How to Avoid Plagiarism and Paraphrase Effectively

1. PLAGIARISM & PARAPHRASING--
PRACTICING CONVENTIONS OF ACADEMIC WRITING
Portions of this presentation are adapted from:
•The Writing Resources Center: http://wrc.uncc.edu/
•They Say/I Say: The Moves that Matter in Academic Writing, 1st ed., pp. 39-47, by Gerald Graff and
Cathy Birkenstein.
•DePaul University School for New Learning: Teaching Resources

2. 2
AVOIDING PLAGIARISM
Writers need to understand current definitions of plagiarism, which have
changed over time and differ from culture to culture.
Plagiarism is a cultural concept:
 Many cultures do not recognize Western notions of plagiarism, which rest on the belief that
language and ideas can be “owned” by writers.
 In many countries other than the U.S., using the words and ideas of others without attribution is
considered a sign of respect as well as an indication of knowledge.

3. 3
What is
“Plagiarism”?
What is NOT “Plagiarism”?
 Most current discussions of plagiarism fail to
distinguish between plagiarism and misuse of
sources.
 A student who attempts (even if clumsily) to
identify and credit a source, but who misuses a
specific citation format or incorrectly uses
quotation marks, has not plagiarized.
 In an instructional setting, plagiarism is
when a writer deliberately uses someone
else’s language, ideas, or other original
(not common-knowledge) material
without acknowledging its source.
 Definition applies to print or online texts,
to manuscripts, and to the work of other
students.

4. 4
UNDERSTAND WHY TO CREDIT
SOURCES…CORRECTLY
BUILD ETHOS--
 Show you are a knowledgeable and credible
researcher.
 Demonstrate fairness—that you have considered
multiple points of view.
 Provide background for your research by placing it
in the context of the work of others (joining the
conversation).
 Help readers follow your thoughts and understand
how your ideas relate to those of others.
 Point readers where to go to find more information
on your subject.

5. 5
Materials That Require
Acknowledgement
 Quotations, paraphrases,
summaries
 Facts not widely known or
claims that are arguable
 Help provided by others
Materials That Do NOT Require
Acknowledgement
 Common knowledge
 Ideas available in a wide variety of sources
(like news events or Wikipedia type
information)
 Your own findings from primary or field
research
Note: LANGUAGE ALWAYS COUNTS. If you use exact wording of ANYTHING,
even something that is found multiple places, you MUST cite it.

6. OUTSIDE MATERIAL = IDEAS OR WORDS FROM SOURCES
Possible Review-- Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing
 Quoting (Writing to Repeat): presenting ideas and wording of a source
unchanged from the original (placed within quotation marks and cited).
 Paraphrasing (Writing to Translate): presenting ideas of a source
unchanged but expressing them in your own writing style (doesn’t need
quotation marks, but still should be cited)
 Summarizing (Writing to Condense): presenting important ideas of a
source in briefer form and in your own writing style (doesn’t need quotation
marks, but still should be cited)

7. WHAT MAKES A GOOD PARAPHRASE?
Frequently, students unintentionally misuse sources when they attempt to paraphrase:
to
rephrase someone else’s ideas into your own words and sentence patterns.
A good paraphrase…
• Expresses someone else’s ideas in your own words and in your own style:
• word choice
• sentence structure
• organization of ideas
• Includes a citation- both in-text and bibliographic.

8. TIPS FOR PARAPHRASING--
1. Review the original material until you understand it completely.
2. Put the original material away.
3. Write out what the original material said using your own words.
• Avoid looking at the source!
4. Compare the original to yours to check for the same meaning.
5. Attach a citation.

9. Original
The rise of industry, the growth of cities, and the expansion
of the population were the three great developments of late
nineteenth century American history. As new, larger, steam-
powered factories became a feature of the American
landscape in the East, they transformed farmhands into
industrial laborers, and provided jobs for a rising tide of
immigrants. With industry came urbanization, the growth of
large cities (like Fall River, Massachusetts, where the Bordens
lived), which became the centers of production as well as of
commerce and trade.”
Too Close
The increase of industry, the growth of cities, and the explosion of
the population were three large factors of nineteenth century
America. As steam-driven companies became more visible in the
eastern part of the country, they changed farm hands into factory
workers and provided jobs for the large wave of immigrants. With
industry came the growth of large cities like Fall River where the
Bordens lived, which turned into centers of commerce and trade
as well as production.
An Unacceptable Paraphrasing Is Too Close to the Original

10. Original
Students frequently overuse direct quotations
in taking notes, and as a result they overuse
quotations in the final [research] paper.
Probably only about 10% of your final
manuscript should appear as directly quoted
matter. Therefore, you should strive to limit the
amount of exact transcribing of source
materials while taking notes.
Too Close
Students often use too many direct quotations
when they take notes, resulting in too many of them
in the final research paper. In fact, probably only
about 10% of the final copy should consist of
directly quoted material. So it is important to limit
the amount of source material copied while taking
notes.
 Black= Same as Original
 Red= Synonyms added while maintaining
sentence structure
 Blue = An Added Transition… The Only New
Material
An Unacceptable Paraphrasing Is Too Close to the Original

11. Original
Students frequently overuse direct
quotations in taking notes, and as a
result they overuse quotations in the
final [research] paper. Probably only
about 10% of your final manuscript
should appear as directly quoted matter.
Therefore, you should strive to limit the
amount of exact transcribing of source
materials while taking notes.
Good
In research papers, students often quote
excessively, failing to keep quoted
material down to a desirable level. Since
the problem usually originates during note
taking, it is essential to minimize the
material recorded verbatim (Lester 46-
47).
Good rule of thumb: If it can be color-coded to show similarities,
then it is too close to the original.
Paraphrasing Examples

12. PATCHWORK PLAGIARISM
Direct "patchwork" plagiarism is when a writer copies material from several writers
and rearranges that material with no attempt to acknowledge the original sources.
This also happens by copying material in multiple places from a source and then
trying to piece them together, again without proper acknowledgement or
paraphrasing appropriately.

13. Patchwork Plagiarism Sample 1

14. Patchwork Plagiarism Sample 2

15. Bad Paraphrase Sample
It is a misconception that plagiarism relies on a percentage.