1. Bow Valley College’s student handbook defines
plagiarism as “that which is represented as
one’s own work and has been deliberately
copied from any outside source, including other
students’ work” (p. 26).
Plagiarism is a serious offense with consequences that may include:
 A failing grade on an assignment or in a course
 Permanent documenta on on a student’s academic record
 Expulsion from the program of study or the college
Avoiding Plagiarism
A How-to Guide for Students
What is
Plagiarism?
 Buying a paper in any form
 Hiring or le ng someone do
your assignment
 Stealing or "borrowing" all or
part of someone else's work
 Patching together a paper by
copying and pas ng from
different sources without ci ng
any of it
 Submi ng the same or a similar
assignment more than once
 Selling or allowing others to
copy your work
 Copying something word for word but not
using quota on marks
 Using significant ideas, concepts or facts
without a cita on, even if it is paraphrased
 Paraphrasing too closely by making only
small changes to a passage
 Ci ng a source you did not actually find
and read
Examples of Plagiarism...
A cita on provides descrip ve informa on about
a published source (such as a book, film or
journal ar cle) that allows the reader to retrieve
it. It is a recogni on of intellectual work and the
legal ownership of that work.
Cita ons are placed in two parts of academic wri ng:
What is
Citation?
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In the text of the paper when a source is quoted,
paraphrased, or summarized ("in-text cita ons")
In an alphabe cal list at the end of the paper
("reference list")
Defini on Example
Quota on is using the exact words of the original
source. Quota ons should be:
 short (fewer than 3 sentences)
 enclosed in quota on marks
 introduced with a signal phrase such as
“According to...” or “As argued by....”
Matheson (2012) states that Leif
Eriksson was "the first European to
set foot on North American soil,
almost 500 years before
Columbus" (p. 290).
A paraphrase is:
 a detailed restatement of essen al informa on
and ideas expressed by someone else
 presented in a new form using different words
 one legi mate way to borrow from a source,
provided the original is recognized through
cita on.
In research papers students o en
quote excessively, failing to keep
quoted material down to a
desirable level. Since the problem
usually originates during note
taking, it is essen al to minimize
the material recorded verba m
(Lester, 1976, pp. 46-47).
ALWAYS CITE:
 Unique phrases, words,
opinions, theories or ideas
of others taken from an
ar cle, book, newspaper,
film, website, or any other
source
 Reprinted diagrams,
illustra ons, charts, or
pictures
 An idea, opinion or theory
found in non-tradi onal,
"unpublished" forms, such
as conversa ons,
interviews, or blog
comments
Students must quote or paraphrase academic sources to provide
evidence (such as facts, ideas, or theories) that support the
arguments and claims made in the text of college wri ng
assignments. This chart explains quo ng and paraphrasing:
Quoting &
Paraphrasing

2. Reference List Citations
in APA Style, 6th Edition
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2
4
3
5
A cita on “style” is a set of rules that provide consistency so a
reader may easily refer to the original source in order to
evaluate, validate, or refute the claims made by the writer’s
interpreta on of that source.
The American Psychological Associa on (APA) has created a set
of standards for wri en communica on that regulates the organiza on of content,
wri ng style, and how sources are cited.
What is
APA Style
Citation?
The rules of APA style depend
on the format and place of the
cita on, which determines what
bibliographic details are
required.
In general, in-text cita ons
always include:
 author(s)
 date of publica on (or
“n.d.” if unavailable)
 page number
Reference list cita ons will
have several of the following
details:
 Title of the work
 Title of the publica on (if
the work is an ar cle)
 Date (or "n.d." if
unavailable)
 Author(s)
 Publishing en ty (company
or organiza on)
 Volume number
 Issue number
 URL address of the
publica on’s website
 Digital object iden fier (doi)
A book with one author:
Matheson, L. M. (2012). Icons of the Middle Ages: Rulers, writers, rebels,
and saints. Santa Barbara, CA: Greenwood.
An essay or chapter in a book with two editors:
Zorel, B. (2013). Dazzling the spoons: The Brentwood babysi ng co-op. In E. Moschopedis & M. Rushton
(Eds.), Knock on any door (A revised history): Art and social engagement in Calgary, 1912-2012 (pp.
26-32). Calgary, Canada: Department of Forgo en Histories.
A document available on the website of a school or ins tu on (no author):
Bow Valley College (2013). Student handbook. Retrieved from h p://
web.bowvalleycollege.ca/bvc101/BVC_20130606_StudentHandbook.pdf
A journal ar cle with four authors from a library database (no doi)
Alfino, M., Pajer, M., Pierce, L., & Jenks, K. O. (2008). Advancing cri cal thinking and informa on literacy
skills in first year college students. College & Undergraduate Libraries, 15(1/2), 81-98. Retrieved from
A film in DVD format:
Halula, W. (Producer/Director). (2011). The brain: Pa ern, structure and
novelty [DVD]. United States: Learning ZoneXpress.
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A journal ar cle with one author from a library database (with doi):
Fife, W. (2004). Penetra ng types: Confla ng modernist and postmodernist
tourism on the Great Northern Peninsula of Newfoundland. Journal of
American Folklore, 117(464), 147-167. doi: 10.1353/jaf.2004.0036
The following entries are provided as
examples only. Please refer to an APA style
manual, such as “Cites & Sources,” when
forma ng cita ons.
Entry in an dic onary or encyclopedia from a library database (no author):
Alzheimer’s Disease. (2004). In The concise Corsini encyclopedia of psychology and behavioral science.
Retrieved from h p://www.credoreference.com
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Newspaper ar cle from an online web page (with author):
Raymond. N. (2013, September 6). Apple gets five-year injunc on over e-books pricing affair. The Globe and
Mail. Retrieved from h p://www.theglobeandmail.com