Avoiding Unintentional Plagiarism Kevin Moberg DSU Writing Center.

Avoiding Unintentional PlagiarismKevin MobergDSU Writing Center

Plagiarism Defined

Using in your writing the words or ideas from someone else’s writing without giving that writer proper credit• Might be intentional (cheating)• Might be unintentional (accidental)

Unintentional Plagiarism

Accidental• If you didn’t know that you were supposed

to acknowledge the author whose words/ideas you used in your writing

• If you tried to acknowledge the author but did it incorrectly

This is still considered plagiarism, and the consequences often are the same.

Possible Consequences

• Reprimand from professor• Failing grade on the essay or exam• Failing grade for the course• Suspension or expulsion from the

program• Suspension or expulsion from the

university• Legal action and fees

Check for Plagiarism

Ask yourself, “Would someone reading this work think that I created something that was really created by another person?”

If the answer is “yes,” then it is plagiarism.

Let’s Discuss!

1. Why do professors react so strongly to plagiarism? Why do they consider it so serious a “crime”?

2. What have professors told you about plagiarism? How have they taught you to avoid it?

Avoiding Plagiarism

• Ask the professor for his/her expectations regarding working together, citing research in your writing, etc.

• When working together (if allowed by the professor), do cooperate but don’t copy; help one another, but don’t turn in identical work

Avoiding Plagiarism

• Study and practice proper citation *• Keep notes during reading and research• Seek advice at the Writing Center• Use MLA and APA format resources on-line

* Citation means telling, in your writing, whose words/ideas you’re borrowing and where you found them.

Using Research in Your Writing

• Read others’ writing to prepare to write your own essay

• Take notes of words/ideas that you’d like to include in your own essay

• As you write your own essay, share your thoughts and ideas and use others’ words/ideas to support what you write

Using Research in Your Writing

Two places in your essay to acknowledge or give credit to the source of the words/ideas that you borrow• Within the essay itself with parenthetical

citation (citing the source in parentheses)• At the end of the essay in a bibliography

(information on all sources that you consulted)

Bibliography at the End of Your Essay

Essentially a list of all books, articles, Web sites, etc., from which you borrowed words/ideas for your own writing• In MLA, this is called the “Works Cited”

page• In APA, this is called the “References” page• Examples are available here

Parenthetical Citations Within Your Essay

Basically a signal to readers that, in a particular sentence, you have used the words/ideas of someone else• Introduced by a signal phrase (examples

available here)• Includes some form of the original author’s

words/ideas• Provides information in parentheses to

direct your essay’s reader to the bibliography at the end of your essay

Parenthetical Citations Within Your Essay

Both MLA and APA want citations in your essay to include the author’s name• MLA also wants the page number of the

original work• APA wants the year that the original work

was published—and, if you have quoted the author’s words exactly, APA wants the page number, too

• Examples are available here

Parenthetical Citations Within Your Essay

Three options for incorporating the words of others into your own writing• Quoting• Paraphrasing• Summarizing

Parenthetical Citations Within Your Essay

Quote• Quotations are the exact words of an

author copied directly from the source, word for word

• Put quotations within quotation marks: “ ”• Cite the source of the information quoted

(both within the text and at the end of the essay)

Example of Quoting

The original is from a book by Joseph Smith written in 2004:

My research project revealed that 78% of American males are not interested in buying music on-line.

Quotation:A study by Smith (2004) showed that

“78% of American males are not interested in buying music on-line” (p. 37).

Parenthetical Citations Within Your Essay

Paraphrase• Paraphrasing means rephrasing the words

of an author, putting his/her thoughts into your own words

• Paraphrased text is often slightly shorter than the original work

• Cite the source of the information paraphrased (both within the text and at the end of the essay)

Parenthetical Citations Within Your Essay

• A paraphrase can be viewed as a “translation” of the original source. When you paraphrase, you rework the source’s ideas, words, phrases, and sentence structures with your own

• To translate it or “put it into your own words,” you may need a dictionary or thesaurus to find synonyms

• Consult the Writing Center or an American English speaker to be sure that the synonyms you choose mean what you intend them to mean

Example of Paraphrasing

The original is from a book by Joseph Smith written in 2004:

My research project revealed that 78% of American males are not interested in buying music on-line.

Paraphrase:The research of Smith (2004) shows that

a majority of men in this country are unwilling to use the Internet to purchase music.

Parenthetical Citations Within Your Essay

Summarize• Summarizing involves putting the main

idea(s) of one or several writers into your own words, including only the main point(s)

• Summaries are significantly shorter than the original and take a broad overview of the original material

• Cite the source of the information summarized (both within the text and at the end of the essay)

Example of Summarizing

The original is from a book by Joseph Smith written in 2004:

My research project revealed that 78% of American males are not interested in buying music on-line.

Summary:Smith (2004) and other authors have

shown in their research how reluctant American males are to use the Internet to make purchases.

Let’s Discuss!

1. Why should students be careful to avoid plagiarizing when they write?

2. If you want to use someone else’s words or ideas in your own writing, how can you do that without plagiarizing?

Let’s Discuss!

3. Name one way in which MLA and APA citation styles differ.

4. Name two places in your writing that a reader would expect you to give credit to—or cite—the author of the words or ideas that you’re borrowing.

Let’s Discuss!

5. How would you show readers that certain words you have used are quoted directly from the original source?

6. How do paraphrasing and summarizing differ?

Let’s Discuss!

7. What resources are available to you when you have questions about citing research in the essays that you write?

BONUS QUESTION:8. If you read “The sky is blue” in a book

and wanted to mention it in your own writing, would you have to cite it?

Summary

• To give credit to another for his/her words or ideas, follow a standard format for citation—ask your professor if it should be MLA or APA

• Consult iMoberg and the Writing Center for assistance—follow examples to guide your own writing

• Enjoy this!