English 103: Plagiarism In College Writing

English 103 Plagiarism In College Writing

English 103--Plagiarism in College Writing You are required to incorporate critical sources in Essay 2, 3, and 4, and all sources must be attributed and documented according to MLA (Modern Language Association) documentation style. Sources that are not attributed/cited are plagiarized; the consequence of plagiarism is a failing grade. Watch for three different acts which are considered plagiarism: (1) failing to cite quotations and borrowed ideas, (2) failing to enclose borrowed language in quotations marks, and (3) failing to put summaries and paraphrases in your own words. 1. To indicate that you are using a source's exact phrases or sentences, you must enclose them in quotation marks unless they have been set off from the text by indenting. (You should indent longer quotations that exceed four lines). Original Source: No animal has done more to renew interest in animal intelligence than a beguiling, bilingual bonobo named Kanzi, who has the grammatical abilities of a 21/2-year-old child and a taste for movies about cavemen. Plagiarism: According to Eugene Linden, no animal has done more to renew interest in animal intelligence than a beguiling, bilingual bonobo named Kanzi, who has the grammatical abilities of a 2 1/2-year-old child and a taste for movies about cavemen (57). Correct by Enclosing Borrowed Language in Quotation Marks: According to Eugene Linden, "No animal has done more to renew interest in animal intelligence than a beguiling, bilingual bonobo named Kanzi, who has the grammatical abilities of a 2 1/2-year-old child and a taste for movies about cavemen" (57). 2. When you summarize or paraphrase, you do not need to put quotes around your paraphrase, but you MUST cite the page number from which the information was obtained. When paraphrasing it is not enough to name the source; you must relate the source's meaning using your own language. If you half-copy the author's sentences, mix some of the author's choice words or phrases into your own sentences without putting quotes around them, or borrow the structure of the original source, then you are guilty of plagiarism. Original Source: If the existence of a signing ape was unsettling for linguists, it was also startling news for animal behaviorists. Unacceptable Borrowing of Phrases: The existence of a signing ape unsettled linguists and startled animal behaviorists (Davis 26). Unacceptable Borrowing of Structure: If the presence of a sign-language-using chimp was disturbing for scientists studying language, it was also surprising to scientists studying animal behavior (Davis 26). Acceptable Paraphrases: When they learned of an ape's ability to use sign language, both linguists and animal behaviorists were taken by surprise (Davis 26). According to Floro Davis, linguists and animal behaviorists were unprepared for the news that a chimp could communicate with its trainers through sign language (26). 3. An academic essay that exhibits any of the following problems is plagiarized. A. Missing Attribution . The author of a quotation has not been identified. A lead-in or signal phrase that provides attributions to the source is not used, and no author is identified in the in-text citation. B. Missing Quotations Marks . Quotation marks do not appear around material quoted directly from a source. C. Missing In-Text Citation . No page number (for print sources) or paragraph number (for online sources) is given to show where in the source the quotation, paraphrase, or summary is drawn from. D. Paraphrase Relies too Heavily on the Source . Either the wording or sentence structure of a paraphrase follows the source too closely. E. Distortion of Meaning . A paraphrase or summary distorts the meaning of the source, or a quotation is taken out of context, resulting in a change of meaning. F. Missing Works Cited Entry . The Works Cited page does not include all of the works cited in the body of the paper or important bibliographic information is missing within the works cited entry. G. Inadequate Citation of Images . A figure or photo appears with no label, number, caption, or citation to indicate the source of the image. If material includes a summary of data from a visual source, no attribution or citation is given for the graph being summarized.