This document outlines an audit proposal to examine whether final year students in the Faculty of Technology at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura are properly applying reference standards in their research works. The investigators aim to distribute a questionnaire to a sample of around 300 final year students from recent years to collect data on their referencing knowledge and practices. The study population includes final year students from departments such as Information and Communication Technology, BioSystems Technology, Civil and Environmental Technology, and Materials and Mechanical Technology. If conducted, the audit would help evaluate students' understanding of citation styles like Harvard and awareness of the importance of using references appropriately.

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UNIVERSITY OF SRI JAYEWARDENEPURA
FACULTY OF TECHNOLOGY
DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION
TECHNOLOGY
ASSIGNMENT II
AUDIT PROPOSAL
TECHNICAL WRITING
ICT-17-855
DECEMBER 27, 2020

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CONTENTS
A. TOPIC............................................................................................................................................ 3
B. INVESTIGATORS ........................................................................................................................ 4
C. BACKGROUND................................................................................................................................ 4
D. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES........................................................................................................ 4
E. STANDARDS................................................................................................................................. 5
1. Harvard Referencing Basics: Reference List ........................................................................ 5
2. Harvard Referencing Basics: In-Text ....................................................................................... 5
Two or Three Authors:.................................................................................................................. 5
Four or More Authors:.................................................................................................................. 5
No Author: ..................................................................................................................................... 6
Multiple Works From the Same Author in the Same Year:......................................................... 6
Citing Multiple Works in One Parentheses: ................................................................................. 6
Citing Different Editions of the Same Work in One Parentheses: ............................................... 6
Citing a Reference With No Date:................................................................................................. 6
Citing a Secondary Source: ........................................................................................................... 6
3. How to Cite Different Source Types.......................................................................................... 6
How to Cite a Book in Harvard Format ....................................................................................... 6
How to Cite an Edited Book in Harvard Format.......................................................................... 7
How to Cite a Chapter in an Edited Book in Harvard Format .................................................... 7
How to Cite an E-Book in Harvard Format.................................................................................. 8
How to Cite a Journal Article in Harvard Format ....................................................................... 8
How to Cite a Newspaper Article in Harvard Format.................................................................. 9
How to Cite an Online Journal or Newspaper Article in Harvard Format ................................. 9
How to Cite Non-Print Material in Harvard Format ................................................................... 9
How to Cite a Website in Harvard Format..................................................................................11
F. Methods.........................................................................................................................................11
a. Study design................................................................................................................................11
b. Study setting ...............................................................................................................................11
c. Study population.........................................................................................................................11
d. sample size..................................................................................................................................12
e. Method of data collection............................................................................................................12
G. TIME FRAME..........................................................................................................................12
H. REFERENCES.........................................................................................................................13

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A. TOPIC
Audit Proposal for Conduct the Audit to Examine whether
FOT 2015/16 Batch Apply proper References Standards on
their Final Researches.

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B. INVESTIGATORS
An audit is a way of finding out whether someone or a particular group are doing what they should
be doing by asking if they are following guidelines and applying best practices.
But Research evaluates practice or compares alternative practices, to contribute to a body of
knowledge by asking what you should be doing. Conducting an audit we will be able to examine
whether FOT 2015/16 batch applies proper reference standards on their final researches in the
University of Sri Jayewardenepura. The colleges currently go around the 8th Semester of their final
academic year as well as they work on their final researches within several fields of Information
and Communication Technology (ICT). As investigators, we were assigned to temptation about
their applying of appropriate reference among several certified citation styles such as Harvard
(Author-Date) style, American Psychological Association (APA), Modern Language Association
(MLA), Chicago and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).
C. BACKGROUND
A citation style is a set of rules on how to cite sources in academic writing. Whenever we refer to
someone else’s work, a citation is required to avoid plagiarism. Referencing allows us to
acknowledge the contribution of other writers and researchers in our work. Any university
assignments that draw on the ideas, words, or research of other writers must contain citations.
Referencing is also a way to give credit to the writers from whom you have borrowed words and
ideas. By citing the work of a particular scholar, you acknowledge and respect the intellectual
property rights of that researcher. As a student or academic, we can draw on any of the millions of
ideas, insights, and arguments published by other writers, many of whom have spent years
researching and writing. All we need to do is acknowledge their contribution to our assignment.
The importance of conduct an audit is to encourage students to use reference styles on their works
and emphasis the significant use of referencing as well as examine whether they follow standards
of selected and recommended citation styles.
D. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
Referencing is a method to provide evidence to support the assertions and claims in our
assignments. By citing experts in the ICT field, we are showing our marker that we are aware of
the field in which we are operating. Our citations map the space of our discipline and allow us to
navigate our way through our chosen field of study. References should always be accurate,
allowing our readers to trace the sources of information we have used. The best way to make sure
to reference accurately is to keep a record of all the sources students used when reading and
researching for research. The main aim and objective of this audit proposal are to encourage to
conduct an audit to examine whether students apply standards of referencing styles, make students'
writings more persuasive and make them aware of the importance of using referencing.

