how to avoid plagiarism
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How to Avoid Plagiarism. What is Plagiarism?. Plagiarism means using another’s work without giving them credit and saying that it is your own In the real world, this means: Using another person's words without giving them credit Using another person’s ideas without giving them credit - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
HOW TO AVOID PLAGIARISM
What is Plagiarism?
Plagiarism means using another’s work without giving them credit and saying that it is your own
In the real world, this means: Using another person's words without
giving them credit Using another person’s ideas without giving
them credit Using another person’s research, results,
diagrams, or images without giving them credit
How big of a problem is it?
“A study of almost 4,500 students at 25 schools, suggests cheating is . . . a significant problem in high school - 74% of the respondents admitted to one or more instances of serious test cheating and 72% admitted to serious cheating on written assignments. Over half of the students admitted they have engaged in some level of plagiarism on written assignments using the Internet.”
Based on the research of Donald L. McCabe, Rutgers University
Source: “CIA Research.” Center for Academic Integrity, Duke University, 2003 <http://academicintegrity.org/cai_research.asp>.
Types of Plagiarism
Intentional Copying a friend’s
work Buying or borrowing
papers Cutting and pasting
blocks of text from electronic sources without documenting
Media “borrowing” without documentation
Web publishing without permissions
of creators
Unintentional Careless
paraphrasing Poor documentation Quoting excessively Failure to use your
own “voice”
Ways to Plagiarize
Copying and pasting text from online encyclopedias Copying and pasting text from any web site Using photographs, video or audio without
permission or acknowledgement Using another student’s or your parents’ work and
claiming it as your own even with permission Quoting a source without using quotation marks-even
if you do cite it Citing sources you didn’t use Getting a research paper, story, poem, or article off
the Internet Turning in the same paper for more than one class
without the permission of both teachers (this is called self-plagiarism)
Excuses
It’s okay if I don’t get caught!
This assignment was BORING!
My teachers expect
too much!
I was too busy to write that paper!
(Job, big game, too much homework!)I’ve got to get it in
otherwise it won’t be accepted!
Everyone does it!
My parents expect “A”s!
Real Life Consequences
Damaged the reputation of two prominent historians, Stephen Ambrose and Doris Kearns Goodwin Kearns left television position and stepped down as
Pulitzer Prize judge for “lifting” 50 passages for her 1987 book The Fitzgeralds and the Kennedys
Senator Joseph Biden dropped his 1987 campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination Copied in law school and borrowed from campaign
speeches of Robert Kennedy Probe of plagiarism at UVA--45 students dismissed, 3
graduate degrees revoked Controversial New Jersey valedictorian denied her
seat as a Harvard freshman when it discovered she plagiarized in a local newspaper
Possible School Consequences
• Zero on the assignment
• Parent notification
• Referral to administration
• Suspension or dismissal from school activities…or school!!!
• Note on student record
Is this Plagiarism?
Original Source For all of us, nature controls about 50
percent of our intellectual horsepower, and environment determines the rest (Medina 92).
Student’s Paper For all of us, nature controls about 50
percent of our intellectual horsepower, while the environment determines the rest.
Answer: Yes
The student should have used quotation marks around the words that he copied directly from the original source. Also, there is no parenthetical reference with the page number of the source statement.
Is this Plagiarism?
Original Source For all of us, nature controls about 50
percent of our intellectual horsepower, and environment determines the rest (Medina 92).
Student’s Paper Our intellectual horsepower is controlled
50 percent by nature and the rest is determined by environment (Medina 92).
Answer: Yes
Even though the writer has cited the source, the writer’s words are not his own. Look at how closely the phrase resembles the wording of the source.
Is this Plagiarism?
Original Source For all of us, nature controls about 50
percent of our intellectual horsepower, and environment determines the rest (Medina 92).
Student’s Paper For all of us, nature administers about 50
percent of our cerebral horsepower, and atmosphere regulates everything else(Medina 92).
Answer: Yes
Even though the writer has substituted synonyms and cited the source, the writer is plagiarizing because the source's sentence structure is unchanged. It is obvious that the writer could not have written his sentence without a copy of the source directly in front of him.
Is this Plagiarism?
Original Source For all of us, nature controls about 50
percent of our intellectual horsepower, and environment determines the rest (Medina 92).
Student’s Paper According to John Medina, a combination
of intelligence and the surroundings of a person are the 2 key factors in how their brain functions.
Answer: No
The student has cited the source, and appropriately paraphrased the original source into his own words.
How can you avoid plagiarism? Use your own words and ideas Always give credit to the source where you have
received your information If you use someone’s exact words - put them in
quotes and give credit using in-text citations. Include the source in your references
If you have paraphrased someone’s work, (summarizing a passage or rearranging the order of a sentence and changing some of the words)-always give credit
Take very good notes--write down the source as you are taking notes. Do not wait until later to try and retrieve the original source
Avoid using someone else’s work with minor “cosmetic” changes
Practice good research methods
Be careful about paraphrasing while taking notes
Be sure to keep track of each source you use Indicate in your notes which ideas are taken
from sources (S) and which are your own insights (ME)
Record all of the relevant documentation information in your notes
Know how to quote
Mention the name of the quoted person in your text
Put quotation marks around the text you are quoting
Use brackets ([ ]) and ellipses ( … ) Use block quotes when necessary Quote sparingly
Know when to cite
Always give a citation for quoted words or phrases
Always give a citation after paraphrased sentences
Always give a citation for specific statistics, percentages, and numbers given in your text
You don’t need to cite facts or ideas that are common knowledge
What is common knowledge? Facts that can be found in numerous places
and are likely to be known by a lot of people do not need to be cited
Consider your audience when deciding whether a fact is common knowledge
What are some examples of common knowledge?
Know how to paraphrase
Paraphrasing means putting an idea into your own words
Don’t just rearrange the sentences or replace a few words
Be able to summarize the original source without having it in front of you
Overall Ideas
Inadvertent plagiarism is as bad as the intentional kind
If you plan ahead and use good research skills, you won’t have to run to the library at the last minute, make up citations, surf the web for all your research, falsify your data
Learn from your past mistakes Realize that an act of plagiarism might cost
you your reputation, your degree, or your professional career
Sources
What Is Plagiarism? (And Why You Should Care!). Christian Brothers University. Web. 15 July 2011. <www.cbu.edu/idc/groups/library/.../web.../library_datafile_plag_ppt.ppt >.
McGowen, Hansen, and Mirka. Avoiding Plagiarism. Calgary Board of Education, 2011. Web. 15 July 2011. <schools.cbe.ab.ca/b806/library/Plagiarism.ppt>.
Medina, John. Brain Rules for Baby. First ed. Seattle: Pear, 2010. Print.