122 Why It Matters
Evaluate and utilize resources to research information about the arts (course level learning objective)
Introduction
Has someone ever related some fact or story you were immediately skeptical of? Of course, we’ve all had that happen. Information is only as reliable as its source. Often in our information-saturated lives, the value of good-quality information gets lost amid the vast quantity of fairly shallow information available for quick consumption.
It’s important to cite your sources for several reasons:
- to demonstrate that your information is trustworthy because it comes from well-researched sources;
- to avoid plagiarism and responsibly credit other people’s ideas and work;
- and to allow others to validate your ideas and research by tracking down the sources you used.
As you work through the last module, consider why it’s important to follow a specific system for citing works—in the case of the humanities, the MLA format.
Also, consider how newly discovered works of art become authenticated. For example, what does provenance have to do with this recent movie, The Woman in Gold? Check out the following trailer, and see if you have some ideas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bx3KTGBEaI
Module Learning Outcomes
- Identify and evaluate relevant source materials for arts
- Document research sources appropriately using MLA format
Completing the Final Performance Assessment!
This last PA is the Compare and Contrast paper. This PA is designed for you to demonstrate what you have learned from multiple modules. You will be analyzing form (module 2), researching aspects of period styles of paintings (module 4), researching iconography (module 3), and researching historical context (module 2 & 4). Make sure that you understand how cite sources in MLA style before you begin this assessment. As you do your research make sure you document all your sources as you go! Use the questions listed in the PA as a guide to complete your research before you begin writing the final paper. If at any point, you feel lost or unsure how to proceed, contact me for help.
You’re almost finished! OK, here we go!
Work Cited
Anonymous. “Why Citing is Important.” MIT Library Guides. Web. 7 June 2015.