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E. STANDARDS
1. Harvard Referencing Basics: Reference List
A reference list is a complete list of all the sources used when creating a piece of work. This list
includes information about the sources like the author, date of publication, title of the source and
more. A Harvard reference list must:
 Be on a separate sheet at the end of the document
 Be organised alphabetically by author, unless there is no author then it is ordered by the
source title, excluding articles such as a, an or the
o If there are multiple works by the same author these are ordered by date, if the
works are in the same year they are ordered alphabetically by the title and are
allocated a letter (a,b,c etc) after the date
 Be double spaced: there should be a full, blank line of space between each line of text
 Contain full references for all in-text references used
2. Harvard Referencing Basics: In-Text
In-text references must be included following the use of a quote or paraphrase taken from another
piece of work.
In-text references are references written within the main body of text and refer to a quote or
paraphrase. They are much shorter than full references. The full reference of in-text citations
appears in the reference list. In Harvard referencing, in-text citations contain the author(s)’s or
editor(s)’s surname, year of publication and page number(s). Using an example author James
Mitchell, this takes the form:
Mitchell (2017, p. 189) states.. Or (Mitchell, 2017, p. 189)
(Note: p. refers to a single page, pp. refers to a range of pages)
Two or Three Authors:
When citing a source with two or three authors, state all surnames like so:
Mitchell, Smith and Thomson (2017, p. 189) states… Or
(Mitchell, Coyne and Thomson, 2017, p. 189)
Four or More Authors:
In this case, the first author’s surname should be stated followed by ‘et al’:
Mitchell et al (2017, p. 189) states… Or (Mitchell et al, 2017, p, 189)

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No Author:
If possible, use the organisation responsible for the post in place of the author. If not, use the title
in italics:
(A guide to citation, 2017, pp. 189-201)
Multiple Works From the Same Author in the Same Year:
If referencing multiple works from one author released in the same year, the works are allocated
a letter (a, b, c etc) after the year. This allocation is done in the reference list so is done
alphabetically according to the author's surname and source title:
(Mitchell, 2017a, p. 189) or Mitchell (2017b, p. 189)
Citing Multiple Works in One Parentheses:
List the in-text citations in the normal way but with semicolons between different references:
(Mitchell, 2017, p. 189; Smith, 200; Andrews, 1989, pp. 165-176)
Citing Different Editions of the Same Work in One Parentheses:
Include the author(s)’s name only once followed by all the appropriate dates separated by
semicolons:
Mitchell (2010; 2017) states… Or (Mitchell, 2010; 2017)
Citing a Reference With No Date:
In this case simply state ‘no date’ in place of the year: (Mitchell, no date, p. 189).
Citing a Secondary Source:
In this case, state the reference you used first followed by ‘cited in’ and the original author:
Smith 2000 (cited in Mitchell, 2017, p. 189) or (Smith, 2000, cited in Mitchell, 2017, p. 189)
Back to top
3. How to Cite Different Source Types
 In-text citations remain quite constant across source types, unless mentioned explicitly,
assume the in-text citation uses the rules stated above
 Reference list references vary quite a lot between sources.
How to Cite a Book in Harvard Format
Book referencing is the simplest format in Harvard referencing style. The basic format is as
follows:

