It’s important that we cite or give credit to the sources we use for our research papers and other assignments. Professional or academic organizations establish and maintain distinct citation styles for students to follow such as MLA, from the Modern Language Association, 
APA, from the American Psychological Association and Chicago, from the University of Chicago).
Citing sources correctly can only increase our chances of getting a better grade on our assignments. The following tutorial from the University of Minnesota explains what citations are and why we need to use them – http://www.lib.umn.edu/research/instruction/modules/lsamp-citations2/what_are_citations_what_are_citations_page_1.html
The library has copies of all the latest style guides but when in doubt, talk to your professor.
