Department of Physiology and Environmental
Health
in
Association with
the
Department of Languages
English Studies
A guide to plagiarism and quoting sources
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STUDENT GUIDE TO PLAGIARISM
WHAT IS PLAGIARISM?
Many people think of plagiarism as copying another's work or borrowing someone else's original
ideas. But terms like "copying" and "borrowing" can disguise the seriousness of the offense.
ACCORDING TO THE MERRIAM-WEBSTER ONLINE DICTIONARY, TO "PLAGIARIZE"
MEANS
to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own
to use (another's production) without crediting the source
to commit literary theft
to present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source
In other words, plagiarism is an act of fraud. It involves both stealing someone else's work
and lying about it afterward.
Here is a story to consider.
“Chris just found some good stuff on the Web for his science report about sharks. He highlights a
paragraph that explains that most sharks grow to be only 3 to 4 feet long and can't hurt people. Chris
copies it and pastes it into his report. He quickly changes the font so it matches the rest of the report
and continues his research.”
Uh-oh! Chris just made a big mistake. Do you know what he did? He committed plagiarism (say: play-
juh-rih-zem). Plagiarism is when you use someone else's words or ideas and pass them off as your
own. It's not allowed in school, college, or beyond, so it's a good idea to learn the proper way to use
resources, such as websites, books, and magazines.”
Plagiarism is a form of cheating. The word plagiarism comes from a Latin word for kidnapping. You
know that kidnapping is stealing a person. Well, plagiarism is stealing a person's ideas or writing.
Someone's words and thoughts are personal property.
What should Chris have done? He should have written down the name of the website and the name
of the person who wrote the article. Then he could have added it and given credit to the source.
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All this shouldn't make you nervous to use websites, books, and other sources. It's great that
you can get information from experts on stuff you don't know much about. You just have to make sure
to show where the information came from. If you do that, you're in the clear.
Even if you put the information into your own words, you still should list the
source.
Ask yourself, "Would I know this if I hadn't read it on that website or in that
book?" If the answer is no, list the source.
Plagiarism Is Lazy
Though plagiarism can be accidental, it's sometimes done on purpose and that's just being lazy. By
copying whole paragraphs from different places, a student doesn't have to spend the time thinking
about the subject, gathering his or her own thoughts about it, and then putting it into original words.
Cut, paste, and you're done! Definitely NOT!
But this is a shortcut that will probably catch up with a student, even if he or she doesn't get caught for
plagiarism. It's important for students to be able to research a subject, think about it, and then come
up with something interesting to say. This skill is important
Ask yourself, "Am I using this to avoid doing my own work? Is it easier just to copy this?" If the answer
is yes, beware. You just might be plagiarizing.
BUT CAN WORDS AND IDEAS REALLY BE STOLEN?
According to U.S. law, and the laws of many other countries, including South Africa, the
answer is yes. The expression of original ideas is considered intellectual property and
is protected by copyright laws, just like original inventions. Almost all forms of expression
fall under copyright protection as long as they are recorded in some way (such as a book or a
computer file).
All of the following are considered Plagiarism :
submitting in someone else's work as your own
copying words or ideas from someone else without giving credit
failing to put a quotation in quotation marks
giving incorrect information about the source of a quotation
changing words but copying the sentence structure of a source without giving credit
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copying so many words or ideas from a source that it makes up the majority of your
work, whether you give credit or not
The above article comes from : www.kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/plagiarism.html#
How Can Students Avoid Plagiarism?
To avoid plagiarism, you must give credit whenever you use
another person’s idea, opinion, or theory;
any facts, statistics, graphs, drawings—any pieces of information—
that are not common knowledge;
quotations of another person’s actual spoken or written words; or
paraphrase of another person’s spoken or written words.
How to Recognize Unacceptable and Acceptable
Paraphrases (using someone’s ideas, but putting them in your own words. This
is probably the skill you will use most when incorporating sources into your writing.
Although you use your own words to paraphrase, you must still acknowledge the
source of the information.)
