How to USE the research you find!

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What is plagiarism?
Mistakes We Might Make
How to Cite Right
How to:
– summarize, paraphrase, & quote
Brief note on citation style resources
Samples to work through

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This workshop will not cover everything you ever needed to know about writing or citations. This is to set a foundation for solid techniques…
We have several additional citation style workshops each semester in:
– APA
– Chicago
– MLA
To discuss individual techniques or difficulties you are welcome to meet with an:
– Academic coach in the TRC,
– English tutor in the TRC, or
– Tutor in the Writing Center.

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Plagiarism is passing off other people’s work without giving credit.
It is unethical because it steals and deceives.
– WORK includes original ideas, strategies, research, art graphics, computer programs, music, and other creative expression.
– SOURCE includes published works and unpublished works (such as class lectures, handouts, speeches, etc.)
From Avoiding Plagiarism: Mastering the Art of Scholarship a UTSA Publication of
Student Judicial Affairs

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Misrepresenting someone else’s work as your own.
Copying sentences or paragraphs without properly citing the source.
Paraphrasing or summarizing without proper acknowledgment.
Using specific facts without crediting the source (other than “common knowledge.”)

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Common
– When the Civil War was
– When Texas became part of U.S.
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Needs citation
– Opinion about Civil War
– Disputable fact or not commonly known- i.e. when humans first came to the Americas
Even if you had to look up the information, but most people wouldn’t have had to, then it is considered “common knowledge,” but I still highly encourage you to cite EVERYTHING- even encyclopedias…

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Cite EVERYTHING you used for your paper.
There are TWO places where you mention the cited work:
1. Body of your paper
2. Bibliography/Reference List
Use a style guide.

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Avoid internet paper mills.
When you research, separate sources’ ideas from yours.
– Summarize a paper in your own words on a notecard, but put your thoughts about it on a legal pad, on a separate card, or somewhere else.

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Learn how to get credit for the connections you make by correctly:
– Summarizing
– Paraphrasing
– Quoting

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Distill the main points from the text.
Focus on key concepts, not on subpoints or supporting details.
From Lindsay Radcliffe, UTSA Tutor and NCB Instructor

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Should be comprehensive but concise.
– For example, a 15-page article may be summarized in a paragraph or two.
– For example, this might be used for annotated bibliography assignments.
The purpose of the summary/abstract is to give scholars a “preview” of the material covered in the article and let them decide whether they will take the time to read it.
From Lindsay Radcliffe, UTSA Tutor and NCB Instructor

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Unlike a summary, a paraphrase does not condense material; it includes main points and both supporting details.
– Thus, your paraphrase will be about the same length as the original passage.
– Therefore you would not paraphrase an entire 15 page article, but you could paraphrase an important sentence or paragraph.
From Lindsay Radcliffe, UTSA Tutor and NCB Instructor

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Translate an author’s ideas, point for point, into your own words.
Paraphrased material looks very convincing in a research paper; it shows that the writer understands her sources well enough to express them in her own voice.
From Lindsay Radcliffe, UTSA Tutor and NCB Instructor

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Select a single paragraph from your full-length article.
Then, paraphrase it by translating it into your own words.
Change both the vocabulary and the sentence structure to free yourself from the author’s voice.
From Lindsay Radcliffe, UTSA Tutor and NCB Instructor

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When you quote you present another writer’s actual words to support your own ideas.
As an academic writer, you will use quotations for four major purposes:
1. to support your ideas;
2. to preserve special or elegant language;
3. to comment on the quotation; or
4. to distance yourself from the quotation
(Spatt).
From Lindsay Radcliffe, UTSA Tutor and NCB Instructor

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Don’t string quotes together or put them back to back.
Example (don’t do this…)
– John Smith said, “children can be very obstinate if you don’t give them what they want,” but then stated that
“adults can be equally obstinate and act like children.”
Rosy Campo refutes this, “Both children and adults have a tendency to be obstinate regardless of the situation.”
Better…
– John Smith and Rosy Campo are on differing sides of the argument that children and adults can be stubborn whether you appease them or not.

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Save quotes for when you think it is crucial to present the source’s exact words. (i.e. statements of law, rules, or policy– or specific coined terms or jargon from that author.)
Learn how to add your own connections and comments.
– Be engaged in the research.
– If this troubles you or you need more clarification, please attend the Critical Thinking workshop that the TRC offers.

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The best way to avoid plagiarism is to cite EVERYTHING!
No thought is truly ever your own
(unless you really did invent the wheel…)

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We absorb much of what we read and therefore are liable to regurgitate that back into a paper we write… so be cautious!
Learn the citation style appropriate for your discipline.

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Basics are: APA, MLA, and
Chicago/Turabian
The PURPOSE is uniformity.
Find which one your professor or department wants. And when you pick one- stick with it!

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According to the Graduate School’s thesis and dissertation guides, each discipline should have a style manual selected, but if not- the default style manual is:
A Manual for Writers of Term Papers,
Theses, and Dissertations , by Kate Turabian
– Also known as Turabian style, which is derived from Chicago, and covered in the TRC’s Chicago
Writing Style Workshop offered each semester.

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You aren’t required to memorize it, just learn how to use the manual!!
Also, the Library asked us to point out that:
– Many search databases will give you the citation in a certain format, but please double check everything! Sometimes information is missing, etc.

