From www.taylor.edu - Taylor University, integrating faith and learning

What Is Plagiarism?

The Short Definition
Plagiarism is taking or using the thoughts, writings, or inventions of another person as one's own1.

The History
Plagiarism derives from the Latin word plagiarus, meaning kidnapper or thief. Plagiarii were pirates of ancient Rome who stole children. Today, a plagiarist steals children of the mind--words and ideas.

Plagiarism = Fraud
A plagiarist commits academic fraud by using someone else's ideas without proper acknowledgement. This can be intentional or unintentional and involve a large body of work or just a few words. Regardless, it is fraud to pass off someone else's work as your own. Students must acquaint themselves with all forms of plagiarism in order to avoid it.

Common Examples

  • Turning in a paper written by someone else as your own
  • Copying any portion of text (passage, phrase, unique wording) without giving proper credit to the source
  • Paraphrasing a portion of text without crediting the source
  • Incorrectly paraphrasing or using too much of an author's wording, organization or style, whether or not credit is given to the source (paraphrase plagiarism)
  • Incorrectly citing or documenting a source, misleading the reader as to what material is attributable to the source
  • Failing to put quotation marks around a direct quote, whether or not credit is given to the source
  • Turning in a paper that has been corrected, revised or altered by someone else. (A student may receive counsel on an assignment from others, but he must do the actual work.)
  • Turning in an assignment completed for one course as a new work completed for another course (self-plagiarism)
  • Failing to credit the source of any fact that is not common knowledge
  • Failing to credit the source of any graphic, sound or music file, etc.* that is not in the public domain

* Be Aware: Plagiarism is not limited to misusing words. Taylor's draft policy on academic integrity defines plagiarism as "turning in any work that is not entirely the student's own creation. Work that is the student's own creation means that any and all outside ideas, music, computer codes, words, etc. that are included in the work are clearly marked, indicated, or properly cited."

Watch Out For:

  • Mosaic or Patchwork Plagiarism: Students who take phrases from one or more sources and interweave them with their own writing still commit plagiarism. This is usually an attempt to disguise that material is being lifted instead of quoted, paraphrased or summarized.
  • Paraphrase Plagiarism: This form of plagiarism involves taking the basic structure of someone else's text and making only superficial changes to word choice (using synonyms) or sentence order. A true paraphrase, when compared with the original, should show distinctly different authorship.
  • Online Plagiarism: In today's computer era, plagiarism is taking new forms. A flagrant form of involves cutting and pasting from various sources without any attempt to paraphrase or give credit where due. Students may also mistakenly think that anything found online is free game and plagiarize from it unintentionally. Words or ideas used from any source, Internet or otherwise, must be credited to that source.
  • Self-Plagiarism: Submitting material used in one class for another class without the consent of the instructor constitutes plagiarism. In order to receive credit for a class, a student must earn it by demonstrating new learning with each assignment. Submitting past work for a present assignment portrays previous work as new and original and defeats the purpose of the assignment--to learn. Students who wish to use an excerpt from a previous paper, however, can do so if they document the source.

     

    Get Smart
    You have begun your car    eer journey and have committed yourself to pursue truth at Taylor. Learn the forms of plagiarism now to avoid a future academic disciplinary situation and a permanent scar on your record. Any act of plagiarism, intentional or not, is a threat to a student's academic standing and future career.

 

Back: Index

Next: Primetime  Plagiarism

 

Resources

  1. Taylor University's Policy on Academic Integrity
Last revised July 01, 2009 - 11:44 AM