“I found your speech to be good and original. However, the part that was original was not good; and the part that was good was not original.”

Samuel Johnson (1709-84)

What is Plagiarism?

• Classic definition: passing off someone else’s work as your own

• The EPQ expects you to acknowledge your sources, as do Universities

• It is easier to plagiarise than you might think…

Example OneCopying and pasting a paragraph word for word from a source without any acknowledgement

Direct copying of someone else’s words, no quotation marks and no citation of the original author, no reference in the reference list…all very bad practice!

Plagiarism

Example TwoCopying and pasting word for word from a source with quotation marks around the copied material. The source is cited in the text (e.g. Smith, 2012) and there are full details in the reference list.

Not Plagiarism

Use of the writer’s own words makes this a quotation, signalled by the quotation marks. Writer is acknowledged and full details are in the reference list.

Example ThreeCopying a paragraph with a few small changes. The source is given in the reference list.

Plagiarism

This is effectively a quotation, and so quotation marks and acknowledgement of the author are needed.

Example FourCopying and pasting a paragraph using sentences of the original. One or two sentences are left out, and one or two are put in a different order. There are no quotation marks but sources are cited in the text and full details are in the reference list.

Plagiarism

Although sentences have been chopped and changed, this is still direct use of someone else’s words. Acknowledgement and referencing are not enough: quotation marks are still needed.

Example FiveWriting a paragraph made up of short phrases of 10 to 15 words taken directly from several different sources, put together with words of your own to make it read well. All sources are included in the reference list.

Plagiarism

There is nothing in the text to indicate the words belong to other people, so the impression is these are the student’s own thoughts, ideas and words. Inclusion of sources in reference list is good, but insufficient.

Example SixWriting a paragraph based on a single source, with many changes in language and also in the structure of the passage used. The new version is a shorter version of the original and supports points in the main text. It is cited and full details are in the reference list.

Not Plagiarism

The student has reproduced the writer’s original ideas in their own words. There are no quotation marks because this is not a quotation. Writer is acknowledged and full details are in the reference list.

TaskThe extracts below have been taken directly from several different books. Rewrite their ideas in your own words.

1. The discovery of Jupiter’s moons was the final straw for Galileo when it came to moving the Earth from the centre of the universe. A fundamental tenet of Aristotle’s worldview was that everything had to rotate around the Earth. Yet Jupiter’s moons clearly rotated around that planet and not the Earth. Once a single body disobeyed the rules, Aristotle’s whole model fell apart (Brian Clegg – Gravity)

2. Page had a theory. Counting the number of links pointing to a website was a way of ranking that website’s popularity. While popularity and quality don’t go hand in hand, he had grown up in a home that valued scholarly research published in academic journals… (David Vise – The Google Story)

3. The most ridiculous episodes took place on Polling Day. The Labour Party had very few vehicles at its disposal, whilst the W.S.P.U. had many cars sent by its prosperous supporters (Sylvia Pankhurst – The Suffragette Movement)

Avoiding Plagiarism

• Express things in your own words, or use quotation marks if directly quoting

• Do not cut and paste text in to your own work

• Use appropriate citation methods in the text: e.g. (Smith, 2009)

• Include a fully detailed BIBLIOGRAPHY

What is a Bibliography?

• A list of all the books, newspapers, websites etc. that you’ve used to help you produce your research project

• You lose marks if you don’t include one!

• There is a certain way to structure your Bibliography, dependent on the type of your resource…

Examples

BookNorthedge, A. (1990). The Good Study Guide. Milton Keynes: The Open University

Periodical ArticleWaterhouse, P. (2011, July 11). “Will Facebook Fail?” Business Review, pp. 8-9

Newspaper/Magazine ArticleEvans, M. (2012, Jan 8). “Hackers Expose Defence and Intelligence Officials in US and UK.” The Guardian.

WebsiteUniversity of Kent. (2008, July 3). What is Academic Integrity? Retrieved November 11, 2011, from University of Kent: http://www.kent.ac.uk/uelt/ai/students/whatisintegrity.htm

Research Diaries

Why? To help you keep on top of your research!

No set format – go with what works for you (example on the hand-out)

Also forms a key part of all four of the main assessment criteria…

This one…

…this one…

…this one…

…and this one!