[mudweiser]

I been to all the sites to find out how to write in APA format but I'm a little lost.

I know you have to cite your sources, but do you do it in your essay also OR is it all just in a separate page?

Well if anyone can help that would be awesome.

Even some tips would be great, or if you've found a site that shows a template of an APA formatted essay.

Thanks guys.

Sarah

[Clough]

Hi, mudweiser!

My, you've changed! Grown horns!

You'll find some guidelines and examples on the following site concerning an essay.

APA Formatting and Style Guide - The OWL at Purdue

Thanks!

[mudweiser]

Thanks Clough!

That was great.

I actually found this on YouTube; would you say it is correct?

YouTube - Formatting a Research Paper in APA Style

I'm more of if I see it done, I can do it type of learner.

That's why I asked for a template :)

Sarah

[Clough]

Hi again, mudweiser!

I'll be happy to check out the YouTube thing when I have a faster connection. Am using a phone line right now. Takes "forever" for YouTube things to load on present, temporary computer.

Sorry!

Thanks!

[Wondergirl]

Maybe this site will help?

Frequently Asked Questions About APA Style

[InfoJunkie4Life]

KnightCite Citation Service

If you fill in the appropriate info... and append to the end of your document, then it should be valid. If this is for a school assignment, I'd first check with the teacher. Mine never cared in high school or college.

[mudweiser]

I have another question to go along with this:

What's the difference between writing in an active voice versus a passive voice?

Sarah

[mudweiser]

KnightCite Citation Service

If you fill in the appropriate info...and append to the end of your document, then it should be valid. If this is for a school assignment, I'd first check with the teacher. Mine never cared in high school or college.

Grrr I pressed the wrong thing. I meant to agree-- and there's an APA tabby on there. Ugh!

Today is not my day sorry!!


I really liked this link too!! :(

Sarah

[Clough]

Hi again, mudweiser!

What is quoted below, is from the following site.

Grammar Girl :: Active Voice Versus Passive Voice

But, I'm sure that Wondergirl can explain it in a simpler way...

Thanks!

Grammar Girl here.

Today's topic is active voice versus passive voice.

Here's Brian from Iowa:

“It drives me crazy when people write in passive voice. How can I teach people how to tell the difference between passive and active voice and stay away from passive voice? Thanks.”


A lot of you have asked me to explain passive voice and how to avoid it.

I'll start with active voice because it's simpler. In an active sentence, the subject is doing the action. A very straightforward example is the sentence "Steve loves Amy." Steve is the subject, and he is doing the action: he loves Amy, the object. Another example is the title of the Marvin Gaye song I Heard It through the Grapevine. I is the subject, the one who is doing the action. I is hearing it, the object of the sentence.

In passive voice the target of the action gets promoted to the subject position. Instead of saying, "Steve loves Amy," I would say, "Amy is loved by Steve." The subject of the sentence becomes Amy, but she isn't doing anything. Rather, she is just the recipient of Steve's love. The focus of the sentence has changed from Steve to Amy. If you wanted to make the title of the Marvin Gaye song passive, you would say It Was Heard by Me through the Grapevine, not such a catchy title anymore.

A lot of people think that all sentences that contain a form of the verb to be are in passive voice, but that isn't true. For example, the sentence "I am holding a pen" is in active voice, but it uses the verb am, which is a form of to be. The passive form of that sentence is "The pen is being held by me."

Another important point is that passive sentences aren't incorrect; it's just that they often aren't the best way to phrase your thoughts. Sometimes passive voice is awkward and other times it's vague.

When you put sentences in passive voice, it's easy to leave out the agent doing the action. For example, "Amy is loved" is passive. The problem with that sentence is that you don't know who loves Amy. In fact, politicians often use passive voice to intentionally obscure the idea of who is taking the action. Ronald Reagan famously said, “Mistakes were made” when referring to the Iran-Contra scandal. Other examples of passive voice for political reasons could include “Bombs were dropped” and “Shots were fired.” Since I started writing this episode, I've become more aware of passive voice, and it seems as if I hear politicians use it every day.

So, these are some of the reasons to avoid passive voice: the form can lead to awkward sentences and obscured meaning. Also, passive voice is wordy. You can tighten up your writing a lot if you use active voice more often than passive.

On the other hand, Mike from Chicago correctly pointed out that there are instances where passive voice is the best choice. If you don't know who is taking the action, then you can't name that person. Depending on the context, it might make more sense to write, “The cookies were stolen,” instead of, “Somebody stole the cookies.” It's a subtle difference. If you want to put the focus on the cookies, use passive voice. Alternatively, if you want to put the focus on the unknown thief, use active voice. If you were writing a mystery novel you might want to highlight the cookies if their specific disappearance were central to the story. So you would choose passive voice and say, “The cookies were stolen.” So passive voice is often a good choice when the actor isn't known or doesn't matter, or if you want to create some mystery around your sentence.

So remember, in a passive-voice sentence the subject of the sentence is the receiver of the action. Passive voice is not grammatically incorrect; it's just not often the best choice. If you know who did what, it's better to use an active sentence in most cases.

That's all.

[Wondergirl]

I have another question to go along with this:

What's the difference between writing in an active voice versus a passive voice?

Sarah

I drank the milk. (active)

The milk was drunk by me. (passive)

The horse jumped over the fence. (active)

The fence was jumped over by the horse. (passive)

Mudwiser used APA style. (active)

APA style was used by Mudwiser. (passive)

[Wondergirl]

For what class are you using APA style? College?

Your library should have a print APA style guide that you can check out -- much better than trying to figure it out from an Internet site.

[Clough]

Hi, Wondergirl!

So, could using "active voice" be considered to be somewhat aggressive and forward?

Thanks!

[InfoJunkie4Life]

No problem... Good Luck.

[Clough]

For what class are you using APA style? College?

Your library should have a print APA style guide that you can check out -- much better than trying to figure it out from an Internet site.

I think that I still have my APA style guide. I believe that it was distributed to us when we were in English class in Junior High School.

If I recall, it seemed that it was the "thing" to have in order to be able to write the best.

Thanks!

[Wondergirl]

Hi, Wondergirl!

So, could using "active voice" be considered to be somewhat aggressive and forward?

Thanks!

It's the preferred voice in the U.S. Most fiction and nonfiction books use the active voice. I wouldn't call it aggressive and forward. It's the standard. (Asians tend to use the passive voice.) Which would you normally say?

I ate an apple.

The apple was eaten by me.

It's straightforward, cuts to the chase.

[mudweiser]

Thanks guys!

I'm stuck again. Sorry!

Which one is correct for the title page? I have two different sites telling me different ways.

Thanks for your help!

Sarah

[Wondergirl]

The Apes and Language title page is the style I always used.

[Clough]

So, what is the other way that you're seeing, Sarah?

Thanks!

[mudweiser]

Merci!

Yes it is for college, actually, horticulture to be exact.

It's an essay about landscape safety. It has to be written in APA and the best essay wins $750!

So I'm really trying my hardest on this.

Sarah

[Wondergirl]

So, what is the other way that you're seeing, Sarah?

She showed two styles in the one post.