The Learning Commons
Plagiarism and the Honor CodePlagiarism remains a serious issue in academia, even at Guilford College. These pages: Define plagiarism: make sure you aren't plagiarizing unintentionally Explain the Honor Code: understand the consequences Portions of these pages are taken from the 1996-1997 Student Handbook, Writing at Guilford: A Manual by Jeff Jeske, and the LC handout "Using Source Material in Writing."
Defining PlagiarismPlagiarism is literary theft. Failure to acknowledge borrowed material--whether that failure is intended or careless--is plagiarism. Remember, plagiarism occurs when you:
Guilford's Academic Honor Code gives some specific violations: "Unauthorized Collaboration. Students cannot combine efforts on academic work, whether in or out of the classroom, unless specifically permitted by the instructor. Although instructors should clearly define the limits of collaboration, the absence of any instruction indicates that collaboration is not permitted. "Any student giving aid is accountable in cases of collaboration unless she/he is unaware that aid is being given. A student seeking unauthorized collaboration is considered guilty of collaboration whether or not aid is received. "Unauthorized Use of Materials. It is the student's responsibility to ascertain what materials can be used in any and all academic work both in and out of the classroom. The submission for credit of the same written work in more than one course is not permitted without the prior permission of both instructors."
Why You Should Avoid PlagiarismPlagiarism is taken seriously at Guilford. It is a violation of the Honor Code--as well as of the law. If a professor suspects you of having committed plagiarism, you will be reported to the Honors Board. Penalties are stiff...and ignorance is no excuse. Why all the fuss? We're only talking about words and ideas, right? Wrong. The following excerpt from a statement prepared by the English department at Wake Forest University should explain what's so serious about plagiarism. Special thanks to Janet Cochran for passing it along:
The statement goes on to say, "Your responsibility, when you put your name on a piece of work, is simply to distinguish between what is yours and what is not, and to credit those who in any way have contributed." (bolding added for emphasis)
Suggestions for Avoiding PlagiarismInstructors: If you've been troubled by plagiarism in your classes, check out the tips offered by a Western Illinois University professor on avoiding plagiarism.
You can avoid plagiarizing direct statements by properly quoting and citing another person's words. If you are using three or more consecutive words taken from a written or oral statement, you must:
You can also plagiarize paraphrased statements (representations of another's ideas without use his or her exact words) by not citing them properly. In any case when you are paraphrasing another person's words or ideas, you must provide a clear reference to the original source. When paraphrasing, you should:
2. Restate in your own words and style, clearly and grammatically. 3. Enclose in quotation marks any words of the original. 4. Rewrite the material in approximately the same number of words. 5. Cite the source of your information and document it (footnote, endnote, parenthetical note). You want also to be sure that you don't misrepresent your source when paraphrasing:
2. Don't interpret the source. Try to avoid "reading into" the statement with your own ideas. 3. Consider the exact meaning of words--their connotation and denotation. Use the dictionary; consider the context. 4. Don't ignore part of the original statement and thereby misstate. 5. Recognize and retain the tone of the original: consider the influence of this tone on the meaning of the original and, thus, on your paraphrase. (Humorous, satirical, angry, exaggerated?) If you are unsure about something, ask someone--your instructor or LC tutors are good resources.
Plagiarism and the WebWe've all heard about those companies or fraternities that sell/give away papers for students to pass off as their own. Well, those groups have now gone on-line. There are a number of site on the Web advertising download-able student papers (for free or for sale). Some of these sites maintain that they do not provide these papers with the intention that students will claim them as their own; rather, the papers are for research or informational purposes. Others openly acknowledge that their sites were created in order to provide students with materials for plagiarism. Whatever the intent of the creators, these sites are being used as sources for plagiarized papers. But before you set out in search of your next research paper, be aware that many professors know about these sites and have visited them (and are thus familiar with their contents). Also know that most professors can discern when text is a student's own and when it has been plagiarized (whether that text comes from the Web or not). Finally, be aware that many of the papers available are poorly written; just because it's on the Web, or someone else wrote it, does not guarantee that it would get you the grade you want. By now you've noticed that the Writing Zone includes student papers in their entirety. For many reasons, we feel this structure is important to our site as a whole and poses little risk for plagiarism. These papers are important to our site because they keep our discussion about writing in the context of actual student writing. We also feel that reading the work of others is a crucial part of writing and learning, although we don't intend for students to use these papers as models or formulas for their own writing. We don't fear these papers being plagiarized by Guilford students simply because we are certain any attempts to do so would be detected. We also believe the nature of these papers would render them useless to students at other colleges and universities. Copyright and intellectual property issues in the Web context are related to this discussion of plagiarism. If you are going to use source material from the Web (which is perfectly acceptable), you must cite your source in an acceptable format. For more links to pages dicussing these issues, see Virginia Montecino's pages on copyright and the internet; also check out Purdue University's pages, especially if you'd like to see exercises on paraphrasing.
The Honor CodeIn academic affairs, Guilford College operates according to an honor system, symbolized by the honor pledge inscribed by students at the end of written work submitted for credit: "I have been honest and have observed no dishonesty." It is assumed that all members of the college community will respect the principles of honesty and mutual trust embodied in the honor code. Individual students are responsible for preparing their own written work in every class unless specifically permitted by the instructor to combine efforts on an assigned project. They are expected to understand the meaning of plagiarism and to avoid all suspicion of plagiarism in papers prepared outside of class. Furthermore, students are expected neither to sanction nor tolerate violation of the honor code by others. Faculty members or students suspecting that a student has not been honest in academic work and having evidence to support this suspicion should refer to the Faculty Handbook or the Student Handbook, both of which describe the procedure for adjudicating an alleged academic honor code violation. This information can be found in the Guilford College Academic Catalog. |
The Writing ZoneWorking Through the Paper: Diary of James Cook, First Voyage |