Getting StartedAvoiding Plagiarism
Test your knowledge of plagiarism by playing this game.
Note: The game works better in Firefox browser than in Internet Explorer.
Notes about the game: There are multiple goblins per room. You'll need to find them hiding, click on them, and answer the question correctly. The door will open and you can move to the next room. At the end, if you succeed in defeating the goblins, you'll come to a screen that you can print or take a screenshot of for your instructor, if he/she has requested it.
The Goblin Threat Plagiarism Game was designed by Lycoming College.
Ways to Avoid Plagiarism
- Cite your sources! If in doubt, cite your sources!
- Follow citation guidelines as closely as possible to safeguard yourself.
- Most of all…do not use other’s work as your own.
- Don't forget: you need both in-text and a list of references (also called bibliography or works cited) to make a full citation.
- Avoid confusion between your sources ideas and your own. You can do this by taking good notes of what came from where and on which page.
- Librarian's Tip: As you're writing your paper, try using different fonts or colors to distinguish between where ideas came from.
Need more practice? Learn more about plagiarism and how to avoid it in this flash tutorial.
For more specific ways to avoid plagiarism, please see: http://www.plagiarism.org/learning_center/home.html or ask your campus librarians. The librarians will also be glad to look-over a questionable phrase or sentence if you are in doubt.
Plagiarism Defined
Plagiarism is also known as "academic dishonesty" or "academic integrity."
Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate® Dictionary, 10th Edition
pla•gia•rize : to steal and pass off (the words or ideas of another) as one’s own : use (another’s production) without crediting the source ~ vi: to commit literary theft : present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source.
Plagiarism in the News
- Plagiarism doesn't only affect you at school. Plagiarism is dishonesty and is frowned upon in work situations too. Take White House Aide, Tim Goeglein, for example.
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Stolberg, S. G. (2008, March 1). Bush Aide Resigns Over Plagiarism in Columns He Wrote. New York Times (Late Edition (east Coast)), p. A.9. Retrieved April 22, 2008, from ProQuest Newsstand database.
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Tips for Paraphrasing
When you come across a particularly useful but long piece of information, paraphrasing or summarizing is the route to take to insert it in your paper. Don't forget, you do need to cite your sources when you paraphrase. Below are some examples.
- The Quotation: “In a corporate climate obsessed with finding the secret recipe for cool, there are still more in-school resources to tap” (Klein, 1999).
- Bad paraphrasing: As corporations continue to fixate on finding the secret to being ‘cool’, they have yet to tap all the in-school resources.
- Good paraphrasing: American youth are the ultimate prize for multinationals – and what better way to exploit this market segment than through the school system (Klein, 1999).
Klein, N. (1999). No Logo. New York: Picador USA.
The librarians will be glad to look over a paraphrase if you are unsure if it is appropriate.
You don't need to cite common knowledge:
Example: Abraham Lincoln was the sixeenth president of the United States
Example: Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.
Consequences
Wednesday May 2, 2012As it states on each of your course syllabi:
"All work submitted in this class must be your original work. Work should be generated exclusively for this class, unless given prior permission by the instructor. The use of sources (ideas, quotations, paraphrasing) should be properly referenced. Any other guidelines required for assignments will be given to you by your instructor and must also be adhered to. For the consequences of academic dishonesty, refer to the Student Handbook."