7. Compiling a Literature Review

Before compiling a literature review, it is important to put a few things into consideration. The first and most important is to understand what literature review is, the purpose of the literature review and what is required to do a literature review. 

My first experience with this subject was a bit of a challenge because I did not understand the meaning let alone how to compile one. However, at the end of the assignment, I discovered it was worth the challenge because I now have a clear understanding of what  literature review is.

How was this achieved? I received lecture on the subject, carried out some research, and went through some past literature review samples. Literature review in my understanding is the compilation of what has been published on a particular research topic with the use of secondary sources of information such as the internet, newspaper articles, books, text etc.

Before compiling my literature review, I explored some materials to gather facts on the topic and after a in-depth study and assimilation of my research articles; I narrowed down my findings into specific pieces of information to establish my point ensuring my piece of work was well organised and presented. I gave an introduction of the topic and an overview of my body of work. Separate paragraphs were used for each point made but I tried to make it as concise as possible. Finally, I finished by summarizing my entire discussion. To avoid plagiarism, I referenced all my sources of information accurately using Harvard style referencing.

5. Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the act of claiming other people's works as one's own. It is replacing, paraphrasing or summarising information from the internet, books, journals etc. without giving credit to the original author. It is as good as giving yourself the praise you do not deserve. Plagiarism is considered an offence in ITB. Any student found guilty of the offence will be subject to the Institute's disciplinary procedures. Any assignment, examination or project that is not correctly referenced would be awarded zero marks.

Plagiarism sometimes occurs as a result of negligence when completing an assignment or writing a project. This often occurs when sources of information are not recorded at the time they were used. It is therefore important to always reference any information taken from other sources immediately so as not to lose track of them.


As a student in ITB with the understanding of the Institute's policy on plagiarism, I try as much as I can to avoid it. Thus, when I was compiling a literature review, I ensured to refer to all the sources of my information. It is one thing to know the sources of information and it is another to reference correctly. I found Harvard referencing style very effective in achieving this purpose. I personally believe it is one of the best styles of referencing. After going through the Harvard Referencing Tutorial, I was able to reference my work appropriately and therefore found my way into completing a literature review without a trace of plagiarism.

Other than the Harvard referencing tutorial, I also found this video clip very helpful. It is quite detailed and educative in relation to the subject.