Here’s the ORIGINAL text, from page 1 of Lizzie Borden: A Case Book of Family and Crime in the
1890s by Joyce Williams et al. published in 1995:
The rise of industry, the growth of cities, and the expansion of the population were the three great
developments of late nineteenth century American history. As new, larger, steam-powered factories
became a feature of the American landscape in the East, they transformed farm hands into industrial
laborers, and provided jobs for a rising tide of immigrants. With industry came urbanization the growth
of large cities (like Fall River, Massachusetts, where the Bordens lived) which became the centers of
production as well as of commerce and trade.
Here’s an UNACCEPTABLE paraphrase that is plagiarism:
The increase of industry, the growth of cities, and the explosion of the population were three large
factors of nineteenth century America. As steam-driven companies became more visible in the
eastern part of the country, they changed farm hands into factory workers and provided jobs for the
large wave of immigrants. With industry came the growth of large cities like Fall River where the
Bordens lived which turned into centers of commerce and trade as well as production.
What makes this passage plagiarism?
The preceding passage is considered plagiarism for two reasons:
the writer has only changed around a few words and phrases, or
changed the order of the original’s sentences.
the writer has failed to cite a source for any of the ideas or facts.
If you do either or both of these things, you are plagiarizing.
NOTE: This paragraph is also problematic because it changes the sense of several sentences (for
example, "steam-driven companies" in sentence two misses the original’s emphasis on factories).
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Here’s an ACCEPTABLE paraphrase:
Fall River, where the Borden family lived, was typical of northeastern industrial cities of the nineteenth
century. Steam-powered production had shifted labor from agriculture to manufacturing, and as
immigrants arrived in the US, they found work in these new factories. As a result, populations grew,
and large urban areas arose. Fall River was one of these manufacturing and commercial centers
(Williams 1995: 1).
Why is this passage acceptable?
This is acceptable paraphrasing because the writer:
accurately relays the information in the original
uses her own words.
lets her reader know the source of her information.
Here’s an example of quotation and paraphrase used together, which is also ACCEPTABLE:
Fall River, where the Borden family lived, was typical of northeastern industrial cities of the nineteenth
century. As steam-powered production shifted labor from agriculture to manufacturing, the demand for
workers "transformed farm hands into industrial laborers," and created jobs for immigrants. In turn,
growing populations increased the size of urban areas. Fall River was one of these hubs "which
became the centers of production as well as of commerce and trade" (Williams 1995: 1).
Why is this passage acceptable?
This is acceptable paraphrasing because the writer:
records the information in the original passage accurately.
gives credit for the ideas in this passage.
indicated which part is taken directly from her source by putting the
passage in quotation marks and citing the page number.
Note that if the writer had used these phrases or sentences in her own paper without putting quotation
marks around them, she would be PLAGIARIZING. Using another person’s phrases or sentences
without putting quotation marks around them is considered plagiarism EVEN IF THE WRITER CITES
IN HER OWN TEXT THE SOURCE OF THE PHRASES OR SENTENCES SHE HAS QUOTED.
Plagiarism and the World Wide Web
The World Wide Web has become a more popular source of information for student papers, and
many questions have arisen about how to avoid plagiarizing these sources. In most cases, the same
rules apply as to a printed source: when a writer must refer to ideas or quote from a WWW site, she
must cite that source.
If a writer wants to use visual information from a WWW site, many of the same rules apply. Copying
visual information or graphics from a WWW site (or from a printed source) is very similar to quoting
information, and the source of the visual information or graphic must be cited. These rules also apply
to other uses of textual or visual information from WWW sites; for example, if a student is constructing
a web page as a class project, and copies graphics or visual information from other sites, she must
also provide information about the source of this information. In this case, it might be a good idea to
obtain permission from the WWW site’s owner before using the graphics.
Strategies for Avoiding Plagiarism
1. Put in quotations everything that comes directly from the text especially when taking notes.
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2. Paraphrase, but be sure you are not just rearranging or replacing a few words.
Instead, read over what you want to paraphrase carefully; cover up the text with your hand, or close
the text so you can’t see any of it (and so aren’t tempted to use the text as a “guide”). Write out the
idea in your own words without peeking.
