Avoiding Plagiarism Newfound Regional High School LMC

What is plagiarism? Plagiarism occurs when you use someone else’s words, ideas, or information and represent them as your own. If you fail to identify the source of these words, ideas, and information, it means that you have stolen them. Because plagiarism amounts to academic theft, penalties are often severe. In school, penalties include grade reductions and suspension. Outside of school, committing plagiarism could result in you being sued in a court of law.

Plagiarism occurs when you use someone else’s words, ideas, or information and represent them as your own. If you fail to identify the source of these words, ideas, and information, it means that you have stolen them. Because plagiarism amounts to academic theft, penalties are often severe. In school, penalties include grade reductions and suspension. Outside of school, committing plagiarism could result in you being sued in a court of law.

Types of Plagiarism Presenting someone else’s paper as your own Copying from a source but failing to give credit to the source Paraphrasing without using enough of your own words

Presenting someone else’s paper as your own

Copying from a source but failing to give credit to the source

Paraphrasing without using enough of your own words

Quoting and Paraphrasing When conducting research you often come across important sentences that are worded perfectly. When an expert’s sentence could really help your paper’s argument, it sometimes makes sense to quote it. By putting quotation marks “…” around the sentence, you indicate that the words appeared in the original source exactly as you are presenting them. Quotes should not be over-used, however. Because your teacher expects your paper to be in your own words, they expect you to paraphrase.

When conducting research you often come across important sentences that are worded perfectly. When an expert’s sentence could really help your paper’s argument, it sometimes makes sense to quote it. By putting quotation marks “…” around the sentence, you indicate that the words appeared in the original source exactly as you are presenting them. Quotes should not be over-used, however. Because your teacher expects your paper to be in your own words, they expect you to paraphrase.

Paraphrasing When you paraphrase you summarize someone else’s information or ideas in your own words. If you fail to use enough of your own words when summarizing, however, your paraphrase could become plagiarism. Examples on the following slides will illustrate acceptable and unacceptable paraphrases.

When you paraphrase you summarize someone else’s information or ideas in your own words. If you fail to use enough of your own words when summarizing, however, your paraphrase could become plagiarism. Examples on the following slides will illustrate acceptable and unacceptable paraphrases.

Example: Good Paraphrasing The original source: It is not always clear, at least in the early stages of a technology’s intrusion into a culture, who will gain most by it and who will lose most. This is because the changes wrought by technology are … downright mysterious, one might even say wildly unpredictable. Postman, Neil. Technopoly . (1992): 12. A good paraphrase: When technology first enters and begins to change a culture, it is difficult to foresee the positive and negative results. (Postman 12).

The original source:

It is not always clear, at least in the early stages of a technology’s intrusion into a culture, who will gain most by it and who will lose most. This is because the changes wrought by technology are … downright mysterious, one might even say wildly unpredictable. Postman, Neil. Technopoly . (1992): 12.

A good paraphrase:

When technology first enters and begins to change a culture, it is difficult to foresee the positive and negative results. (Postman 12).

Example: Bad Paraphrasing The original source: It is not always clear, at least in the early stages of a technology’s intrusion into a culture, who will gain most by it and who will lose most. This is because the changes wrought by technology are … downright mysterious, one might even say wildly unpredictable. Postman, Neil. Technopoly . (1992): 12. A bad paraphrase: Because technology changes are mysterious and unpredictable, it is not always clear who, within a culture, will become a technological winner or loser.

The original source:

It is not always clear, at least in the early stages of a technology’s intrusion into a culture, who will gain most by it and who will lose most. This is because the changes wrought by technology are … downright mysterious, one might even say wildly unpredictable. Postman, Neil. Technopoly . (1992): 12.

A bad paraphrase:

Because technology changes are mysterious and unpredictable, it is not always clear who, within a culture, will become a technological winner or loser.

It is not always clear, at least in the early stages of a technology’s intrusion into a culture, who will gain most by it and who will lose most. This is because the changes wrought by technology are … downright mysterious, one might even say wildly unpredictable. Postman, Neil. Technopoly . (1992): 12. When technology first enters and begins to change a culture, it is difficult to foresee the positive and negative results. (Postman 12). Because technology changes are mysterious and unpredictable, it is not always clear who, within a culture, will become a technological winner or loser.

When technology first enters and begins to change a culture, it is difficult to foresee the positive and negative results. (Postman 12).

Because technology changes are mysterious and unpredictable, it is not always clear who, within a culture, will become a technological winner or loser.

Citing Your Sources In addition to practicing good paraphrasing, you must correctly cite your information sources. Learn how by returning to the LMC Web site and exploring the links within the MLA Style Guide.

In addition to practicing good paraphrasing, you must correctly cite your information sources.

Learn how by returning to the LMC Web site and exploring the links within the MLA Style Guide.