Avoiding Plagiarism:
Practical Notetaking Strategies
Topics
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Defining Academic Dishonesty
and Plagiarism
Note-taking and Notation Systems
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Summarizing, Paraphrasing, Quoting
Notecards, Double-Entry, Research Journal
Incorporating Source Material
Exercises
Defining Plagiarism
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The Institutional Rules on Student Services and
Activities at The University of Texas at Austin
defines plagiarism as follows: "Plagiarism' includes,
but is not limited to, the appropriation, buying,
receiving as a gift, or obtaining by any other means
another's work and the submission of it as one's own
academic work offered for credit" (Section 11802(d)).”
“Plagiarism can occur in a myriad of forms and
media. . . . Plagiarism, strictly speaking, is not a
question of intent.”
(Student Judicial Services, http://www.utexas.edu/depts/dos/sjs/academicintegrity.html)
Why not?
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“Scholars, teachers, and students all participate in a
community of learning, where the ideas and information
that have been developed over centuries are disseminated,
elaborated upon, and added to in a continual process of
intellectual advancement. High standards of academic
integrity help ensure that this process functions smoothly.”
(Student Judicial Services, http://www.utexas.edu/depts/dos/sjs/academicintegrity.html)
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Demonstration of Your Achievement
Why?
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Passive Sponge Research Syndrome
Unaware of sources of dishonest
practices
Unaware of research “best practices”
Notetaking
and
Notation Systems
Notation Types
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Summary
Paraphrase
Direct Quote
Summary
1. Record Bibliographic Information.
2. Skim for Main Topic. Record.
3. Read Carefully, Judiciously Marking.
4. Review Marked Information.
5. Set Source Aside. Process 5-10 Minutes.
6.Quickly Summarize:
Problem, Thesis, Main Points, Conclusion.
7. Compare vs. Original.
Paraphrase
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Borrow an author’s ideas.
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Restate a passage in your own words.
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Don’t simply change a couple words or
rearrange the order of words or
sentences.
Paraphrase
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Process passage, put aside original,
write in own words, compare with
original.
Like a summary, but point by point or
idea by idea order matches the original.
Paraphrase Example
“In the banking concept of education,
knowledge is a gift bestowed by those who
consider themselves knowledgeable upon
those whom they consider to know nothing.”
(Friere, Paulo, “The Banking Concept of Education,” in Pedagogy of the
Oppressed, NY: Continuum, 1970, Quoted in *Ballenger, 1998.)
According to Paulo Friere, a noted critic of
teaching methods, all too often teachers see
students as simply empty bank accounts
into which they must deposit knowledge.*
Direct Quote
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Distinctive Material
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Lend Authority to Your Assertions.
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Explanation of Process/Idea Particularly
Clear.
Direct Quote
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Distinguish beginning & end
with clear “ ”s.
“Why am I writing this down?”
Explain; Interpret; Comment;
Question.
Carefully, consistently distinguish your
comments from source material.
Notation Systems
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Notecards
Double-Entry
Research Journal
Notecards
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Reference Card
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Full Citation
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Bibliographic Code
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Summary on Back (optional)
Notecards
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Source Card
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Bibliographic Code
Topic
Summary / Paraphrase / Direct Quotation
Page Number
Your Interaction / Comment
Double-Entry Journal
Bibliographic Information (top of page)
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Summary (p.)
Quote (p.)
Paraphrase (p.)
Paraphrase (p.)
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Your original comments that
correspond to source material
on left side.
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Examples. What I should
investigate next.
Info on the author. Findings
based on only one study.
I could use this in the
conclusion. Agrees with all other
studies.
Useful for future perspective.
Seems to contradict earlier
finding.
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Research Journal
Topic:
Citation:
What Strikes Me Most:
Source Notes: < S / P / Q >
Source Reconsidered:
Others?
Notation Keys
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Consistency
Utilize Ss, Ps, & Qs
Interact with Material
Clearly Distinguish Your Words from
Source
Except for Quote, Write without the
Source
Incorporating Sources into Text
Framing
What Does Not Have to Be
Quoted / Cited
Framing
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Avoid “free-floating” quotes in reports
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Introduction
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Interpretative Material
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Quotes and Parenthetical Citations
Framing
There are two types of light water reactors: the
pressurized water reactor and the boiling water
reactor. According to Paul Ehrlich, who has
been a consistent critic of nuclear power, both
these types of LWRs "convert heat to electricity
with an efficiency of about 32 percent-significantly less than the best fossil-fueled
plants, although about equal to the national
average for all thermal electricity generation"
(1994).
No Need for Quotes / Citation
Common Knowledge
Among Engineers
Among General Population
Common Facts Easily Found
in Reference Books
Questions & Comments