Plagiarism

Kristy PadronInstruction LibrarianMDC Learning Resourceskpadron@mdc.edu

• Real Case Scenarios• What is Plagiarism?• Why Does it Matter?• What are the

consequences?• Specific Examples• Avoiding Plagiarism

Real Case Scenarios

A newspaper reporter was accused of making up information in many of his news stories.

For a poetry project, my classmate copied rap lyrics and told the instructor he wrote them.

A student purchased a term paper from an internet site and turned it in as her own work.

What do these scenarios have in common?

What is Plagiarism?• Anytime anyone uses the

work of someone else and passes it off as his or her own.

• “Work” in a college setting may be (but is not limited to):– Papers and Writing

Assignments– Books or Articles– Facts or Information– Research, Experiments and

Data– Poetry, Music, and Other

Creative Works

Why Does It Matter?

• In college assignments, most professors and instructors require you to document your sources of information and who had the original idea.

• Proper Attribution: when a person receives credit and recognition for their ideas.

• General Structure of Research: people who read an intellectual work will see where the author got his or her information.

What are the consequences of plagiarism?

• In College or a University:– A failing grade for the

assignment– A low grade for the class– Suspension or expulsion

• At Work:– Disciplinary Action– Job Loss– Damaged Reputation– Lawsuits (and expensive, at

that!)

Specific Examples of Plagiarism1. Copying.

o Cutting and directly pasting content from a source (magazine, article) to an assignment (or paper).

o Using an assignment written by someone else and passing it off as your own.

o Using an assignment originally done for one class and using it in another.

2. Improper Paraphrasing.o Having an attributed idea be worded too similarly to its original work.

3. No Attribution. o Not providing attribution or giving credit to the person with the

original idea or not commonly known fact.o Not citing a source in the body of a paper or including it in the

bibliography.

What does not fall under plagiarism?

1. Using common knowledge and basic facts.• Tallahassee is the capital of Florida.

2. Using ideas from original works that are adequately paraphrased AND given proper attribution.• In-line citations.• Including information on a original work

in a bibliography.

3. Original works and ideas that are not credited to anyone else.• A well-supported conclusion based on

attributed points.

How to Avoid Plagiarism1. ALWAYS CITE SOURCES. It’s better to

over-cite than the opposite.o Example: In 2013, the population of

Miami was 2,617,136 (U.S. Census Bureau).

1. USE THE CORRECT CITATION AS DEFINED BY A STYLE GUIDE.

Commonly Used Guides:o Publication Manual of the American

Psychological Association (APA)o MLA Handbook for Writers of Research

Papers (MLA)

2. MAINTAIN A THOROUGH BIBLIOGRAPHY OR REFERENCE LIST OF ALL SOURCES USED.

4. DO NOT CUT AND PASTE unless you do ALL of the following:– Cite your sources and provide proper

acknowledgement.– Use your style guide’s format for copied

information (use quotations, indentations, or whatever it dictates); AND

– Use the copied information to support your point or argument by connecting it with your own statement(s) of why it supports it. X

5. PROPER PARAPHRASING:Read carefully through what you intend to paraphrase, then rewrite the idea in your own words without using the original work as a guide.

Also, check your paraphrase against the original text to be sure you have not unintentionally used the same phrases or words, and that the information is correct.

Which is an example of plagiarism?

___ David Lynch is an American movie director.

___ David Lynch’s films include Eraserhead, The Elephant Man, Dune, and Blue Velvet. His film Wild at Heart won the Palm D’Or, the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 1990.

___ Wild at Heart received mixed reviews from movie critics. David Denby of New York Magazine described it as “a malignant work… full of self-mocking trash as well as perfervid excitement (Dunne 6).”

Source: Dunne, Michael. “Wild at Heart Three Ways: Lynch, Gifford, Bakhtin.” Literature Film Quarterly 23.1 (1995): 6-13. Humanities Full Text. Web. 9 Sept. 2014.

Original Text:

References to Oz abound in Lynch’s films, as James M. Welsh attests in his

review article in Magill’s Cinema Annual (399-400). Lula and Sailor are

hounded by a maniacal Margaret Hamilton-like laugh, probably emanating from

Lula’s mother, Marietta, who is variously depicted rubbing a crystal ball with

her long, red fingernails, tiding through the air on a broom, and wearing

slippers that turn up in the front and disappearing in a puff of smoke.

Source: Dunne, Michael. “Wild at Heart Three Ways: Lynch, Gifford, Bakhtin.”

Literature Film Quarterly 23.1 (1995): 6-13. Humanities Full Text. Web. 9

Sept. 2014.

As Used in an Assignment:

___ Lynch’s films have many references to Oz. In Lynch’s Wild at Heart,

Lula’s mother, Marietta, is shown rubbing a crystal ball with her long,

red fingernails, tiding through the air on a broom and disappearing in a

puff of smoke like the Wicked Witch (Dunne 9).

Do you need assistance?

• Ask your professor or instructor.• Contact the Writing Center in the Learning

Support Lab (D-203).• The library can assist with the research

process and in finding citation style guides.

MDC Learning Resourceshttp://www.mdc.edu/learning-resources/default.aspxReference Desk: (305) 237-5053