DOCUMENTATION or HOW TO AVOID PLAGIARIZING. What is plagiarism? 1.Attempting to pass someone else ’ s work off as one ’ s own; stealing from another person

DOCUMENTATIONor

HOW TO AVOID PLAGIARIZING

What is plagiarism?

1. Attempting to pass someone else’s work off as one’s own; stealing from another person’s work on purpose.

• This is the kind of plagiarism that people usually think of when they hear the word. However, it really is the least common kind of plagiarism.

• What’s far more common is the second kind:

2. Accidentally “borrowing” another writer’s words and/or ideas without citing them.

The second kind of plagiarism arises when writers

(a) forget to cite the source of their information,

(b) or paraphrase carelessly, so that the original writer’s style and/or wording are still present.

• Writers are often unaware when they commit this second kind of plagiarism.

• But both are equally serious transgressions. They can even land the writer in legal trouble.

How to avoid problems?• Paraphrase: Use your own choice of

words and phrasing, not the source’s.• Quote: using quotation marks when

the original wording must be retained. • Document thoroughly: every piece of

information and idea taken from elsewhere should be cited.

• When in doubt, CITE!

Are there any other reasons you can think of for thorough and careful citation?

Paraphrasing and Quotation

Key Strategies for avoiding

plagiarism

Antarctic exploration of the early twentieth century was unlike exploration of anywhere else on earth. No dangerous beasts or savage natives barred the pioneering explorer’s way. Here, with windspeeds up to nearly 200 miles an hour and temperatures as extreme as -100 degrees Fahrenheit, the essential competitions were pure and uncomplicated, being between man and the unfettered force of raw Nature, and man and the limits of his own endurance.

Alexander, C. (1999). The Endurance: Shackleton’s Legendary Antarctic Expedition. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

Use #1:

Antarctic exploration of the early twentieth century was unlike exploration of anywhere else on earth. The essential competitions were pure and uncomplicated, being between man and raw Nature, and man and the limits of his own endurance.



Use #2:

Early twentieth century exploration of the Antarctic was pure and uncomplicated. It consisted, at the heart, of competitions between man and unfettered Nature, and man and the limits of his own endurance (Alexander, 1999, p. 4).



Use #3:

According to Alexander (1999, p. 4), early twentieth century exploration of the Antarctic was much simpler than the exploration of other eras. There was no competition with wildlife or indigenous peoples; instead, there was a struggle between the explorer and the natural environment, between the explorer and his own physical limitations.



Use #4:

According to Alexander, early twentieth century exploration of the Antarctic was “unlike exploration of anywhere else on earth. . . . [T]he essential competitions were pure and uncomplicated, being between man and the unfettered force of raw Nature, and man and the limits of his own endurance” (1999, p. 4).

Try paraphrasing the following quotation. Don’t forget the citation!

• This direct quote comes from Michael Devries in 2001: "Violent movies don't create criminals: criminals are drawn to violent movies.“

• According to Devries (2001), criminals are attracted to cinematic violence, but they are not created by it.

Here’s one way to do it:

• This direct quote comes from Michael Devries in 2001: "Violent movies don't create criminals: criminals are drawn to violent movies.“

• According to Devries (2001), criminals are attracted to cinematic violence, but they are not created by it.

Try this one:

• Alex Hall wrote this in 1999: "The Mercator projection, while the most common way to draw a map of the world, distorts many of its features. For example, it makes Africa and Greenland appear to be the same size, but Africa is actually fourteen times larger.”

Here’s one way to do it:• Alex Hall wrote this in 1999: "The Mercator

projection, while the most common way to draw a map of the world, distorts many of its features. For example, it makes Africa and Greenland appear to be the same size, but Africa is actually fourteen times larger.“

• The Mercator projection is commonly used but misleading; for instance, Africa is fourteen times the size of Greenland, but the Mercator makes them appear the same size (Hall, 1999).

Using APA

• Documentation is not inherently difficult.

• It does take practice.

• Numerous resources are available to help you.

These resources include:

• The APA Quick Reference on the course website

• APA guides in the Unit 4 Reading

• The Writing Center

• The KU Handbook for Writers, Ch. 12

• Web resources (see the Webliography)

• Your instructor.

Examples:

Is this book entry properly formatted?

Milton, David, 2005, “The Truth about Home Schooling,” © Puffin Books

How would you know?

Check your guides!

The KU Handbook has a model book

entry at the top of page 215:

Levine, R. V. (2003). The power of persuasion: How we’re bought and sold. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Compare your own work to

the model.

If they’re formatted identically,

you’re in good shape!

Compare (a) and (b):

(a) Attempt: Milton, David, 2005, “The Truth about

Home Schooling,” © Puffin Books

(b) Model: Levine, R. V. (2003). The power of

persuasion: How we’re bought and sold. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

What (a) should look like: (a) Attempt:Milton, D. (2005). The truth about home

schooling. New York: Puffin.

(b) Model: Levine, R. V. (2003). The power of

persuasion: How we’re bought and sold. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Reference page entry for:a professional journal

Is this entry properly formatted?

Mary Johnson (1999) "Why Homeschooling Doesn't Work." Higher Education Quarterly.



Compare the example in the APA Quick Reference.


Wax, M. (1995). Know-ledge and ethics in qualitative social research. The American Sociologist, 26, 122-135.


There are several problems:

• It is not properly punctuated.

• It is missing several important pieces of information.




Corrections: • Volume and issue

numbers added.• Page range included.• Periodical title italicized;

only first word is capitalized.

• Punctuation corrected.• Author’s first initial only.

Johnson, M. (1999). Why home schooling doesn't work. Higher Education Quarterly, 99(1), 12-19.


Reference page entry for:a website


http://www.buildingrifles.com

http://www.buildingrifles.com/

Reference page entry for:a website

Several things are needed:

• Author’s name• Title of article• Date of publication

• Compare the model from the KU Writing Center

http://www.buildingrifles.com

Smith, K. & Jones, M. (2003). Building a better rifle. Retrieved from http://www.buildingrifles.com

Reference page entry for:an electronic news article


Bowers, B. (2008). “Rule Change to Help Smaller Companies Raise Funds.” New York Times. Retrieved January 29, 2008.

Reference page entry for: an electronic news article

No, there are several problems:

• Periodicals require a specific date

• Title not formatted properly.

• Source website not provided.

Bowers, B. (2008). “Rule Change to Help Smaller Companies Raise Funds.” New York Times. Retrieved January 29, 2008.

Reference page entry for: an electronic news article

Corrections: • Month and day

added.• Periodical title not in

quotes or capitalized.

• Home page of newspaper provided

Bowers, B. (2008, January 30). Rule change to help smaller companies raise funds. New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nyt.com

In-text citation:

Is this citation properly formatted?

blah blah blah. (Johnson, M. 1999)

In-text citation:

No: • The period should

follow the citation• No first initial

necessary

blah blah blah. (Johnson, M. 1999)

In-text citation:

Corrected version: blah blah blah (Johnson, 1999).

That’s the end of this tutorial.

Please ask your instructor if you have questions about this material,

especially if you still are not sure how to avoid plagiarism.

Documents

DOCUMENTATION or HOW TO AVOID PLAGIARIZING. What is plagiarism? 1.Attempting to pass someone else ’ s work off as one ’ s own; stealing from another person