Cambridge University Library

How to avoid plagiarismDr. Emma CoonanResearch Skills Librarian, Cambridge University Library

What is plagiarism?

How many ways can you think of to commit plagiarism?

Examples of plagiarism

• quoting verbatim another person’s work without due acknowledgement of the source

• paraphrasing another person’s work by changing some of the words, or the order of the words, without due acknowledgement of the source

• using ideas taken from someone else without reference to the originator

• cutting and pasting from the Internet to make a pastiche of online sources

• submitting someone else’s work as part of a candidate’s own without identifying clearly who did the work

• colluding with another person

• autoplagiarism

(University of Cambridge, 2011)

Varsity survey

Varsity, 31 October 2008

What is it?

… submitting as one’s own work, irrespective of intent to deceive, that which derives in part or in its entirety from the work of others without due acknowledgement.

(University of Cambridge 2011, emphasis mine)

”

“

www.admin.cam.ac.uk/univ/plagiarism/students/statement.html

What is it?

… passing off someone else’s work as your own, whether intentionally or unintentionally, for your own benefit.

(Carroll 2002, p.40)

”“

The (ethical) bottom line

Ensuring that your readers can distinguish between your own and others’ thinking means that you:

• Give credit for the work you have built on

• Get credit for the work you have done yourself

Case study 1

• Student lost track of time and could not locate scholarly resources close to deadline

• Searched the internet (avoiding essay banks)

• Cut-and-pasted information for own reference from open web sources

• Made a ‘patchwork’ of paraphrased arguments from websites – didn’t cite them

What caused it?

1. Non-scholarly information – not well ‘signposted’

2. Poor citation practice

Solutions

1. Know where to find scholarly resources for your subject

2. Always have two ends to your reference!

Scholarly material has clear authorship

In-text citation

Lovitts argues that “Creative intelligence is the ability to formulate good problems” (2005, p.143).

A short ‘pointer’ to the full entry at the point in your text where you quote or paraphrase

Double-entry citation

Reference list entry

Lovitts, Barbara E. (2005) ‘Being a good course-taker is not enough: a theoretical perspective on the transition to independent research’, Studies in Higher Education 30(2), pp.137-54

All the details needed for a reader to follow up your source

Citation styles

Your school or department will probably have a preferred or citation style. It might even be mandatory to use a particular style.

Do you know which one you should use?

www.admin.cam.ac.uk/univ/plagiarism/students/depts.html

www.admin.cam.ac.uk/univ/plagiarism/students/depts.html

Case study 2

• Tutor noticed change of voice/phrasing mid-essay, just after a quotation

• This unattributed material was taken almost directly from the same source as the quote

• Student had failed to recognise the full quotation in his notes - thought it was his own work

What caused it?

1. Bad notemaking

2. Failure to understand how to paraphrase?

Solutions

1. Practise active notemaking

2. Recognise that paraphrases must be cited

3. Appreciate when to paraphrase and when to quote (it’s not that obvious!)

Active notemaking

Make sure you can identify:

• Which parts of your notes are quotations (including single significant words)

• Which parts are paraphrases of the author’s points

• Which parts of your own writing are a response to the argument or directly inspired by ideas in the text

Will you be able to tell the difference in a month’s time?

Notemaking strategy

Paraphrasing vs. quotation

Rephrasing someone else’s argument in your own words:

• shows you have read and assimilated the required reading

• strengthens your argument

• lets you analyse and compare contrasting points of view

• allows you to maintain your ‘flow’ of writing and own voice

Still needs to be cited!

Paraphrasing vs. quotation

Rephrasing someone else’s argument in your own words:

• gives less weight to the original author, more to your ‘voice’

Consider whether this is appropriate

• How significant is this work in your argument? • Does the author deserve greater representation?)

Key concepts, phrases or even words in the argument should be placed in quotation marks if you use them

In-text citation

“As Whitworth (2006) points out, the instructional style can enforce a positivist approach which is at odds with the interrogative nature of the scholarly mission.”

