Understanding Plagiarism
how to avoid literary theft
how we define
plagiarism
Plagiarism is
(1) using another writer's words or ideas without
in-text citation and documentation,
(2) using another writer's exact words without
quotation marks, and
(3) paraphrasing or summarizing someone else's
ideas using language or sentence structures
that are too close to the original.
HOW TO AVOID
PLAGIARISM
Quoting
Paraphrase
Summary
QUOTING
1
WHEN QUOTING:
•Use quotation marks to indication which words
come from an outside source
•Include an in-text citation to tell readers the
source of your quote
ORIGINAL:
There are few intellectual offenses more
serious than plagiarism in academic and
professional contexts.
QUOTE:
According to the Purdue OWL website, “There
are few intellectual offenses more serious
than plagiarism in academic and professional
contexts” (Stolley and Brizee, 2012).
When you quote, you need to reproduce the
source exactly.
SOURCE: Bachelor’s degree programs in biomedical
engineering focus on engineering and biological sciences.
Programs include laboratory-based courses in addition to
classes in subjects such as fluid and solid mechanics,
computer programming, circuit design, and biomaterials.
Other required courses include in-depth training in biological
sciences, including physiology.
QUOTE: In order to be a biomedical engineer, a student can
expect to take a variety of courses. The Occupational Outlook
Handbook suggests classes “such as fluid and solid mechanics,
computer programming, circuit design, and biomaterials”
(11).
When you quote, you can omit unnecessary
details using ellipses:
...
SOURCE: Employers prefer applicants who have completed
training in drafting, typically an associate’s degree from a
technical institute or community college. Drafters who
specialize in architecture may need a higher degree, such as a
bachelor’s degree. Training differs somewhat within the
drafting specialties, but the basics, such as mathematics, are
similar. To prepare for this training, high school courses in
mathematics, science, computer technology, design,
computer graphics, and, where available, drafting, are useful.
QUOTE: In order to be a drafter, one needs specialized training.
According to the OOH, “Employers prefer applicants who have
completed training in drafting, typically an associate’s degree.
. . . Training differs somewhat within the drafting specialties,
but the basics, such as mathematics, are similar” (49).
When you quote, you may change or add
words as long as you do not change the
meaning.
Such changes should be placed in brackets:
[]
SOURCE: Employers prefer applicants who have
completed training in drafting, typically an
associate’s degree from a technical institute or
community college. Drafters who specialize in
architecture may need a higher degree, such as a
bachelor’s degree..
QUOTE: In order to be a drafter, one needs
specialized training. According to the OOH, a
drafting firm typically “[prefers] applicants who
have completed training in drafting, typically an
associate’s degree. . . . Training differs somewhat
within the drafting specialties, but the basics, such
as mathematics, are similar” (49).
PARAPHRASING
2
WHEN PARAPHRASING:
•Change both the words and the structure of
the original sentence
•Put any of the source's original phrasing in
quotation marks
•Include an in-text citation to tell readers the
source of your paraphrase
ORIGINAL:
There are few intellectual offenses more
serious than plagiarism in academic and
professional contexts.
Paraphrase:
According to the Purdue OWL website, when
it comes to writing in the workplace or in an
collegiate setting, plagiarism is one of the
most egregious errors a student can make
(Stolley and Brizee).
When you paraphrase, you restate
information from a source, but you use your
own words and your own sentence structure.
SOURCE: Audiologists should be able to effectively
communicate diagnostic test results, and interpret and
propose treatment in a manner easily understood by
their clients and other professionals. They must be able
to approach problems objectively and provide support
to clients and their families. A client's progress may be
slow, so patience, compassion and good listening skills
are necessary.
PARAPHRASE: As the American Speech-Language-Hearing
Association explains, a prospective audiologist needs to
have a variety of abilities; empathy, good
communication skills, critical thinking skills, and the
ability to lay aside personal bias are all necessary (13).
Some guidelines for paraphrasing
• Use your own words and sentence structure
• Put any of the source's original phrasing in
quotation marks
• Indicate the source of your paraphrase
what NOT to do
SOURCE: In the past, medical transcriptionists would listen to
an entire dictation to produce a transcribed report. Today,
many medical documents are prepared with the use of
back-end speech recognition technology, in which
specialized software automatically prepares an initial draft
of a report.
PLAGIARISM: With the use of technology, the job of the
medical transcriptionist has changed. As the OOH explains,
years ago, medical transcriptionists would hear an entire
dictation to create a transcribed report; now the reports
are made using back-end speech recognition technology
(91).
SUMMARIZING
3
WHEN SUMMARIZING:
•Summarize the main ideas of a text using your
own words and sentence structure.
•Put any of the source's original phrasing in
quotation marks
•Include an in-text citation to tell readers the
source of your summary
ORIGINAL:
There are few intellectual offenses more
serious than plagiarism in academic and
professional contexts.
Summary:
According to the Purdue OWL website,
plagiarism is one of the most egregious writing
errors (Stolley and Brizee).
A summary states the main ideas found in a
source concisely and in your own words.
SOURCE: They do basic tasks to maintain and improve forest quality, such as
planting seedlings or removing diseased trees. To plant seedlings, they use
digging and planting tools. To cut trees, they use handsaws or power saws.
Some forest workers work on tree farms, where they plant, cultivate, and
harvest many different kinds of trees. Their duties vary with the type of
farm and may include planting seedlings, spraying to control weed growth
and insects, and harvesting trees. Some forest and conservation workers
work in forest nurseries, where they sort through tree seedlings,
discarding those that don't meet standards. Others use hand tools or their
hands to gather woodland products, such as decorative greens, tree
cones, bark, moss, and other wild plant life. Some may tap trees to make
syrup or chemicals.
SUMMARY: Forest and conservation workers perform a variety of duties
relating to the planting, cultivating, and maintaining of trees.
Some guidelines for summarizing
• Include only the main ideas; leave out the
details
• Use your own words
• Indicate the source
TOP FIVE TYPES OF
PLAGIARISM
Clone
An act of submitting another’s work,
word-for-word, as one’s own.
CTRL-C
A written piece that contains
significant portions of text from a
single source without alterations.
Find-Replace
The act of changing key words and
phrases but retaining the essential
content of the source in a paper.
Remix
An act of patchwriting from other
sources and making the content fit
together seamlessly.
Patchwriting from multiple sources,
made to fit together
Recycle
The act of borrowing generously
from one’s own previous work
without citation; To self plagiarize
If you understand how to
avoid plagiarism,
you can help keep literary ownership safe