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Avoiding Plagiarism

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9 views

Avoiding Plagiarism

Uploaded by

hannal.olea18
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Avoiding

Plagiarism
What is Plagiarism?

Refers to words, thoughts, or ideas that belong to someone else


without giving them credit.
In both the classroom and in the professional world of publishing,
documenting your information sources is the only way you can
convey to others how thorough and careful you have been in
researching your topic.

Moreover, if you do not tell readers where your information came


from, they may think (and many do) that you either made up the
information or “stole” it.
When to Cite?

Documenting your sources entails providing information on the


author of the referenced materials and the publication in which
they appear. This practice is also known as citing a source.

The specific requirements for citing a source vary across different


citation styles. In certain styles, such as APA (American
Psychological Association), you must include the date of
publication somewhere in the body text.

In MLA (Modern Language Association), by contrast, you are not


required to include a date in the in-text citation.
MLA and APA
When to Cite?

As a rule, cite whenever you use something (text, data, idea, or


image) in whole or in part from another source. Specifically, you
must cite your source when you:

1. Copy a sentence or paragraph verbatim (literally, word-for-


word) from a book, article, website, blog posting, or anywhere
online or in print.
2. Use an exact phrase or choice words from a sentence or
paragraph, even if you are not copying the whole sentence or
paragraph.
When to Cite?

As a rule, cite whenever you use something (text, data, idea, or


image) in whole or in part from another source. Specifically, you
must cite your source when you:

3. Use original information that you have obtained from an interview


or conversation with someone.

4. Paraphrase or reword a sentence or phrase from an outside


source, or use the ideas inherent in the exact sentence or phrase.

5. Reprint images, maps, diagrams, charts, or tables.


When Not to Cite?

You do not need to provide citations for commonly known dates


and facts.

One guideline is that if a fact appears in more than five sources,


then it is commonly known.

However, if it was not common knowledge to you, and you use a


source, then document where you located the information.

You do not need to provide citations for common turns of phrases


or idioms, such as “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.”
When Not to Cite?

When in doubt, it is better to “over”-cite than “under”-cite.


Unnecessary citations can be easily removed, and their presence
has little overall impact; however, information that lacks proper
documentation is much harder to correct and leads to more dire
consequences.
Specific Concerns for
Academic Integrity

Word-for-word plagiarism is not the only concern.

Failure constitutes self-plagiarism and counts as academic


dishonesty. For example, while you may have a cover letter and
résumé readily at hand, you must construct original documents
to submit for the Job Application Packet.
Specific Concerns for
Academic Integrity

In your Job Application Packet, if you use a template for your


résumé, make sure that all of the content in your résumé is
created by you.

Some templates provide helpful examples of content—use these


examples to inspire your writing rather than directly copy them.

This also goes for your cover letter. Using specific, detailed
language taken from another source for your cover letter
constitutes plagiarism.
Four Tips for Avoiding
Plagiarism

1. Consider your need for information. If you are contemplating


intentionally plagiarizing something, ask yourself what
information you need to finish your assignment and then
consider alternate means for finding it. Your professor, your
campus writing, organizations, or your campus libraries are great
places to get more information.
Four Tips for Avoiding
Plagiarism

2. Give yourself time. Make sure that you leave enough time to
complete your writing tasks. If you budget your time carefully, you
will be able to ask for help when necessary and will not feel the
pressure to “copy and paste” in sections of writing.

3. Take notes. When you are researching, always drop in the last
name of the author, or even just a note saying “CITE,” in your writing.
Take down as much bibliographic data as you can at the moment.
This way you can keep track of your ideas and where they came
from. You can format your citations later in the revision process.
Four Tips for Avoiding
Plagiarism
4. Ask for help. You may feel like you don’t understand the writing
tasks and think that the only way to complete your work is to
plagiarize, talk about them and your sources with your professor,
contact your librarian or writing center, or consult with a friend,
family member, or classmates who are knowledgeable on these
matters. Talking about your writing is a great way to start coming up
with ideas.
Other Considerations for Using
Sources Ethically
it is more important to understand the larger ethical principles that
guide choosing and using sources. Here are a few of these larger
ideas to keep in mind as you select and synthesize your sources:

You must represent the topic or discipline you are writing about
fairly. If nine out of ten sources agree that evidence shows the K-12
education system in the Philippines is shrinking, it is unethical to use
only the tenth source that argues it is growing without also
acknowledging the minority status of that source.
Other Considerations for Using
Sources Ethically
You must represent the individual source fairly. When representing
an individual source, it is essential to maintain fairness and
accuracy. If a source acknowledges that a small segment of the K-12
education system in the Philippines is growing, but most other
sources consistently state that it is shrinking, it would be unethical
to suggest that the former viewpoint represents the writer’s main
argument. In such cases, it is crucial to present a balanced
perspective and avoid misrepresenting the overall consensus.
Other Considerations for Using
Sources Ethically
You must quote all sources, even informal ones like Wikipedia or a
dictionary. Quoting a dictionary definition is still quoting: you need
quotation marks. Wikipedia is not “common knowledge”: cite it.

You must summarize and paraphrase in your own words. To be


truly yours, a summary or paraphrase must be completely in your
own words and sentence structure. Be sure to give credit where
credit is due: clearly distinguish what work and words belong to
another and what work and words are yours.
Using Sources in Your
Document
One of the most effective strategies technical writers can employ
is to integrate and cite sources into their documents and
presentations.

Avoiding plagiarism, and using sources effectively allow you to


draw on the expertise of others to support your points.

Using sources effectively also helps the reader understand how


you are situating different findings, ideas, and arguments in
conversation with one another, as well as how you are
participating in that conversation.
SAY NO TO PLAGIARISM!

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