Writing Science: Leveraging the Annotated Bibliography as a Writing Tool
Bethann Garramon Merkle · Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America · 2021
Our task, as academic writers, is to join a “conversation” in our field. However, this can be a challenging perspective for students to achieve, regardless of degree level. The following discussion of the annotated bibliography draws on the fields of Writing Studies and Rhetoric and Composition, where the annotated bibliography has been productively used for decades. Those of us working with students on scientific writing, whether as advisers, supervisors, senior collaborators, or instructors, can benefit from sharing this approach with our students. Compelling academic writing states the author’s take, rather than simply repeating what sources have said. So, as writers, we work to articulate our own point of view in dialog with the sources we cite. This is true whether we are writing a commentary, peer review, blog post, evidence-based manuscript, or an assigned paper for a course. Deciding what sources to include and how to talk about them is a central part of how we convey our perspective in conversation with those active now and those upon whose conversations we build. The annotated bibliography (AB) can be a productive tool in this process because the AB compels writers to articulate and engage with the central ideas of each source in relation to how those apply to our own writing project. An AB is a list of sources, like any other bibliography, except, each source is accompanied by our own annotation (summary, description, and evaluation). In some disciplines, ABs are a required part of a graduate thesis or dissertation, and in several fields, these bibliographies are published as peer-reviewed, critical manuscripts somewhat akin to a scientific literature review. While the AB is less commonly used in ecology, writers at all career stages can leverage it as a tool. Developing writers can use ABs to organize their thoughts and work through complex articles with a concrete goal. Practiced writers can use the AB or its principles (e.g., through the notes functions in a citation manager) to keep track of key ideas and generate searchable, project-specific notes for reference while writing. Instructors can assign the AB to (1) coach students to productively engage with relevant literature and (2) efficiently assess students’ literature review skills and related outcomes. Indeed, an AB helps a reader (e.g., instructor, or in some fields, peer-reviewed journal readers) to understand more fully why and how the writer used the sources they have read. Thus, the AB focuses the writer's attention on a central message and weaves together the relationship between sources and the main ideas of the writer. These are, of course, beneficial outcomes for us as writers and for our readers. A key piece of advice is to be fairly specific with the AB title, which should be framed as a research question, rather than a topic. Consider going so far as identifying locale and audience. Doing so will help to focus on the narrative we are building and the point of view we are stating. It will also help to maintain our focus as we conduct research. If our source does not have pertinence to our AB title, we may save it into our reference manager but recognize that it is not relevant to our immediate project. In particular, students can benefit from taking this wide-ranging approach their subject. The peer-reviewed literature may not be the most approachable entry point into a subject. Indeed, the relevant peer-reviewed literature may be so specialized that the student needs to seek out a broader-ranging discussion for initial orientation. Beginning writers may initially focus on sources with which they feel comfortable and ones where they understand the majority of the information included in the source. However, there is also value in making early efforts to write annotations for papers and other technical sources that we find less accessible. When we return to those papers and annotations after further study, we often find them more accessible. Then, we can update our annotation with the satisfaction of knowing we have advanced in your understanding of this aspect of our field/studies. In the sample below, each element indicated by [bracketed italics] is an element that is typically included in an annotated bibliography. When writing a formal AB, you would not actually include these bracketed subheadings; they are provided here for reference. For each entry, we summarize the article, define key words or vocabulary from the article, and explain our reasoning for using that particular article/resource. For student assignments, this often includes explaining the source's credibility. It is essential to note that the sections of the AB entry do not usually meld together. In other words, the summary should be just that; a plain-language summary that includes only information derived from the source. The AB writer's perspective on the source should not be provided until later in the AB entry. This distinction can be both challenging and valuable for students. Annotated Bibliography: How can individual ecology faculty adjust their lab/research group policies and procedures to be more inclusive and equitable? [Title: Research Question*] Jimenez, M.F., T.M. Laverty, S.P. Bombaci, K. Wilkins, D.E. Bennett, and L. Pejchar. (2019). Underrepresented faculty play a disproportionate role in advancing diversity and inclusion. Nature Ecology and Evolution 3: 1030–1033. [APA-style citation; use citation style standard in your discipline.] [Summary] This article discusses the results of a nation-wide survey of faculty in ecology and evolutionary biology (EEB). Results indicate that minoritized faculty demographics (already known to be underrepresented in EEB) do a disproportionate amount of the work to make departments more inclusive and diverse. The paper notes that such efforts do not count for tenure and promotion (T&P), further disadvantaging these faculty. [Assess/Address Key Vocabulary] Readers unfamiliar with academic review and promotion practices may need explained to them the importance of T&P and the significance of major efforts to change academic culture that defines what does not count toward T&P. Otherwise, vocabulary in this paper is broadly accessible. [Reflect on how you will use this article] This article will help me develop a digestible, feasible set of recommendations for individual EEB faculty looking to make changes in how they manage their labs/research groups. Evidence-based claims in Jimenez et al. 2019 are particularly valuable, as even interested EEB faculty (1) may need some convincing that change is possible, and (2) may face resistance in their labs or departments. Building recommendations based in evidence supports both the recommendations and the EEB faculty who choose to implement them. For ecologists deciding to use the AB for our own writing, or as a tool for coaching student writers, there are numerous resources we can tap into. To expedite and standardize citation formatting, refer to the Purdue OWL website (https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/resources.html), citation support websites such as citationmachine.net, or reference management apps like Zotero and Mendeley. Reference managers can also serve as a place to tie our annotations directly to the file of the source you are annotating. However, a note to instructors: decades of research in the field of Rhetoric and Composition indicate that a hyper-focus on punctuation, grammar, and the like (including citation styling) can be detrimental to helping students find pleasure, self-confidence, and indeed, impede the development of eloquence and skill, in their writing. See Merkle (2019) for an extended discussion. Annotated bibliographies can be particularly valuable for writers working to refine their academic voice and learn how to join the conversations in their discipline. Two resources can help such writers cross that threshold (University of Melbourne 2012, Beaucham 2016) by clarifying what academic voice is, how one identifies their own, and how to leverage that in ways that feel authentic to the writer while respecting disciplinary expectations. The author uses both resources regularly in writing workshops for graduate students, in combination with a model text (e.g., a publication from a target journal), to help students identify variation and commonalities in academic writing, which can inform their own efforts. Further, Dr. Inger Mewburn's work on academic writing (https://www.thesiswhisperer.com) and related writing resources (Mewburn, n.d.) are invaluable. Tying these resources to an annotated bibliography gives students and early career writers a scaffold for entering the dialog their own research will engage. This guide was informed by several years of feedback and active use by undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Wyoming. The author's initial introduction to annotated bibliographies, and conversations that informed her perspective on the AB's relevance for ecologists, were thanks to the expert faculty of the University of Wyoming English Department's First-Year Rhetoric and Composition program, with special thanks to Jason Kirkmeyer, Kelly Kinney, Rick Fisher, and Joyce Stewart. Further, libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/annotatedbibliography was consulted when developing this assignment/guide.