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Graduate Student Learning Assistance website: http://www.utsa.edu/trcss/gsla
Diana Hacker- Research & Documentation
Resources: http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc/
UTSA Library Citation Resources: http://www.lib.utsa.edu/Research/Subject/ citingguide.html

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Let’s take a brief look at three of the most common types of plagiarism.
Let’s assume that two students are writing research papers for a history course. On a visit to the library they both come across the following excerpt from a compilation,
Napoleon: The Final Verdict , copyrighted in
1996 by Arms & Armour Press.
The passage refers to the closing stages of the Battle of Waterloo and was written by
Andrew Uffindell.
Learning in the Academy: An Introduction to the Culture of Scholarship, Creighton
University, College of Arts & Sciences, 2 nd printing, 2005

At this stage many a general would have broken off the battle and retreated. But Napoleon could not afford a single setback for it would destroy his reputation and embolden the political opposition in Paris. He had no choice but to stake everything on an attack by his Guard against Wellington. To boost his army’s flagging morale,
Napoleon sent messengers around the battlefield falsely to announce that Marshal Grouchy was arriving. This ruse was risky for if Napoleon’s troops discovered the truth, the sudden disillusionment would shatter the army. But
Napoleon was a gambler, and the cheers of “Vive l’Empereur! Soldats, voila Grouchy!” certainly galvanized his army into a renewed effort in support of the Guard attack.

Example A- Unacceptable
All seemed lost for Napoleon, and many a general would have broken off the battle and retreated. Yet, he could not afford to do so as a single setback would destroy his reputation and harden the political opposition in Paris.
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The words in italics are directly taken from the original text, therefore it is copied and not acceptable. Nothing gives credit to the author.

Example B- Acceptable
According to Uffindell, all seemed lost for Napoleon, and
“many a general would have broken off the battle and retreated. But Napoleon could not afford a single setback for it would destroy his reputation and embolden the political opposition in Paris” (186).
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This is acceptable because the writer put the author’s words in quotations and then bookended the sentence.
– Bookending is putting the author’s name at the front of the sentence or paragraph and putting the citation or page number at the end. Bookending is used to indicate that the entire sentence or paragraph is credited to that author.

Example A- Unacceptable
Napoleon had a almost certain choice political to make. He could either collapse back in Paris or confronting the British troops with his Imperial retreat stake everything
Guard and face by break off an engagement willingly, Napoleon chose the latter option.
Then, to boost his troops’ morale, the Emperor dispatched messengers around the camp with the false announcement that
Marshal Grouchy would soon arrive to relieve them.
. Never one to
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Discussion
– “In Example A, the writer picks numerous words and phrases from
Uffindell’s paragraph, sometimes changing their form slightly (for example, substituting false announcement for falsely to announce
Learning in the Academy: An Introduction to the
Culture of Scholarship, Creighton University, College of Arts &
).
But he does nothing to disguise his wholesale adoption of Uffindell’s analysis of the situation. The resulting text is plagiarized because the author could fairly claim very little as his own work beyond some superficial editing.”–
Sciences, 2nd printing, 2005

Example B- Acceptable
According to Andrew Uffindell, Napoleon had a challenging decision to make at this point: either fall back and face almost certain rejection at home or “stake everything on an attack by his Guard against Wellington.” Never one to accept defeat,
Napoleon chose the latter and, “[to] boost his army’s flagging morale, ... sent messengers around the battlefield falsely to announce that Marshal Grouchy was arriving” (Uffindell 186).
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This writer has put everything in quotation marks that she borrowed and has bookended the paragraph and properly cited the original author. She has also integrated the quotes well, using her own words and words that she felt were crucial to the understanding of this historical moment.

Example A- Unacceptable
Out of fear that his debilitated army would be unable or willing to make a final charge, Napoleon started the rumor that Marshal Grouchy was nearby and would be arriving to assist them at any moment. This could have been a dangerous move for the Corsican; if his soldiers had found out it was no more than a rumor, they would most definitely have lost heart and with it the desire to fight. But Napoleon was always one to take chances. His ruse worked, and a newly invigorated army prepared to attack the British line.
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Even though the writer has relied entirely on their own words here, it is still plagiarism because they did not properly cite the original author.

Example B- Acceptable
According to historian Andrew Uffindell, out of fear that his debilitated army would be unable or willing to make a final charge, Napoleon started the rumor the Marshal Grouchy was nearby and would be arriving to assist them at any moment.
This could have been a dangerous move for the Corsican; if his soldiers had found out it was no more than a rumor they would most definitely have lost heart and with it the desire to fight. But Napoleon was always one to take chances. His ruse worked and a newly invigorated army prepared to attack the
British line (Uffindell 186).
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This is acceptable because the writer cited the author. Note that these are the exact same words as the previous example, but bookending it makes is acceptable!

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Learning in the Academy: AN Introduction to the Culture of Scholarship, Creighton
University, College of Arts & Sciences http://puffin.creighton.edu/ccas/forms/LearninginA cademy.pdf
Avoiding Plagiarism: Mastering the Art of
Scholarship, a UTSA Publication of Student
Judicial Affairs.
SFU Library- Subject Research website http://www.lib.sfu.ca/researchhelp/subjectguides/e ngl/classes/EssayArch.htm

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