3. Check your paraphrase against the original text to be sure you have not accidentally used the
same phrases or words, and that the information is accurate.
What is Common Knowledge?
Common knowledge: facts that can be found in numerous places and are likely to be known by a lot
of people.
Example: John F. Kennedy was elected President of the United States in 1960.
This is generally known information. You do not need to document this fact.
However, you must document facts that are not generally known and ideas that interpret facts.
Example: According to the American Family Leave Coalition’s new book, Family Issues and
Congress, President Bush’s relationship with Congress has hindered family leave legislation (6).
The idea that “Bush’s relationship with Congress has hindered family leave legislation” is not a fact
but an interpretation; consequently, you need to cite your source.
The above article comes from : www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets.shtml
Most cases of plagiarism can be avoided by citing sources. Simply acknowledging
that certain material has been borrowed and providing your audience with the
information necessary to find that source is usually enough to prevent plagiarism.
WHAT IS CITATION?
A "citation" is the way you tell your readers that certain material in your work came from another
source. It also gives your readers the information necessary to find that source again, including:
information about the author
the title of the work
the name and location of the company that published your copy of the source
the date your copy was published
the page numbers of the material you are borrowing
WHY SHOULD I CITE SOURCES?
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Giving credit to the original author by citing sources is the only way to use other people's work without
plagiarizing. But there are a number of other reasons to cite sources:
citations are extremely helpful to anyone who wants to find out more about your ideas
and where they came from
not all sources are good or right -- your own ideas may often be more accurate or
interesting than those of your sources. Proper citation will keep you from taking the rap
for someone else's bad ideas
citing sources shows the amount of research you've done
citing sources strengthens your work by lending outside support to your ideas
WHEN DO I NEED TO CITE?
Whenever you borrow words or ideas, you need to acknowledge their source. The following situations
almost always require citation:
whenever you use quotes
whenever you paraphrase
whenever you use an idea that someone else has already expressed
whenever you make specific reference to the work of another
whenever someone else's work has been critical in developing your own ideas.
WHAT'S A BIBLIOGRAPHY?
A bibliography is a list of all of the sources you have used (whether referenced or not) in the process
of researching your work. In general, a bibliography should include:
the authors' names
the titles of the works
the names and locations of the companies that published your copies of the sources
the dates your copies were published
the page numbers of your sources (if they are part of multi-source volumes)
HOW IS A BIBLIOGRAPHY DIFFERENT FROM A "WORKS CITED" OR "REFERENCES"
LIST?
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The Works Cited or References list is only comprised of references to those items actually cited in the
paper.
The above article is taken from : www.plagiarism.org
CITATION METHODS
There are a number of citation methods used. Please use the method required by your discipline. In
the English Studies Unit two methods are acceptable – The Harvard Method and the MLA method
1. THE HARVARD METHOD
Why use the "Harvard System"?
Books have a standard layout (front cover, copyright material, list of chapters, the chapters, index,
and back cover). This is so that you can walk into any library in the World, and very quickly be able to
access what you were looking for. You could open a book, turn to the index (arranged alphabetically)
and then find the page where the information is included.
When academics are citing sources, it is important that the same principle applies. Someone should
very quickly be able to relocate the work you are referring to, either to check it's authority or
legitimacy, or for more information.
Harvard University developed their own formula for how these should be arranged. This usually
involves the year of publication, the surname and initials of the author, the title of the book (and
chapter, if needed), and the page/s. Some of this text appears in brackets, some in italics. The result
is, someone can quickly locate exactly what they are looking for with just a glance.
Adapted from: Harvard Reference Generator Tool
http://www.neilstoolbox.com/articles/harvard-reference-generator.htm Date of access: 04
January 2010
REFERENCE TECHNIQUE: HARVARD METHOD
Only a few examples are provided. For complete information consult books in the library
such as:
Burger, M. 1992. Reference techniques. 8th revision. Pretoria: University of South
Africa.
Or look up referencing on the Internet.
