Date and time: Monday 5 September 2022; 13:15-15:00 (UTC+2)

Teacher: Bart Klem and Avyanthi (Avie) Azis

Location: ALC Seminarieparken (next to Annedalseminariet)

Slides: click here.

Zoom linkLinks to an external site. for those joining online.

Finding literature and writing a properly referenced literature review is a basic academic skill and at the same it involves some very complicated dynamics that go to the heart of what academic scholarship is about. In this first seminar, we will start out with the basic essentials re what is expected (including some basic 'dos and donts'), to help you write your own literature review (assignment 1).

But we will engage with the more complicated issues, particularly with regard to academic referencing. After all, a reference is not just as directive device for the reader indicating where a particular idea or piece of information was taken from. It is also a way of crediting an author and validating a particular source. There are 'citation politics' and we should be aware of our role in these dynamics - see also the readings below. During the seminar, we will use scopus and/or web of science (as two among several good academic search engines) to explore forward and backward citations and what these can be used for.

Moreover, there are some quite subtle issues with regard to how one references a particular source. Different academic disciplines and subject fields have different cultures with regard to what kinds of claims can just be asserted and what needs back up, what kind of source is needed and how many citations would be prudent. Sometimes it's a good idea to cite a source that has thousands of citations, sometimes it is not - citations statistics do not always say much about quality or relevance. Much of this is not about correct or incorrect referencing - it's a question of style!

During the seminar, Avie and Bart will share some inputs and ideas and there will be plenty of time for group/plenary discussion, exchanging ideas and asking questions.

Required preparation:

Please read these two short blogs

Sara Ahmed (2013) Making Feminist Points: https://feministkilljoys.com/2013/09/11/making-feminist-points/

Zoe Todd (2013) An Indigenous Feminist’s Take on the Ontological Turn:

https://umaincertaantropologia.org/2014/10/26/an-indigenous-feminists-take-on-the-ontological-turn-ontology-is-just-another-word-for-colonialism-urbane-adventurer-amiskwaci/

Material used during the seminar (links to be updated in class):

Part 3: adding references to text
- The fragment to which you need to add in-text references.
- The fragment with suggested references added.
Part 4: correcting a faulty list of references.
- The list which you need to correct.
- The corrected list.