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Book Referencing Example:
Mitchell, J.A. and Thomson, M. (2017) A guide to citation.3rd edn. London: London
Publishings.
How to Cite an Edited Book in Harvard Format
Edited books are collations of chapters written by different authors. Their reference format is
very similar to the book reference except instead of the author name, the editor name is used
followed by (eds.) to distinguish them as an editor. The basic format is:
Editor surname(s), initial(s). (eds.) (Year Published). Title. Edition. Place of
publication: publishers
Edited Book Example:
William, S.T. (eds.) (2015) Referencing: a guide to citation rules. New York: My Publisher
How to Cite a Chapter in an Edited Book in Harvard Format
For citing chapters, you need to add the chapter author and chapter title to the reference. The
basic format is as follows:
Chapter in an Edited Book Example:
Troy B.N. (2015) ‘Harvard citation rules’ in Williams, S.T. (ed.) A guide to citation rules. New
York: NY Publishers, pp. 34-89.
In-Text Citations: Chapter in an Edited Book
Use the chapter author surname, not the editor.

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How to Cite an E-Book in Harvard Format
To reference an e-book, information about its collection, location online and the date it was
accessed are needed as well as author name, title and year of publishing:
If the e-book is accessed via an e-book reader the reference format changes slightly:
Author surname(s), initial(s). (Year Published). Title. Edition. E-book format [e-book reader].
Available at URL or DOI (Accessed: day month year)
This includes information about the e-book format and reader, for instance this could be ‘Kindle
e-book [e-book reader]’.
E-Book Example:
Mitchell, J.A., Thomson, M. and Coyne, R.P. (2017) A guide to citation. E-book library [online].
Available at: https://www.mendeley.com/reference-management/reference-manager (Accessed:
10 September 2016)
How to Cite a Journal Article in Harvard Format
The basic format to cite a journal article is:
Journal Article Example
Mitchell, J.A. ‘How citation changed the research world’, The Mendeley, 62(9), p70-81.
Journal Article Online Example
Mitchell, J.A. ‘How citation changed the research world’, The Mendeley, 62(9) [online].
Available at: https://www.mendeley.com/reference-management/reference-manager (Accessed:
15 November 2016)

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How to Cite a Newspaper Article in Harvard Format
Citing a newspaper article is similar to citing a journal article except, instead of the volume and
issue number, the edition and date of publication are needed:
Author surname(s), initial(s). (Year) ‘Article Title’, Newspaper Title (edition), day month,
page number(s).
Note: edition is used only where applicable.
Newspaper Article Example:
Mitchell, J.A. (2017) ‘Changes to citation formats shake the research world’, The Mendeley
Telegraph (Weekend edition), 6 July, pp.9-12.
How to Cite an Online Journal or Newspaper Article in Harvard Format
To cite an online journal or newspaper article, the page numbers section from the print journal or
newspaper reference is swapped with the URL or DOI the article can be accessed from and when
it was accessed. So the reference for an online journal article is:
Author surname(s), initial(s). (Year) ‘Title of article’, Title of journal, volume(issue/season)
[online]. Available at: URL or DOI (Accessed: day month year)
And the reference for an online newspaper article is:
Author surname(s), initial(s). (Year) ‘Article Title’, Newspaper Title (edition), day month
[online]. Available at: URL or DOI (Accessed: day month year)
How to Cite Non-Print Material in Harvard Format
How to Cite an Online Photograph in Harvard Format
The basic format is as follows:
Photograph surname, initial. (Year of publication) Title of photograph [online]. Available at:
URL (Accessed: day month year)
Online Photograph Example:
Millais, J.E. (1851-1852) Ophelia [online]. Available at: www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/millais-
ophelia-n01506 (Accessed: 21 June 2014)
How to Cite a Film in Harvard Format
The basic format to cite a film is:

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Film Example:
Rear Window (1954) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock [Film]. Los Angeles: Paramount Pictures.
How to Cite a TV Programme in Harvard Format
The basic format for citing a TV programme is as follows:
TV Programme Example:
‘Fly’ (2010) Breaking Bad, Series 2, episode 10. AMC, 23 May 2010.
How to Cite Music in Harvard Format
The basic format to cite an album is as follows:
Music Example:
Beyonce (2016) Lemonade [Visual Album] New York: Parkwood Records. Available
at: https://www.beyonce.com/album/lemonade-visual-album/ (Accessed: 17 February 2016).

