If you're a student, you've probably heard a lot about documenting or citing the sources that you use for your assignments--usually in the context of writing a research paper.

Why is citing so important? It's not simply to help your instructor find the sources you claim to have used. There are other reasons, too, such as to show your reader that you've done thorough research, to be a responsible writer/scholar by giving credit to others, and to avoid plagiarism. 

Calvin University has a plagiarism policy. It includes an extended definition and lays out the context of the policy and how Calvin handles instances of plagiarism.

Hekman Library has some guides and help pages you can refer to. We have the latest style manuals at our Research Desk, and you can use these in the library as long as you return them to the desk. We have a Citation 101 guide created by our Library for Student Learning, Amanda Matthysse. We also have our own home-grown citation generator: KnightCite. You do not have to be a "registered user" to use it. 

It is possible to overdo it as well as not do enough when citing your sources. Have an expert at the Rhetoric Center or at the Research Desk check your work to make sure you're citing properly, or use one of the guides mentioned above.