YOU MUST GIVE BOTH SOURCE (IN YOUR REFERENCE SECTION OR
BIBLIOGRAPHY) AND TEXT REFERENCES IN A PIECE OF RESEARCH WRITING.
At the end of your assignment of article you give a list of your references in
alphabetical order. Each reference must provide all the necessary detail so
that another researcher can find that source.
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In the text you give only a surname and a year and pages of a source to
acknowledge the author (s) who made the original statement you are using in
your assignment.
1. ELEMENTS/ DETAILS IN A SOURCE REFERENCE (at the end of your essay/
assignment/ research report in the Bibliography/ Reference section)
* Surname, Initial (s). Year of publication. Title of book: subtitle. Edition. Place of
publication: Publisher.
* Surname, Initial(s) & Surname, Initial(s). Year of publication. Title of journal article.
Title of journal, volume (number), Month or season: pages.
* Title of newspaper article. Year of publication. Title of newspaper, day and month:
page(s).
* Surname, Initials. Year of publication. Name of Internet article. URL. Date of access.
(Authorship is the researcher’s - the writer of an assignment or dissertation – proof of
reliability and authority and it makes citation easier. When using the Internet try and find out
who is responsible for the information. This could be an individual, a group of authors, a
society or an institution. ONLY if you cannot find the name of someone responsible may you
begin the reference with the name of a document.)
2. ELEMENTS IN A TEXT REFERENCE
* (Surname year: page(s))
* (Surname & Surname year: page(s))
* (Shortened title, year: page(s))
NB! 1. Pay attention to punctuation!
2. Please note which title should be underlined if your assignment is
handwritten or in italics when typed.
3. TWO PUBLICATIONS BY ONE AUTHOR
When an author publishes TWO publications in the same year, the references are
distinguished by adding a or b to the year:
Smith, L. 2002a. Violence in South Africa. Cape Town: Juta.
Smith, L. 2002b. Political socialization of children. Journal of politics, 14 (2): 18-26.
Text reference: (Smith 2002a: 20)
Or (Smith 2002b: 149) or : According to Smith (2002b: 149), …
* Remember to use the ampersand (&) instead of ‘and’ or ‘en’ or ‘und’.
* Do not use the shortened Harvard method.
A SOURCE REFERENCES: AUTHOR KNOWN
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a BOOKS
Primary Sources
Lawson, K. 1985. The human polity: an introduction to political science. Boston,
Mass.: Houghton Mifflin.
Allen, R.V., Bartlett, H. & Colegrove, K. 1967. Democracy and communism: theory
and action. Princeton, NJ: Van Nostrand.
Secondary Sources
Baxen, J & Green, L. 1999. An investigation of the availability and use of learning
materials in Grade 1 and Grade 7 primary schools in the Western Cape. (In Taylor,
N. & Vinjevold, P. 1999., eds. Getting learning right: Report to the President’s
Education Initiative Research Project. Johannesburg: JET. )
Bell, J, & Gower, R. 1998. Writing course materials for the world: a great
compromise. (In Tomlinson, B., ed. Materials Development in Language Teaching.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.)
b GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS
South Africa. 1978. Nursing Act, no. 50. 1978 (as amended). Pretoria: Government
Printer.
South Africa. Commission of Inquiry into the Tax Structure of the Republic of South
Africa (Margo Commission). 1987. Report … Pretoria: Government Printer (RP
34/1987). Chairman: C.S.Margo.
South Africa. Parliament: National Assembly. 1998. Debates. Cape Town:
Government Printer.
South Africa. 1997. White paper on a national water policy for South Africa.
Pretoria: Dept. of Water Affairs and Forestry.
South Africa. Department of Education. Directorate: Inclusive Education. 2005.
Conceptual and educational guidelines for the implementation of inclusive education:
full service schools. http://www.education.gov.za/content/documents/788.pdf Date of
access: 26 October 2008.
c THESES AND DISSERTATIONS
Swemmer, C.G. 1997. The reunified Federal Republic of Germany in
postinternational politics: an analysis in terms of the theory of turbulent change.
