What Is Plagiarism

Introduction

Because students often are confused about what is and is not plagiarism, I have prepared this handout to help you understand what is acceptable. There are some gray areas and if you have any questions, ask your instructor. Plagiarism is very serious and it can be grounds for failure in a course. So ask first.

Another important point is that as you progress in your education the standards become higher. As a College student you are expected to have your own ideas. To read information and explain it in your words. If you complete an assignment by copying material, you are not showing that you understand something. Only that you can repeat what the textbook says. This does not show that you understand.

Definition

Lets start with a definition:

Plagiarize 'pla-je-,riz also j - - vb -rized; -rizÐ'*ing vt [plagiary] : to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own : use (a created production) without crediting the source vi: to commit literary theft: present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source - plaÐ'*giaÐ'*rizÐ'*er n

FROM: Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary 9th ed, (Springfield, Ma: Merriam 1981, p. 870).

What to do

Now what does this mean for you?

First, it is unacceptable to copy something out of a book, newspaper, journal or any other printed source. The most blatant example of this is to directly copy something word for word. It does not matter if it is only a phrase. If it is not yours, either do not use it or place it in quotes and reference it. There are different methods for doing this. The important thing is that the reader can tell what is yours, and what is someone else's.

For short quotes, use quotation marks in the sentence. An example is "CFC's: These substances are also of concern in connection with the destruction of stratospheric ozone" [Bunce, N. Environmental Chemistry (Winnipeg: Wuerz, 1994, p. 19)]

b. For longer quotes it is appropriate to indent the entire passage:

Chlorofluorocarbons, CFCs: These substances are also of concern in connection with the destruction of stratospheric ozone (Chapter 2). Like N2O, they have no tropospheric sinks, but are infrared absorbers. Up to 1984, the tropospheric concentrations of three of the major commercial CFCs...

[Bunce, N. Environmental Chemistry (Winnipeg: Wuerz, 1994, p. 19)]

Another reason to use references is to show where you get information from. When you state a fact, unless it is "general knowledge," you should