This course demystifies citation — why it matters, the three big styles (APA, MLA, Chicago), and the tools that format references for you — so referencing becomes a quick, honest habit rather than a dreaded chore.

It shows that citation is the trust system holding scholarship together, and that the tedious part is a solved problem.

What you’ll be able to do

By the end of this course you will be able to:

• explain why citation matters;
• format references in APA style;
• format references in MLA style;
• use the Chicago style’s two systems;
• automate citations with a reference manager;

The lessons

1. Why Citations Matter — credit, verification, and avoiding plagiarism.
2. APA Citation Style — author-date, for the social sciences.
3. MLA Citation Style — author-page, for the humanities.
4. Chicago Citation Style — footnotes or author-date, flexible by field.
5. Citation Management Tools — letting Zotero do the formatting for you.

How to study this course

Work through the lessons in order — each is a short read with a worked example, a quick exercise, and a hand-picked free resource. Use the Previous and Next buttons at the foot of each page to move along. There are no fees and no enrolment barriers; the course is open to everyone, and you can revisit it any time.

This courseware is provided free by FRELIP. Original text released under CC BY 4.0; linked resources remain under their own licences. Curated by the FRELIP Open Courseware editorial team.