Double-entry citation

Reference list entry

Whitworth, Andrew (2006) ‘Communicative competence in the information age: towards a critical theory of information literacy education’, Italics 5(1).

Case study 3

• Two postgraduate students decided to collaborate on an essay

• Used good academic practice in every other regard

What caused it?

Students failed to understand that they were expected to work independently and that their

marks would be calculated on this basis

Solutions

www.admin.cam.ac.uk/univ/plagiarism/students/referencing/peers.html

• Assess whether collaboration is appropriate for the task at hand

• Get authorisation (approach your supervisor in the first instance)

• Acknowledge the contribution

Recap

• Know where to find scholarly resources for your subject

• Always have two ends to your reference!

• Be aware of citation styles (and be consistent)

• Practice active notemaking

• Recognise when to paraphrase and when to quote

• Assess whether collaboration is appropriate for the task at hand

• Talk to your supervisor or librarian

Where do you draw the line?

One situation where you don’t need to reference!

Common knowledge

You don’t need to cite a source if you’re stating a fact that:

• is widely accessible - you may not know the total population of China, but you would be able to find the answer easily from numerous sources

• is likely to be known by a lot of people

• can be found in a general reference resource, such as a dictionary or encyclopedia

www.admin.cam.ac.uk/univ/plagiarism/students/referencing/commonknowledge.html

(University of Cambridge, 2011)

Common knowledge

Statement: Pterosaurs were the flying reptiles of the dinosaur age

Citation: ‘Everyone' knows this, so no citation is needed.

Statement: Even the largest pterosaurs may have been able to take off simply by spreading their wings whilst facing into a moderate breeze.

Citation: Wilkinson, M.T., Unwin, D.M. and Ellington, C.P. (2005). High lift function of the pteroid bone and forewings of pterosaurs. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

(University of Cambridge, 2011)

Scenarios

Scenario 1

I copied the material straight from the web because my English is not very good, and I wanted to make sure you understood what I was trying to say.

“”

(Carroll 2002, p.21)

Scenario 2

I forgot to write down the page numbers, so I couldn’t use quotes – so I just put the ideas in my own words. But I’ve put everything in the bibliography!

“”

Scenario 3

I said it was in the Times, 1999. Surely that’s enough?“ ”

(Carroll 2002, p.51)

Scenario 4

I had a student this week who admitted the plagiarism but said he wasn’t to blame because the person he copied from didn’t tell him it was plagiarised …

“”

(Carroll 2002, p.5)

Where to get information and help …

• School or department referencing guidelines (essential!)

• University Offices: plagarism informationwww.admin.cam.ac.uk/univ/plagiarism

• www.cusu.cam.ac.uk/academic/studyskills

• Libraries and librarianshttp://training.cam.ac.uk/cul and departmental library sites

• Academic reading and writing sessions/writing guidelineshttp://training.cam.ac.uk

Research Skills Programme

Emma CoonanResearch Skills Librarian

research-skills@lib.cam.ac.uk

http://training.cam.ac.uk/cul

Bibliography

Ballenger, Bruce .The Curious Researcher: a Guide to Writing Research Papers. 7th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2012.

Carroll, Jude. A Handbook for Deterring Plagiarism in Higher Education. Oxford: Oxford Centre for Staff and Learning Development, 2002.

Li, Xia. Electronic Style: A Guide to Citing Electronic Information. Westport: Meckler, 1993.

Lipson, Charles. Doing Honest Work in College: How to Prepare Citations, Avoid Plagiarism, and Achieve Real Academic Success. 2nd ed. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 2008.

Bibliography

Neville, Colin. The Complete Guide to Referencing and Avoiding Plagiarism. 3 January 2007. http://www.myilibrary.com/Browse/open.asp?ID=112960&loc=i (accessed 30 January 2009).

Pears, Richard, and Graham Shields. Cite Them Right: the Essential Referencing Guide. Rev. ed. Newcastle: Pear Tree, 2008.

Stothard, Michael. “‘1 in 2’ Admits to Plagiarism.” Varsity 31 Oct. 2008: 1-2.

Turabian, Kate L. A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. 7th ed. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 2007.