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LIS2004 Strategies for Online Research | Prof. Tiffany Walker

Lesson 1 Information Has Value: 

  • This lesson is all about plagiarism and how to avoid it. 

Learning Outcomes

After completing this module, you will be able to:

  • Recognize plagiarism and the consequences of plagiarizing

Information Literacy Competencies

You will apply and learn about information literacy competencies while completing this learning module.

  • The primary competency related to this module is Information Has Value
  • The primary knowledge practice is to give credit to the original ideas of others through proper attribution and citation
What is Plagiarism?

“Plagiarism is the use of another’s work, words, or ideas without attribution. The word “plagiarism” comes from the Latin word for “kidnapper” and is considered a form of theft, a breach of honesty in the academic community.”

Read more about plagiarism from Yale University's Center for Teaching and Learning: What is Plagiarism?

Miami Dade College Procedures

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Types of Plagiarism

Infographic

5 Types of Plagiarism - Direct, Invented Sources, Patchwork/Mosaic, Self-Plagiarism, Accidental

(From BibMe, https://www.bibme.org/blog/plagiarism/types-of-plagiarism/)

What Counts as Plagiarism?
  • Turning in a paper or assignment you did not write
  • Using your own paper for more than one assignment
  • Downloading or buying a paper online or paying someone to write your paper
  • Using a quote without acknowledging the source
  • Paraphrasing someone else’s words without giving the author credit by using a citation
  • Making up citations
  • Copying images, audio, video, graphs, etc. without giving credit to the original source

A note on self plagiarism:

Self-plagiarism happens when you submit your own paper in more than one course without permission of the instructors.

How is this plagiarism? An important part of academic honesty is that your writing should accurately reflect what you learned in a specific class. The point of college is to acquire knowledge, and your education is an investment in you. Don't cheat yourself.

From SJSU Plagiarism LibGuide

How to Avoid Plagiarism
  • Cite any information you get from another source including text from any published or unpublished sources of information. This includes song lyrics, artwork, and graphics.
  • Cite all direct quotes.
  • Cite when you paraphrase (restate something you read in your own words).
  • Cite summaries (providing an overview of the main idea using your own words).
  • Adhere to a citation style.
    • APA: used by many disciplines including the “hard” and social sciences, nursing, medicine
    • MLA: used for English and literature

guide to understanding written plagiarism: are my own words being used - yes, if it is your idea your'e not plagiarizing, if it isn't, you're paraphrasing and need to cite; not your words? - if you're using quotation marks or block quote you must cite, if you don't then you're plagiarizing and must use them and cite.

(From EasyBib, "What is Plagiarism? A Guide to Catching and Fixing Plagiarism")

If you need one-one-one assistance, you can:

  • Visit your professor. Your professors are available to meet with you outside of class (or online) during their office hours. Stop by or schedule a meeting to ask questions and get clarification.

  • Visit your campus Learning Resources (Library or Writing Center) for assistance. Librarians and writing tutors are citation experts!

  • Visit your Study Skills tutor. These specialists can show you the best way to take notes on your sources and organize them to make it easier to incorporate into your paper.

Further Reading

Plagiarism in the news:

Plagiarism among authors:

 

Plagiarism on TV:

 

Review

In this module, you have learned how to:

  1. Recognize plagiarism and the consequences of plagiarizing