Writing the World Sources, Sanity and Academic Integrity

Welcome to the Information Age  Everywhere you turn these days, there are sources of information. The Web Television Radio Newspapers Magazines Journals Books

Information Overload  Currently on the World Wide Web, there are approximately “850 million accessible pages.” Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy. “The Internet Search Wizard.” 08/01/01

Coping with Overload  How can students and instructors cope with vast amounts of information? Use high quality, authoritative sources. Evaluate all information sources. Take meticulous notes.

Don’t Forget to Ask  Before you use a source, ask these important questions: Does this source supply your information need? What is the primary purpose of this source? Informational, news,marketing,advocacy, personal, entertainment? Who is the author, and what are her/his credentials? Is the content reviewed or edited?

More Important Questions Does the author refer to documented sources? Is the information objective? Are opinions backed up by facts and current research? Does the author have a vested interest to promote? Is the information current enough for your purpose?

Knowledge Never Stands Alone “Knowledge never stands alone. It builds upon and plays against the knowledge of previous knowers and reporters…” –Gordon Harvey, Writing with Sources

What This Means  As a writer, you will be required to consult sources in order to substantiate your own position or argument, or you may be writing an essay in response to something you’ve read.

Keeping Track  You must keep track of all outside sources.  If you fail to acknowledge sources correctly, you will be guilty of plagiarism, a serious breech of academic integrity.

What Is Plagiarism?  Plagiarism is adopting, adapting, or using someone else’s ideas or language without giving them credit.  Remember! Unacknowledged use of someone else’s intellectual property constitutes THEFT.

The Plagiarism Trap  Most researchers and writers don’t plan to plagiarize. They do it unintentionally.  If your notes and bibliographic information aren’t accurate, you may not realize that you are pirating someone else’s ideas.

Falling Into the Trap “Most often…the plagiarist has started out with good intentions but hasn’t left enough time to do the reading and thinking that the assignment requires, has become desperate and just wants the whole thing to be done with” (Harvey 22-23).

Ways to Avoid Plagiarism  Direct Quotations If you take text directly (verbatim) from an author’s work, always place quotation marks around it, and cite the precise page where you found the quotation: Wittgenstein claims that, “a poem, even though it is composed in the language of information, is not used in the language-game of giving information” (28e).

More on Avoiding Plagiarism  If you paraphrase someone else’s material, make certain that it is not simply a reordering of the original text. You must use your own words. Any use of the author’s language or phrasing must be placed in quotation marks. You must still acknowledge the source when paraphrasing.

What About Facts and Statistics?  Facts that are considered common knowledge do not need to be documented. The circumference of the earth The distance of the earth from the sun The current Speaker of the House of Representatives  These facts are common and could be gleaned from a variety of sources.

Keep a Working Bibliography  Take advantage of your computer’s capabilities and cut and paste bibliographic information into one clearly labeled file.  Although this information might not be in correct MLA or APA format, you will have a file of all the information needed to complete an accurate bibliography.

Follow Gordon Harvey’s Rules for Academic Integrity 1) Don’t leave written work until the last minute… 2) Don’t use secondary sources for a paper unless you are asked or explicitly allowed to… 3) Don’t rely exclusively on a single secondary source for information or opinion… 4) When you take notes, take pains to distinguish the words and thoughts of the source from your own.

Following Harvey Continued 5) Take notes actively, not passively. 6) Don’t try to sound more sophisticated or learned than you are. 7) If you feel stuck, confused, or panicked about time, or if you are having problems in your life and can’t concentrate, let you instructor know. 8) Don’t ask to borrow another student’s paper [as a source of inspiration].

Following Harvey 9) Don’t write a paper from borrowed notes… 10) Don’t do the actual writing of a paper with another student… 11) Don’t submit to one class a paper – or even sections of a paper – that you have submitted or will submit to another class… 12) Always back up your work on diskette, and make a hard copy…

Writing Today  Today, students are surrounded by more information than ever before.  To a certain extent, how you handle and evaluate information will determine your success as a student.  With a commitment to academic integrity, you will be off to a good start, as you prepare to write the world.

Harvey, Gordon. Writing with Sources. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc., 1998.