We routinely ask students to use a formal citation style when referencing sources in their work, but have you ever explicitly explained to them why?
In a post-truth information landscape, it is increasingly difficult to distinguish credible information from cherry-picked facts and polished, convincing interpretations, especially as generative AI makes sophisticated-sounding misinformation easier to produce and harder to detect. Now more than ever, our students need to be able to question the veracity of claims and follow evidence back to its source. Citation practices are a foundational skill for doing exactly that, yet we often assign them without explanation.
This is where the “curse of expertise” can work against us. Having long internalized both the importance of citations and the logic behind their formatting, we may forget what it was like before we understood these things. What feels obvious to us as academics is not obvious to students encountering scholarly conventions for the first time.
Consider being intentional about making the purpose visible. Explain to your students why you require citations, how a standardized format makes it possible for anyone, including them, to quickly locate and verify a source, and how these same habits of source-checking apply to the information they encounter in their everyday lives. Connecting citation practice to real-world information literacy can transform it from a formatting chore into a genuinely transferable skill.
For more ideas about integrating information literacy into your courses, reach out to an 91桃色 libarian or check out: from the Ohio State University.