Avoiding Plagiarism

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Step 1: Read

• Think: What’s important? What is the author writing about?

• Optional: Print out your articles/make a photocopy of your sources and read actively.– Use a pen/highlighter to

identify important information.

• You need to know what you’ve found in order to take notes on it. (DUH!)

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Step 2: ThinkASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS:

• Is this information relevant to my paper?

• Can I trust this resource?• Do I need this information,

or do I already have it?

Then…

• If you can answer “YES” to these questions, move on.

• If you said “NO” to any of these questions, consider moving on and finding another source.

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Step 3: Decide How to Proceed

• Use a direct quote? – If you can’t say it any better yourself

• Paraphrase?– If you need the details of the text, but

you can put it in your own words and not lose anything.

• Summarize?– If you only need the main ideas of what you’ve

read. Condensing the information will be enough.

OR

OR

But, how do I do these

things?

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How to Quote Directly

• Copy and paste the text you intend to use.• Put quotation marks around it. (Both sides,

please.)• Beneath the quote, explain, in your own

words, the significance of this information. – If you can’t say it any better, you still ought to have

a reason to include it. Explain that here.

Direct Quote (Notes)

• Siegel: “being constantly involved with Facebook promoted a single-minded focus on oneself--one's looks, habits, and behaviors.”

• This means that the problem is directly connected to the amount of time the user spends on Facebook.

• Being submerged in pictures of others all of the time encourages one to be self-conscious.

In-text citation

Direct Quote (Written Draft)

It’s hard to pinpoint what about Facebook inspires users to hurt themselves, but a study cited by Siegel states that “being constantly involved with Facebook promoted a single-minded focus on oneself--one's looks, habits, and behaviors.” This means that the problem is directly connected to the amount of time the user spends on Facebook. Being submerged in pictures of others all of the time encourages one to be self-conscious.

In-text citation

How to Paraphrase• USE YOUR OWN WORDS!

– None of this “I’ll only copy parts of it”-business. • The parts you do copy will need quotation marks.

– Sticking in a few synonyms with a thesaurus is NOT paraphrasing.

– Do not attempt to imitate the author’s style. Be yourself. – Pretend you’re “teaching” this information to someone

else.• Be sure to use “all main points and important details”

from the article you’re using (Lundsford 183). • Explain the significance of your paraphrased material.

Paraphrasing (Notes)

• Original Text: “being constantly involved with Facebook promoted a single-minded focus on oneself--one's looks, habits, and behaviors.”

• A study cited by Siegel states that users who are continuously on Facebook are in danger of being too self-conscious. They’re tempted to be concerned about their appearance and actions.

• Why does Facebook inspire users to hurt themselves? • If users spent less time on Facebook, they might not

be so concerned with how they stack up against others.

Notice that this version of the material, my version, says the same thing that the quote does, but using my words.

In-text citation

Paraphrasing (Written Draft)

• Original Text: “being constantly involved with Facebook promoted a single-minded focus on oneself--one's looks, habits, and behaviors.”

• It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what about Facebook inspires users to hurt themselves, but a study cited by Siegel states that users who are continuously on Facebook are in danger of being too self-conscious. They’re tempted to be concerned about their appearance and actions. If users spent less time on Facebook, they might not be so concerned with how they stack up against others.

Notice that this version of the material, my version, says the same thing that the quote does, but using my words.

In-text citation

How to Summarize

• USE YOUR OWN WORDS! • SHORTEN THINGS UP!– Summaries are shorter than the original.

• Write down only the main points, what really matters here (Lunsford 184).

• Explain the significance of your summary.

Summary (Notes)

• Original Text: “being constantly involved with Facebook promoted a single-minded focus on oneself--one's looks, habits, and behaviors.”

• suggests that the problem is directly connected to the fact that users are spending too much time on social networking sites (Siegel).

• If users spent less time on Facebook, they might not be so concerned with how they stack up against others.

Notice that this summary only comments on the main points, not the nitty-gritty details. It’s also a little shorter than my summary.

In-text citation

Summary (Written Draft)

• Original Text: “being constantly involved with Facebook promoted a single-minded focus on oneself--one's looks, habits, and behaviors.”

• It’s hard to pinpoint what about Facebook inspires users to hurt themselves, but a study cited suggests that the problem is directly connected to the fact that users are spending too much time on social networking sites (Siegel). If users spent less time on Facebook, they might not be so concerned with how they stack up against others.

Notice that this summary only comments on the main points, not the nitty-gritty details. It’s also a little shorter than my summary.

In-text citation

Works Cited

• Lunsford, Andrea A. Everyday Writer. New York: Bedford, 2009. 181-83. Print.

• Siegel, Judy. "Link Found Between Heavy Use of Facebook and Eating Disorders..." Jerusalem Post (International). 01 Feb 2011: 6. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 18 Apr 2012.