APA referencing…

So during the mid semester break, I received four of my assignments back.  While I was extremely happy with the marks I received, the comments, as they have done so prior to this round of results have left me baffled.

Since 1st year, it has been hammered home (for me anyway), that we need to use APA 6th edition for referencing.  Some lecturers/courses have even asked for, or required APA 6th formatting including running headings etc.  Now that is fine.  Easy marks right?  Just follow the guide provided by the University.  Except that when you follow one guide and your marker has followed another guide, there is a clash and the student loses.

Again, I have been very happy with my marks and don’t really consider the one or two marks worth arguing about (at the risk of losing marks in other areas and the time and hassle involved), but it is the principle of it.  If we , as students, are expected to use a certain APA 6th edition guide, then the markers should be expected to use that same guide so that the inconsistencies in the marking can be avoided.   Just to provide a working example of this, in one of my last assignments, the comment was “The page numbering in in-text references is only needed if it is a direct quote or an edited text”, while this is true, the manual also goes onto state that they could “be helpful and should be included if possible.”  So the ‘minor errors’ in my APA were not actually minor errors…or were they?

Now this in no way is a reflection on my results so far in EDC3100 as I have not had this issue in this course.  It is a general comment, based on what has happened to me throughout my degree and an issue I have read about through course Facebook pages and forums with other students.

But wait…There’s more…

So here I was at the start of the mid semester break thinking I had planned everything out so well.  I pumped out two, out of four, final assignments due while in the second week of my prac in a few weeks.  I still have some polishing to do, but the majority of work is done.  Meanwhile, like many in this course, it is now the final weekend before prac and I still haven’t got off the mark with EDC3100 A3 and A2 in another course.

For some silly reason, I also had myself believing that I had completed all of my bog posts.  Luckily, seeing blog posts come up in Feedly, I decided I should check it out and of course, I have 9 out of 9 to do.  I also have to do all of the learning journal, so a busy time ahead before Tuesday morning.

…and after a short recess…I’m back.  So I know like everyone, I will be extremely busy on prac, but now I will try to include more reflections in my blogging.  Speaking of reflecting/reflections..it’s something that Ive never really quite become used to in terms of writing it down.  In my previous career, where reflecting on how I did a job meant whether or not my business continued to remain successful, most, if not all of my reflecting happened mentally.  I also had the opportunity to talk through a lot of stuff with others in the industry which allowed me to learn from their mistakes.  I had to remember it as I had no time to go back and look through written journals etc.  Anything I learned was exactly that…a lesson learned.  Now I feel like I must have been doing it wrong all these years.  So as I approach prac, I have four guiding questions to ask after each and every lesson I teach, and after every lesson I observe.

What went well?

What didn’t go well?

What needs tweaking?

And what can be done to make those tweaks?

I guess I should also add to this by asking, What was really bad and how could I improve that?

So make that five guiding questions to start a written reflection.