A designer worst nightmare.
Plagiarism:
What It is and How to Recognize and Avoid It
What is Plagiarism and Why is it Important?
In college courses, we are continually engaged with other peoples
ideas: we read them in texts, hear them in lecture, discuss them in
class, and incorporate them into our own writing. As a result, it
is very important that we give credit where it is due. Plagiarism
is using others ideas and words without clearly acknowledging the
source of that information.
How Can Students Avoid Plagiarism?
To avoid plagiarism, you must give credit whenever you use
another persons idea, opinion, or theory;
any facts, statistics, graphs, drawingsany pieces of
informationthat are not common knowledge;
quotations of another persons actual spoken or written words;
or
paraphrase of another persons spoken or written words.
These guidelines are taken from the Student Code of Rights,
Responsibilities, and Conduct.
How to Recognize Unacceptable and Acceptable Paraphrases
Heres the ORIGINAL text, from page 1 of Lizzie Borden: A Case Book
of Family and Crime in the 1890s by Joyce Williams et al.:
The rise of industry, the growth of cities, and the expansion of
the population were the three great developments of late nineteenth
century American history. As new, larger, steam-powered factories
became a feature of the American landscape in the East, they
transformed farm hands into industrial laborers, and provided jobs
for a rising tide of immigrants. With industry came urbanization
the growth of large cities (like Fall River, Massachusetts, where
the Bordens lived) which became the centers of production as well
as of commerce and trade.
Heres an UNACCEPTABLE paraphrase that is plagiarism:
The increase of industry, the growth of cities, and the explosion
of the population were three large factors of nineteenth century
America. As steam-driven companies became more visible in the
eastern part of the country, they changed farm hands into factory
workers and provided jobs for the large wave of immigrants. With
industry came the growth of large cities like Fall River where the
Bordens lived which turned into centers of commerce and trade as
well as production.
What makes this passage plagiarism?
The preceding passage is considered plagiarism for two
reasons:
the writer has only changed around a few words and phrases, or
changed the order of the originals sentences.
the writer has failed to cite a source for any of the ideas or
facts.
If you do either or both of these things, you are
plagiarizing.
NOTE: This paragraph is also problematic because it changes the
sense of several sentences (for example, "steam-driven companies"
in sentence two misses the originals emphasis on factories).
Heres an ACCEPTABLE paraphrase:
Fall River, where the Borden family lived, was typical of
northeastern industrial cities of the nineteenth century.
Steam-powered production had shifted labor from agriculture to
manufacturing, and as immigrants arrived in the US, they found work
in these new factories. As a result, populations grew, and large
urban areas arose. Fall River was one of these manufacturing and
commercial centers (Williams 1).
Why is this passage acceptable?
This is acceptable paraphrasing because the writer:
accurately relays the information in the original
uses her own words.
lets her reader know the source of her information.
Heres an example of quotation and paraphrase used together, which
is also ACCEPTABLE:
Fall River, where the Borden family lived, was typical of
northeastern industrial cities of the nineteenth century. As
steam-powered production shifted labor from agriculture to
manufacturing, the demand for workers "transformed farm hands into
industrial laborers," and created jobs for immigrants. In turn,
growing populations increased the size of urban areas. Fall River
was one of these hubs "which became the centers of production as
well as of commerce and trade" (Williams 1).
Why is this passage acceptable?
This is acceptable paraphrasing because the writer:
records the information in the original passage accurately.
gives credit for the ideas in this passage.
indicated which part is taken directly from her source by putting
the passage in quotation marks and citing the page number.
Note that if the writer had used these phrases or sentences in her
own paper without putting quotation marks around them, she would be
PLAGIARIZING. Using another persons phrases or sentences without
putting quotation marks around them is considered plagiarism EVEN
IF THE WRITER CITES IN HER OWN TEXT THE SOURCE OF THE PHRASES OR
SENTENCES SHE HAS QUOTED.
Plagiarism and the World Wide Web
The World Wide Web has become a more popular source of information
for student papers, and many questions have arisen about how to
avoid plagiarizing these sources. In most cases, the same rules
apply as to a printed source: when a writer must refer to ideas or
quote from a WWW site, she must cite that source.
If a writer wants to use visual information from a WWW site, many
of the same rules apply. Copying visual information or graphics
from a WWW site (or from a printed source) is very similar to
quoting information, and the source of the visual information or
graphic must be cited. These rules also apply to other uses of
textual or visual information from WWW sites; for example, if a
student is constructing a web page as a class project, and copies
graphics or visual information from other sites, she must also
provide information about the source of this information. In this
case, it might be a good idea to obtain permission from the WWW
sites owner before using the graphics.
Strategies for Avoiding Plagiarism
1. Put in quotations everything that comes directly from the text
especially when taking notes.
2. Paraphrase, but be sure you are not just rearranging or
replacing a few words.
Instead, read over what you want to paraphrase carefully; cover up
the text with your hand, or close the text so you cant see any of
it (and so arent tempted to use the text as a guide). Write out
the idea in your own words without peeking.
3. Check your paraphrase against the original text to be sure you
have not accidentally used the same phrases or words, and that the
information is accurate.
Terms You Need to Know (or What is Common Knowledge?)
Common knowledge: facts that can be found in numerous places and
are likely to be known by a lot of people.
Example: John F. Kennedy was elected President of the United States
in 1960.
This is generally known information. You do not need to document
this fact.
However, you must document facts that are not generally known and
ideas that interpret facts.
Example: According the American Family Leave Coalitions new book,
Family Issues and Congress, President Bushs relationship with
Congress has hindered family leave legislation (6).
The idea that Bushs relationship with Congress has hindered
family leave legislation is not a fact but an interpretation;
consequently, you need to cite your source.
Quotation: using someones words. When you quote, place the passage
you are using in quotation marks, and document the source according
to a standard documentation style.
The following example uses the Modern Language Associations
style:
Example: According to Peter S. Pritchard in USA Today, Public
schools need reform but theyre irreplaceable in teaching all the
nations young (14).
Paraphrase: using someones ideas, but putting them in your own
words. This is probably the skill you will use most when
incorporating sources into your writing. Although you use your own
words to paraphrase, you must still acknowledge the source of the
information.
Article from http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml
