PLAGIARISM and HOW TO AVOID IT

A Workshop from the Writing Support Center INSPIRATION

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What Exactly Is Plagiarism?

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Plagiarism is generally defined as representing another person’s words or ideas as your own by omitting proper citations and/or quotation marks. INSPIRATION

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All of the following are considered plagiarism if not cited/quoted properly:

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“Copying and pasting text from online media Copying and pasting text from any website Transcribing text from any printed material (books, magazines, encyclopedias or newspapers) Slightly modifying text from any of the above Using photographs, video or audio without citing the source Using another student’s work and claiming it as your own, even with permission, is unethical and treated as plagiarism.

Translation from one language to another is not using your own words.

Using an essay that you wrote for another class without permission of BOTH instructors is considered ‘self-plagiarism.’” ( http://www.ehhs.chich.edu/`mspears/whatis.html) INSPIRATION

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3 General Types of Plagiarism:

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Borrowing Ideas Without Giving Credit

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Borrowing Language Without Giving Credit

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Borrowing Your Work From Another Class Without Permission of Both Instructors (Self-plagiarism) INSPIRATION

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BORROWING IDEAS WITHOUT GIVING CREDIT

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When you use someone else’s: IDEAS, OPINIONS, or TERMINOLOGY

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THEORIES

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FACTS/STATISTICS

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GRAPHS, PHOTOS, VIDEOS You must give credit to the source.

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Idea . . . Theory. . . Fact

Liberal feminists identify both “internal” and “external” barriers to women’s achievement (Jaggar, 2004, p. 194).

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“Diffusion of responsibility” occurs when people in a group deny individual responsibility for their own behavior (Johnson, 2002, p. 23).

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Fourteen American children die from gunfire each day (“Child,” 2006).

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BUT… COMMON KNOWLEDGE NEEDN’T BE CITED COMMON KNOWLEDGE = GENERAL INFORMATION THAT CAN BE FOUND IN MANY SOURCES

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EXAMPLES: LINCOLN’S BIRTHDAY THE DATE WORLD WAR II ENDED MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.’S BIRTHPLACE INSPIRATION

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Which of the following require citations? Why?

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Mountain lions can roam as much as 100 square miles.

Twenty percent of all American children go to school without having eaten a proper breakfast.

Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1830.

Einstein is best known for developing the theory of relativity.

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BORROWING LANGUAGE

Each of the following is considered plagiarism:

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Borrowing significant phrases from the original text without using quotation marks

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Changing words from one form to another (e.g., a verb to its noun counterpart) and taking credit for the language as your own.

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Borrowing the structure of the original sentence too closely INSPIRATION

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OKAY, SO HOW DO I AVOID BORROWING LANGUAGE FROM MY SOURCE???

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Paraphrase it.

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Summarize it.

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Quote it.

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THE HOW TO’S: PARAPHRASING

1. Read the passage until its meaning is clear. 2. Close the book and restate the main point and any important details in your own words.

3. Check your version with the original to ensure its accuracy and originality.

4. Quote any borrowed phrases or terminology.

5. Write your source next to the paraphrase

 http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_paraphr.html

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Original Version*

“If the existence of a signing ape was unsettling for linguists, it was also startling news for animal behaviorists” (Davis, 2005, p. 28).

Unacceptable Paraphrase

Davis (2005) observed that the existence of a signing ape unsettled linguists and startled animal behaviorists.

Acceptable Paraphrase

When they learned of an ape’s ability to use sign language, both linguists and animal behaviorists were taken by surprise (Davis, 2005).

INSPIRATION *This slide directly quoted from D. Hacker’s A Writer’s Reference , 2003, p. 385

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Try paraphrasing this:

“Students frequently overuse direct quotations in taking notes, and as a result, they overuse quotations in the final [research] paper. Probably only about 10% of your final manuscript should appear as directly quoted matter. Therefore, you should strive to limit the amount of exact transcribing of source materials while taking notes.” --Lester, James. Writing Research Papers. 2 nd ed. (1976): 46-47.

http//:owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_paraphr.html

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A POSSIBLE PARAPHRASE: Students often rely too heavily on direct quotations in their research papers when, in fact, roughly 90% of one’s paper should be paraphrased. One suggested remedy is to paraphrase while note-taking during research (Lester, 1976). http//:owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_paraphr.html

A POSSIBLE SUMMARY: Students should paraphrase as much as possible during note-taking to avoid over-quoting in their research papers (Lester, 1976). http//:owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_paraphr.html

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WHERE SHOULD WE PLACE CITATIONS IN THE FOLLOWING PASSAGE?

Since 1986, four children have been attacked in California. One of these attacks was serious enough to prompt officials to place Caspers Wilderness Park off national parks in Colorado.” limits to children. “In July 1997 alone, two attacks on children, one fatal, occurred in different Since 1986, four children have been attacked in California

(“Mountain,” 2005).

children Colorado” One of these attacks was serious enough to prompt officials to place Caspers Wilderness Park off-limit to

(Tran, 2001).

“In July 1997 alone, two attacks on children, one fatal, occurred in different national parks in

(McPhee, 1998, p. 3).

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Common Concerns

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My own language is not as impressive as the words of the author I’m citing. Shouldn’t I just quote the author? →

Trust your own voice and paraphrase consistently throughout your paper. As you do so, your paraphrasing will improve. In addition, feel free to seek assistance from GSEP’s Writing Support Center.

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My research paper is filled with citations. Isn’t over-citing a sign of bad scholarship? →

As long as you’re paraphrasing, analyzing and discussing the material adequately, you needn’t worry about over-citing. In fact, consistent citing is a sign of responsible scholarship. However, be sure not to over-quote.

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A FINAL WORD . . .

When in doubt, cite the source; it’s always best to err on the side of being too careful rather than not being careful enough.

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