Preventing Plagarism
Plagiarism is the use of the ideas, words, or research of others without acknowledging their true origin. To plagiarize is to give the impression that one has written, thought, or discovered something which one has, in fact, borrowed from someone else without acknowledging them appropriately.
WHAT IS NOT PLAGIARISM?
- Your own original ideas and thoughts and feelings.
- Information that most people share, i.e. “common knowledge,” such
as
- July 4th is a national holiday in the United States
- Turkey is commonly served on Thanksgiving
- The cost of gasoline is higher than it was 5 years ago
Why should one avoid plagiarism?
- It is stealing…and is probable cause for suspension or expulsion. (see Fullerton College’s “Standards of Student Conduct and Discipline Policy in College Policies and Rules)
- It is cheating yourself-- Learning to do research correctly will be of great help in your further academic endeavors
- Your research can be a stepping stone for others. Those who read the results of appropriately documented research can easily find the source of certain statements which they may wish to further explore for themselves.
What are some examples of plagiarism?
- Obtaining an entire paper from the Internet or from another student and
submitting it as one’s own.- Copying and pasting sections from Internet sources without acknowledgment of the sources.
- Using the exact written words of another without quotations and
acknowledgment.- Paraphrasing someone’s written ideas, even in your own words, unless you acknowledge that this is their idea.
CAUTION: With the use of the Internet, it has become easy to copy and paste the words of others into one’s own compositions. This “ease” is a two-edged sword. It is also easy for instructors to type in a phrase and find the original online source! In addition, Fullerton College subscribes to a service called Turnitin to which teachers can submit student papers and easily find out what parts have been “lifted” from the Internet and from what site they were taken.
Don’t cheat yourself! Give credit where credit is due.
For further information on plagiarism, see links from “Plagiarism” on the Librarians’ Index to the Internet:
Last update:
December 12, 2007
