Plagiarism
Defined:
Plagiarism
is using another personís words or ideas and
pretending they are your own. Copying directly
from books, articles, and websites without giving
the author credit is plagiarism
and is never acceptable.
Avoid
Plagiarism:
Always
give credit to the original author. (Ask your
professor or a librarian about how to properly
cite a source.)
Paraphrasing
an author (putting the authorís ideas in your
own words) is still plagiarism if you do not
give the original author credit in a citation.
Example
of Plagiarism:
Source:
Trained
librarians are leaders in their communities.
They understand community development. They
provide access to the training and information
required for a strong economic environment and
an informed citizenry. They support the cultural
richness of their communities. They share in
the responsibility of educating our children.
(Rogers, 2002).
Summary:
Sharing
in the responsibility of educating our children,
librarians provide access to information
required for a strong economy and an informed
citizenry. (Rogers, 2002).
The above summary commits plagiarism by retaining
exact phrases from the original text. Compare
it to the following acceptable summary:
In her recent speech, Rogers (2002) identifies
the roles librarians play in their communities.
By educating patrons to find information, professional
librarians strengthen communities economically,
educationally and culturally.
By
putting down the source of the words or ideas
used in your papers you show that you looked
up books, articles, sites. You engaged
in a research process.
When
you paraphrase another and cite the original
author you show that you located the appropriate
material, analyzed the content, and synthesized
it into your own work.
When
you cite material correctly you differentiate
it from the original words or ideas that you
put into your paper. Your original material
stands out. As educated people we are
interested in contributing to the larger body
of wisdom on a subject. Itís not a contribution
if you only use other peopleís words or ideas.
Resources:
Bedford
St. Martins Citation Styles Online (http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/online/citex.html)
MLA
Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (REF.
LB2369.M53 1999)
A
Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and
Dissertations (REF. LB2369 .T8 1996)
Publication
Manual of the American Psychological Association
(REF. BF7637.P83 2001)
The
Plagiarism Handbook (REF. PN167 .H37 2001)
Using
Sources Effectively: Strengthening Your Writing
and Avoiding Plagiarism (REF. PN 167 .H39 2002)
Virtual
Salt (http//www.virtualsalt.com/antiplag.htm)
Writing
Papers in the Biological Sciences (QH304 .M36
2001)