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How to Cite a Website in Harvard Format
The basic format to cite a website is:
Author surname(s), initial(s). (Year of publishing) Title of page/site [Online[. Available at: URL
(Accessed: day month year)
Website Example:
Mitchell, J.A. (2017) How and when to reference [Online]. Available
at: https://www.howandwhentoreference.com/ (Accessed: 27 May 2017)
To learn more about citing a web page and entire websites in APA, MLA or Harvard check
out How to Cite a Website post.
For a summary of all the references for each source type along with examples take a look at
our Ultimate Citation Cheat Sheet. It also contains examples for MLA 8 and APA formats.
F. Methods
A questionnaire is a research instrument that consists of a set of questions or other types of prompts
that aims to collect information from a respondent. A research questionnaire is typically a mix of
close-ended questions and open-ended questions. Open-ended, long-form questions offer the
respondent the ability to elaborate on students’ thoughts. As the method of Data collection, we
suppose produce and hand over a questionnaire to the students who we selected and collect the
essential data for the audit.
a. Study design
The audit may conduct mainly based on previous research studies done by previous final academic
year students. We selected two of the latest years’ students and researchers for the audit. Using a
questionnaire we can examine whether students aware to apply with proper references standards
and the proper standards and their referencing ways match with each other.
b. Study setting
As the study setting mainly focuses on the Faculty of Technology (FOT) of the University of Sri
Jayewardenepura (USJ) as well as the students who did the final academic year researches of the
FOT. Conducting this audit the academic will aware of their final year students’ knowledge with
using appropriate reference styles with their research studies.
c. Study population
The FOT consists of more than thousands of students. The audit is mainly conducted based on
final-year students. There is a considerable no of final year students in several departments such as
the Department of BioSystems Technology, Department of Information & Communication

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Technology, Department of Civil and Environmental Technology, and Department of Materials
and Mechanical Technology. The study population consists of around 300 students as the final year
students.
d. Sample size sample is a set of individuals or objects collected or selected from a statistical
population by a defined procedure. The elements of a sample are known as sample points,
sampling units, or observations. The sample for the audit was selected from the population
of final year students of FOT among 400 students. The good maximum sample size is
usually around 10% of the population, and for the audit conduct process we selected 40
students from 400 of the population.
e. Method of data collection
Data collection is a process of collecting information from all the relevant sources to find answers
to the research problem, test the hypothesis, and evaluate the outcomes. A questionnaire contains
many different questions regarding referencing and it is used to gather information about students’
referencing on their researches. We supposed to conducts a questionnaire through the Internet
within selected students.
G. TIME FRAME

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H. REFERENCES
1. Mendeley.com. 2020. How To Cite Sources In Harvard Citation Format - Mendeley. [online]
Available at: <https://www.mendeley.com/guides/harvard-citation-guide> [Accessed 26 December
2020].
2. Mendeley.com. 2020. How To Cite Sources In APA Citation Format - Mendeley. [online] Available
at: <https://www.mendeley.com/guides/apa-citation-guide> [Accessed 26 December 2020].
3. Student.unsw.edu.au. 2020. Why Is Referencing Important?. [online] Available at:
<https://student.unsw.edu.au/why-referencing-
important#:~:text=Referencing%20allows%20you%20to%20acknowledge,other%20writers%20m
ust%20contain%20citations.&text=Referencing%20is%20a%20way%20to,claims%20in%20your
%20own%20assignments.> [Accessed 26 December 2020].
4. QuestionPro. 2020. What Is A Questionnaire - Definition, Samples And Examples | Questionpro.
[online] Available at: <https://www.questionpro.com/blog/what-is-a-questionnaire/> [Accessed 26
December 2020].
5. Tech.sjp.ac.lk. 2020. Faculty Of Technology | University Of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka.
[online] Available at: <http://tech.sjp.ac.lk/> [Accessed 26 December 2020].