A Brief Look at Some Different Types of

Plagiarism

Definition of PlagiarismThe presentation of the words or ideas

taken from someone else without the appropriate citation. When you use an outside source to help you get ideas and information for any assignment that is submitted for credit, you must document that source.

Our Policy The Northern Burlington plagiarism policy is in

some ways generous. If you are found to have plagiarized on a major assignment, you will be offered the opportunity to redo the assignment, or accept an alternative assignment if the teacher prefers, for a grade no higher than a 65. Otherwise, the assignment receives and automatic 0.

If you are found to have plagiarized again on ANY future assignment, that assignment will receive an automatic 0.

Types of Plagiarism Copy and Paste Plagiarism

Any time you lift a sentence or significant phrase intact from a source, you must use quotation marks and reference the source.

Word Switch Plagiarism If you take a sentence from a source and change around

a few words, it is still plagiarism. If you want to quote a sentence, then you need to put it in quotation marks and cite the author and article. But quoting Source articles should only be done if what the quote says is particularly useful in the point you are trying to make in what you are writing.

More Plagiarism “Paraphrase” Plagiarism

Copying line by line from a source, but altering or rewriting each line is still plagiarism. Following the general organization of a passage, but weaving in your own sentences or rewriting certain sentences also still constitutes plagiarism. A good paraphrase is a restatement in your own words of a passage that conveys an idea you would like to use, but does so in a way that is too long or wordy to fit well into your paper, and must include a citation.

Mosaic, or “Patchwork” Plagiarism Taking lines from a number of different sources to cobble

together something that looks new but is essentially just a combination of a number of other individuals’ thoughts is plagiarism.

The Key to Avoiding Plagiarism Good paraphrasing, selection of

appropriate quotes, and appropriate use of Parenthetical Citation is the key to avoiding plagiarism.

Remember – A paraphrase does not simply re-write, it

condenses and restates. A paraphrase still needs a parenthetical citation.