Avoiding Plagiarism: Strategies and Resources - Stephen Kuntz Associate Director Academic Success Centre - University of Alberta
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Ethics and Scientific Integrity Day
Thursday, February 20, 2020
Avoiding Plagiarism:
Strategies and Resources
Stephen Kuntz
Associate Director
Academic Success Centre
#1 Strategy in avoiding plagiarism Don’t read anything Don’t write anything
Know what it is Know why it might happen Know what to do (and not do) to avoid plagiarism Know where to go to get things clear
PLAGIARISM 1620s, from -ism + plagiary (n.) "plagiarist, literary thief" (1590s), from Latin plagiarius "kidnapper, seducer, plunderer, one who kidnaps the child or slave of another," used by Martial in the sense of "literary thief," from plagiare "to kidnap," plagium "kidnapping," from plaga "snare, hunting net" (also "open expanse, territory"), which is perhaps from PIE *plag- (on notion of "something extended"), variant form of root *plak- (1) "to be flat." https://www.etymonline.com/word/plagiarism#etymonline_v_16421
“plaga” meaning
a “snare, net”*
*http://www.norcalsurvival.com * http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=plagiarism
6Defining Plagiarism:
The Student Code
“The submission by a student of the words,
ideas, images, or data of another person
as the student's own in any academic writing,
essay, thesis, research project, or assignment
in a course or program of study.”
U of A Code of Student Behaviour, Section 30.3.2 (1)
Access the code via: https://www.ualberta.ca/governance/resources/policies-standards-and-
codes-of-conduct/code-of-student-behaviour
7Plagiarism involves using someone else’s
• exact words without quotation marks
• ideas paraphrased in your own words without
indicating where you got the idea
• data and statistics without giving credit to
your source
• pictures, graphics, images, tables and graphs,
music, sounds, diagrams, and photographs
without stating where they came from
8Related Forms of Misconduct:
Editorial Intervention
• Section 30.3.2(2)c: ”No Student shall represent
another’s substantial editorial or compositional
assistance on an assignment as the Student’s own
work.” (University of Alberta, 2018, p. 10)
Implication: “Can’t I get help with my writing?”
“Yes, but not substantial help.”
Not sure what that means? Find out!
9Related Forms of Misconduct:
“Self-Plagiarism”
• Section 30.3.2(2)d: ”No Student shall submit in any course
or program of study, without the written approval of the
course Instructor, all or a substantial portion of any
academic writing, essay, thesis, research report, project,
assignment, presentation or poster for which credit has
previously been obtained by the Student or which has
been or is being submitted by the Student in another
course or program of study in the University or elsewhere.”
(University of Alberta, 2018, p. 10)
Implication: You can plagiarize yourself.
Not sure what this means? Find out
11Know why it might happen
(TO YOU)Traps Set by you Set by others
How/Why does it happen? • Time management /time constraints • Laziness • Poor note taking • Misunderstanding plagiarism • Nothing to say • Weak referencing skills • Weak paraphrasing/summarizing skills • Assignment clarity/topic issues • Competitiveness • Weak writing skills
Know what to do (and not do) to avoid plagiarism
What can I do about it? 1) Consider the possible causes (see above) and address that cause appropriately eg. If you have weak writing skills or do not know how to paraphrase properly, get some help from someone who can help you (a classmate, teacher, tutor, Student Success Centre) 2) Cite everything (information, opinions, arguments, speculations, details, figures, and statistics) that is not common knowledge or the result of your own research 3) Use quotation marks when using another’s words 4) Use colours when quoting/paraphrasing 5) Use an attributive tags /author tags or parenthetical citation when you quote, summarize, or paraphrase: makes clear that what comes next or what was just said is someone else’s words or ideas
Skills Involved in Avoiding Plagiarism*
Many grad students struggle with at least some of these
tasks:
• Writing prose that meets disciplinary expectations
• Managing time
• Managing and citing sources
• Knowing what information may not need to be cited
• Integrating citations into prose
• Paraphrasing effectively
*from Rob Desjardins, Avoiding Plagiarism: Strategies and Resources. FGSR session 2019
17Managing and Citing Sources*
Take steps early in your grad program to prepare yourself for these
complex tasks:
• Talk with your liaison librarian about the principles of citation
management, and the software (such as RefWorks) available to
help you with it
• Get to know the citation style appropriate for your discipline (or
for the journals you are targeting)
• What formatting rules does the style prescribe when you are
citing a source’s ideas in your own words?
• Does the style allow for citations containing a direct quotation?
If so, how should these be formatted?
If not, what are the implications for your writing?
18Integrating Citations*
Integrating other people’s ideas into your text is not easy.
• You should ensure that ideas drawn from other
sources are cited, or otherwise acknowledged, each
time they appear.
• It is ideal to avoid repetition of words, phrases and
forms from one sentence to the next.
• How, then, can one avoid sounding repetitive or
monotonous when citing sources?
19Key Paraphrasing Principles
All proper paraphrasing is more than
substituting phrases or words randomly:
1) you must change some of the words;
2) you must change some of the word and
phrase order (syntax/sentence
structure);
3) you must reference the original.Know where to go to get
things clear
21Sources of Support
• Professors/supervisors
• Writing seminars/classes
• Time management workshops
• Plagiarism seminars
• Consultations
• Student Conduct and Accountability
22How We Can Help: Workshops
• Writing Effectively
– Thesis-Writing Strategies
– Crafting a Thesis or Dissertation Proposal
– Writing a Literature Review
• Managing Time
– Managing Major Projects
• Citing Sources and Paraphrasing
– Plagiarism 1 & 2
– Paraphrasing Effectively and Correctly
•
23How We Can Help: Consultations
Personalized consultations offer an opportunity to work
directly on a document in progress, in order to discuss
strategies for paraphrasing and effective citation.
– the Academic Success Centre
(780-492-2682; 1-80 SUB) https://www.ualberta.ca/current-
students/academic-success-centre
– the Centre for Writers (www.c4w.ualberta.ca)
24Resources
Plagiarism Awareness and Skill Building
> Centre for Teaching and Learning
>TLEF Deliverables
> Academic Integrity
https://www.ualberta.ca/centre-for-teaching-
and-learning/grants/tlef/tlef-
deliverables/academic-integrity.html
25Questions Comments Concerns
References
University of Alberta (2018, July 1). Code of student behavior. Retrieved from
https://www.ualberta.ca/governance/
resources/policies-standards-and-codes-of- conduct/code-of-student-behavior
* from Rob Desjardins’ ppt Avoiding Plagiarism: Strategies and Resources. FGSR
Academic Integrity and Ethics Training Series, Winter 2019
27U of A Academic Success Centre
1-80 Students’ Union Building
uab.ca/successU of A Academic Success Centre Professional academic support Work with students from all programs, subjects, backgrounds, achievement levels Help students develop academic skills to achieve their academic goals Individual appointments, group workshops & online courses
U of A Academic Success Centre • Exams – preparation, formats, exam anxiety • Studying – note-taking, reading, assignment & exam preparation • Time Management – schedules, planning, procrastination, strategies • Writing – grammar, punctuation, structure, specific writing forms • Communication – impromptu, presentations, conferences, oral exams
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