AVOIDING PLAGIARISM

Taking someone’s property without permission is stealing

What is Plagiarism? Taking someone else’s ideas without acknowledgement is called plagiarism

Examples of Plagiarism Copying a friend’s work Buying a finished project from someone else Having your parents or relatives do your work for you Copying and pasting someone’s work into yours without citing source.

People who participate in plagiarism are regarded as academic thieves

Plagiarism can be intentional, such as, when a student downloads a research paper from a website

Plagiarism can be unintentional, such as, When a student incorrectly misquotes documents. When a student turns in one of his previous assignment as new.

How to Avoid Plagiarism Proper organization of time and notes Proper use of quotes, paraphrases, and summaries Proper use of citations

1. Organization Organizing time and notes correctly help to avoid last minute panic For example, Document information on index or source cards : noting author, name of book, page, publication date and if it is a website include URL. Arrange research by using graphic organizers, such as, concept maps, outlines and Venn diagrams. Having your parents or relatives do

Examples of Graphic Organizers Effect Cause Cause Civil War Effect Effect Cause

2. Correct Use of Quotes, Paraphrases, and Summaries Quotations give strong support to arguments, but must be placed within quotation marks. Paraphrasing re-works the ideas, words, phrases and sentence structures of others but must be told in your own words. Sources used in paraphrases need to be documented. Summaries are used to put information from 1 or several authors, using your own words in shorter length than the original. Sources used in summaries need to be documented using correct citation.

Direct Quotes If you use someone else’s writing without putting it in quotes, you have blatantly plagiarized. Even if you add the source in your bibliography, it is still plagiarism.

Paraphrasing Be careful about rewriting someone else’s words. If your sentences use many of the same words and grammatical structure as the original source, it could be construed as plagiarism.

When Paraphrasing… Be sure you are not just re-arranging or replacing words. Rewrite the phrase in your own words and credit the original source. Double check what you have written by comparing it with the original writing.

3. Correct Documentation and Citation All source material, like quotes, paraphrases and summaries, need to be documented using correct citation: author’s name, title of article, page number, publishing information and date. Many schools use the MLA style. The Modern Language Association is an organization that provides guidelines for documenting and citing sources during a research project. The APA (American Psychological Association) is another organization that provides citation guidelines.

Original Idea Give credit to unique ideas others have thought up. If you present the ideas of another without crediting them, you have plagiarized them. Obvious ideas, like known facts, don’t have to be credited. When in doubt, attribute.

Proper Citation

MLA Style

Ignorance Some students inadvertently plagiarize from online sources. They do not understand all the rules for properly using and citing sources. (“I cited the web site didn’t I?)

Remember to avoid the danger of plagiarism: Don’t surf to paper mills. Don’t use the Web to look for “easy’ paper sources. Don’t turn in other students’ papers as your own.

Consequences of plagiarism You may be dismissed from college/university. Jayson Blair plagiarized sources. He also fabricated stories. In his 20’s, he was at the top of the journalism world. Now he is disgraced, unemployed, and not yet 30. Stephen Glass was a writer for the New Republic in the 1990’s. He made up stories by inventing people, organizations, and events.He also plagiarized other writers.He was fired and had to go back to school to find another career.

A researcher needs to gather and use credible information to support a research project, but it is dishonest to present the words and ideas of someone else as your own, without credit.

Students who follow the pointers above are regarded as having high academic integrity and are trusted in the academic world. John A. Ferguson Sr.High has an Honor Code on our website for all students.