APA (6th ed) referencing

The reference listJenny Trevitt, Senior Librarian

The reference list• Is not a bibliography [not an option in APA]• Provides full publication details ONLY for sources cited in the assignment. • ALL in text citations require a matching reference in the reference list.• List references alphabetically.Note: Check author and date details in the text citation match details in the reference list.

Reference components• “In general, a reference should contain the

author names, date of publication, title of the work, and publication data” (American Psychological Association, 2009, p. 183).

• For full details see the chapter “Reference List” in the Publication Manual of the APA (American Psychological Association, 2009, pp. 180-192).

Author component• Author surname first, followed by initials.• Edited book - editor’s surname replaces the

author’s surname and is followed by (Ed.) or (Eds.).– Little, P. E.– Jacobs, D. E. (Ed.).– Australian Council for Educational

Research.Note: Do not abbreviate the name of a group author.

Date component• Date of publication in parenthesis followed

by a full stop.• For conference papers, magazines,

newspapers, newsletters give the year followed by a comma and then any month or day.(2014).(2014, June 1).

Title: Books and reports• Italicise the title followed by a full stop.• Capitalise the first word of the title and any

proper nouns.– What teachers need to know about

assessment.– Assessment in Australian schools.

Title: Periodical• Give the full name of a periodical• Capitalise each word of a periodical title• If volume, issue, page details follow then

end title with a commaAssessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice,

Title: Article or Chapter Title• Capitalise the first word of an article or

chapter title• Capitalise the first word of a subtitle• Capitalise any proper nouns in the title or

subtitleA brief history: Assessment and reportingLarge scale assessment in AustraliaNote: Do not italicise the title of a chapter or an article.

Publication: Books and reports• Location: Publisher. • Provide location as city and state if in the

USA or city and country if outside the USA.• Use details of first publisher in a list of

multiple publishers.Camberwell, Australia: ACER Press.London, United Kingdom: Sage Publications.

Publication: Periodicals• Follow periodical title with italicised volume

number• Include issue number in parenthesis (not

italicised) but only if issues are paginated separately

• Include page number(s)Assessment in Education: Principles, Policies & Practice, 24(2), 44-67.Assessment in Science, 32, 89-95.

Electronic sources“recommend that you include the same elements, in the same order, as you would for a reference to a fixed-media source and add as much electronic retrieval information as needed for others to locate the sources you cited.” (American Psychological Association, 2009, p. 187).

• Retrieval dates no longer need to be included

• Further detail on electronic sources is available in the Publication Manual of the APA (2009, pp. 187-192).

Electronic sources: DOI• Provide the Digital Object Identifier (DOI) if

one has been given to a publication or article. Hailaya, W., Alagumalai, S., & Ben, F. (2014). Examining the utility of Assessment Literacy Inventory and its portability to education systems in the Asia Pacific region. Australian Journal of Education, 58, pp. 297-317. doi: 10.1177/0004944114542984 Note: This is an online journal article with

DOI. There is also a print version of this journal so pp. is used.

Electronic sources: No DOI• If there is no DOI then provide the

publisher’s home page URL for the journal, book or report.

Hailaya, W., Alagumalai, S., & Ben, F. (2014).

Examining the utility of Assessment Literacy Inventory and its portability to education systems in the Asia Pacific region. Australian Journal of Education, 58, 297-317. Retrieved from http://intl-aed.sagepub.com

1. Referencing challengeThis is a journal which is only published

online and has no pagination. How would you reference it?

1. Challenge solutionWright, J. (2014). Participation in the classroom: Classification

and assessment techniques. Teaching Innovation Projects, 4(1). Retrieved from http://ir.lib.uwo.ca/tips/vol4/iss1/3

2. Referencing challengeHow would you reference this video?

2. Challenge solutionAustralian Council for Educational Research

(Producer). (2014, November 21). Teachers and ICT [Video/Infographic]. Teacher. Available from http://teacher.acer.edu.au/article/teachers-and-ict

3. Referencing challengeHow would you reference this video?

3. Challenge solutionThis is one possibility for referencing the video:

Curic, E., Pirola, S., & Ward A. (Producers). (2014). 2014 Sleek

Geeks Eureka Science School Prize: Colour blindness [Video]. ABC Science: Dr. Karl. Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/science/video/2014/colourblindness.html

Note: If you cannot find an exact match for your reference in the manual for the APA Style, then chose an example that could be adapted. The above is based on the video style and a chapter in book style.

4. Referencing challengeHow would you reference this conference paper from the ACEReSearch (ACER’s research repository)?

4. Challenge SolutionAinley, J., & Gebhardt, E. (2014, August 4). Perspectives on Quality

and Equity from Large-Scale Assessment Studies. Paper presented at the Australian Council for Education Research Conference 2014 on Quality and Equity: What Does the Research Tell Us?, Adelaide, Australia. Retrieved from http://research.acer.edu.au/research_conference/RC2014/4august/6/

5. Referencing challengeHow would you reference

this television program?

5. Challenge SolutionPBS Frontline (Program By), & O’Brien, K. (Presenter). (2014,

July 22). Generation Like [Television Series Episode]. In D. Rushkoff and F. Koughan (Co-Producers), Four Corners. Australia: ABC Television.

Online helpSee the

American Psychological Association website:

• The Basics of APA Style - slides 13 to 25• In-text citations • Punctuating the Reference List Entry• APA Style FAQs• The APA Style Blog

Further Help• American Psychological Association. (2009).

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author. Refer to chapters 6 & 7.

• American Psychological Association. (2010). Concise rules of APA style (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author. Refer to chapters 7 & 8.

• Note: These books can be borrowed from the Library. Submit an online request and items will be express posted to students within Australia. Submit a Book Request. Full details are set under services on the Library’s Student Portal page. Students are responsible for any cost to return borrowed items.

Reference List

American Psychological Association. (2009).

Publication Manual of the American

Psychological Association (6th ed.).

Washington, DC: Author.