Plagiarism: What it is & how to avoid it

PLAGIARISMWhat it is &

how to avoid it

What does plagiarize mean?

to use the words or ideas of another

person as if they were your own

words or ideas

(Merriam-Webster, m-w.com)

Plagiarism can happen if you:

Copy someone else’s words

Change someone else’s words only a

little bit

Forget to give a citation

Sometimes plagiarism is intentional,

but often it’s accidental.

What happens if you plagiarize

in an academic assignment?

Depending on the school’s policy, you may:

Have to rewrite the paper

Get a grade of zero on the paper

Fail the course, or

Get expelled from the school!

American schools take plagiarism

very seriously!

To avoid plagiarism:

Be careful to cite all ideas &

information from other sources

(except common knowledge).

Paraphrase carefully and

thoroughly.

If you use a direct quotation,

remember to enclose it in

quotation marks.

Let’s look at some good

examples of correctly

incorporating a source

into your writing…

Original text:

They form a network throughout the historic core,

and they shape the physical experience of the city to

a degree that competes with its streets.

Walker, Nathaniel Robert. “Savannah's Lost Squares.” Journal of the Society of

Architectural Historians, Vol. 70, No. 4 (December 2011) , pp. 512-531.

Original text:






Acceptable Use: Quotation Marks & Citation

Downtown Savannah has a large number of historic

squares. “They form a network throughout the

historic core, and they shape the physical

experience of the city to a degree that competes

with its streets,” explains Nathaniel Robert Walker

(514).

Original text:






Acceptable Use: Good Paraphrase & Citation


squares. Perhaps even more than the city’s

streets, the grid of squares defines the heart of

Savannah (Walker 514).

And now let’s see some

examples of plagiarism…

Original text:






Plagiarism: Exact Copy Without Quotation Marks or

Citation


squares. They form a network throughout the historic

core, and they shape the physical experience of the

city to a degree that competes with its streets.

Original text:






Plagiarism: Exact Copy Without Quotation Marks


squares. They form a network throughout the historic

core, and they shape the physical experience of the

city to a degree that competes with its streets

(Walker 514).

Original text:






Plagiarism: Poor Paraphrase


squares. They make a network throughout the

historic center, and they create the physical

experience of the city to a degree that is in

competition with its streets (Walker 514).

Original text:






Plagiarism: Poor Paraphrase


squares. The squares form a network in the historic

core. Also, they shape the physical experience of the

city in a way which is competing with its streets

(Walker 514).

Now judge the following

passages. Is this correct use

of the source, or is it plagiarism?

It was not the plants alone that defined the

Savannah squares. The "paved footpaths" referred to

by Mackay were also of crucial importance,

establishing the spaces as the domain of

pedestrians.

Walker, Nathaniel Robert. “Savannah's Lost Squares.” Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Vol. 70, No. 4 (December 2011) , pp. 512-531.

Acceptable or Plagiarism?

The plants alone did not define the

Savannah squares. The "paved footpaths"

were also of crucial importance,

establishing the areas as the domain of

pedestrians (Walker 516).





pedestrians.



The plants alone did not define the

Savannah squares. The "paved footpaths"

were also of crucial importance,

establishing the areas as the domain of

pedestrians (Walker 516). POOR PARAPHRASE; TOO

SIMILAR TO THE ORIGINAL





pedestrians.



The walkways that make foot traffic a

key aspect of the squares are as strong a

characteristic of the squares as the lush

grass, shrubs, and trees (Walker 516).





pedestrians.



The walkways that make foot traffic a

key aspect of the squares are as strong a

characteristic of the squares as the lush

grass, shrubs, and trees (Walker 516).

GOOD PARAPHRASE &

CORRECT CITATION





pedestrians.



“It was not the plants alone that defined

the Savannah squares,” explains Walker.

“The ‘paved footpaths’ referred to by

Mackay were also of crucial importance,


pedestrians” (516).





pedestrians.



“It was not the plants alone that

defined the Savannah squares,”

explains Walker. “The ‘paved footpaths’

referred to by Mackay were also of

crucial importance, establishing the

spaces as the domain of pedestrians”

(516).

CORRECT QUOTATION

& CITATION





pedestrians.



It was not only the vegetation that defined

the squares in Savannah. The "paved

footpaths", which Mackay mentioned, also

were crucially importance, establishing the

domain of pedestrians in these spaces

(Walker 516)





pedestrians.



It was not only the vegetation that defined

the squares in Savannah. The "paved

footpaths", which Mackay mentioned, also

were crucially importance, establishing the

domain of pedestrians in these spaces

(Walker 516)POOR PARAPHRASE; TOO

SIMILAR TO THE ORIGINAL





pedestrians.



Though the landscaping of Savannah’s

squares is important, the paths that

lead pedestrians through them are also

a foundation of their success.





pedestrians.



Though the landscaping of Savannah’s

squares is important, the paths that

lead pedestrians through them are also

a foundation of their success.

NEEDS A CITATION!

Plagiarism: What it is & how to avoid it

Education

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