journals - are indexed in databases. Someone has gone through and taken not of every aspect of the journal articles - their titles, authors, subject areas, keywords... And all of this information is searchable through the databases. This means they are actually one of the easier forms of information to look for, if you know how to use the databases to find them. Very few books are indexed, so it's much harder to find a book that has the information you want. Technically, almost all web pages are indexed, but not generally in databases. To find them you have to use a search engine, and search engines are not as powerful or useful as databases.

A lot of journals are online. If your library subscribes to the electronic version of the journal, you may find that you can download most of the articles you want from the comfort of your own computer. Now, the older the journal issues are, the more likely it is that you'll have to find them in print, but most of the journals published in the last ten years have electronic versions.

Journals are almost always available. Most academic libraries (and some others) treat their journals like reference books - they are not available for loan, so they are always available for use. Even if every decent book on the subject was borrowed out weeks ago, you can usually find enough journal articles to produce a quality assignment. Plus, electronic subscriptions very rarely go "missing from the shelves", so even if the library burns down you would still be able to do your research.

All in all, journals are the best resources to use when researching. They are the kings of the information world, and you should get into the habit of using them as soon as possible. Your grades will thank you for it.

What are Journals?

To put it in simple terms, journals are like magazines with research instead of news.

They are serials (which means new issues are published on a regular basis) produced by professionals in a certain field for the use of other professionals in that field.

Journals come in two main types: peer reviewed and non-peer reviewed.

Peer reviewed journals are the most reliable and respectable form of published research you can use. Every article in a peer reviewed journal has been read by several other leading experts and researchers in the field and has met a strict standard for the research, analysis and writing.

It takes at least a year for an article to be published in a peer reviewed journal, and during that year it is read, checked, examined and tested by a number of the authors' "peers", who have all decided that it meets the standards necessary to be published in their journal, and they believe it is reliable.

Non-peer reviewed journals don't have that safety net. This doesn't mean that the articles published in non-peer reviewed journals aren't worth reading, or that you can't use them in your assignment. However, it does mean that the articles won't be as respected and reliable as those from a peer reviewed journal, and you may find that there are problems with the article. For example, if the article was a report on a study, the study might be flawed or the analysis of the results might be incorrect. Without the peer review process, these mistakes would not be picked up before publication.

Sometimes your lecturer will specifically ask you to use peer reviewed journals. There are a number of different lists of peer reviewed articles on the web. If you want to find a list, you should try putting in the name of your field of study (e.g. Education) and the words "peer reviewed journals" in a search engine.

If you want to know if the particular journal you are using is a peer reviewed journal, you could put the title of the journal and the words "peer reviewed" into a search engine.

You can also ask a faculty librarian at the nearest academic library. They are usually highly familiar with the peer reviewed journals in their faculty's field, and can steer you in the right direction.