D.Admin. (International Politics) thesis, University of Pretoria, Pretoria.
d DICTIONARIES AND ENCYCLOPEDIAS
Evans, G. & Newnham, J. (comp.) 1992. The dictionary of world politics: a reference
guide to concepts, ideas and institutions. Revised ed. New York: Harvester
Wheatsheaf.
e THE INTERNET
Bradley, K.S & Bradley, J.A. 2004. Scaffolding Academic Learning for Second
Language Learners. The Internet TESL Journal, X (5). http://iteslj.org/ Date of
access: 16 April 2007.
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f JOURNAL ARTICLES
(Type the name of the journal in italics and when you write it, underline it.)
Bell, D.M. 2007. Do teachers think that methods are dead? ELT Journal, 61 (2):
135-143.
De Kadt, E., & Mathonsi, N. 2003. Writing in English with an ‘African Voice’:
ownership, identity and learning. Journal for Language Teaching, 37(1): 92-103.
Gills, B. & Rocamora, J. 1992. Low intensity democracy. Third World quarterly, 13
(3): 501-524.
g NEWSPAPER ARTICLES
Nyatsumba, K. 1996. Race for presidency has begun. The Star, 13 November: 18.
h PERSONAL COMMUNICATIONS
Mbeki, T. 1998. Personal interview. 19 July, Pretoria.
Huntingon, S.P. 2003. Correspondence. 15 March, Chicago.
B TEXT REFERENCES: AUTHOR KNOWN
a BOOKS
Primary source
(Lawson 1985: 193)
(Allen, Bartlett & Colegrove 1967: 15-21)
(Esterhuyse et al. 1987) or
Esterhuyse et al. (1987:158), however, maintain that…
Secondary source
(Baxen & Green 1999) or
According to Baxen and Green (1999: 24), ...
(Bell & Gower 1998)
b GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS
(South Africa 1978, art. 38A)
(Margo Commission 1987: 11)
(SA. Parliament: National Assembly 1998)
OR
(Hansard 1998, col. 4310)
(South Africa 1997)
(South Africa 2005)
c THESES AND DISSERTATIONS
(Swemmer 1997: 13-16)
d DICTIONARIES AND ENCYCLOPEDIAS
(Evans & Newnham 1992, s.v. ‘regionalism’)
e THE INTERNET
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(Bradley & Bradley 2004)
f JOURNAL ARTICLES
(Teitelbaum 1992/93:63) or According to Teitelbaum (1992/93: 63), …
(Gills & Rocamora 1992: 506-508)
(De Kadt & Mathonsi 2004)
(Gills & Rocamora 1992)
g NEWSPAPER ARTICLES
(Nyatsumba 1996: 18)
h PERSONAL COMMUNICATIONS
… this was confirmed by Mbeki in a personal interview (1998).
Huntingdon, in a personal interview (2003), declared ……….
A SOURCE REFERENCES: AUTHOR UNKNOWN
a The Blackwell encyclopedia of political science. 1991. s.v. ‘elections’. Oxford:
Blackwell.
b Campaign for Women’s Equality Charter gains momentum. 1993. Mayibuye, 4(2),
March: 37-38.
c A Bill of Rights. 1993. Work in progress, 88, April/May: 27
d Taiwan warns SA on investment. 1998. The Citizen. 5 January: 1.
e Wikipedia.com. 2004. Structuralism in linguistics.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structuralism Date of access: 12 October 2008. OR
Structuralism in linguistics. 2004. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structuralism Date of
access: 12 October 2008.
B TEXT REFERENCES: AUTHOR UNKNOWN
a (Blackwell encyclopedia of political science 1991, s.v. ‘elections’).
b (Campaign for Women’s Equality Charter …1993:37)
c (A Bill of Rights 1993)
d (Taiwan warns SA ...1998:1)
e (Wikipedia.com 2004:2) or (Structuralism in linguistics 2004:2)
REMEMBER!
* Source references are listed in alphabetical order. (Some lecturers may wish you to
type the surnames in capital letters because it is more noticeable and makes the
search between sources listed easier.)
* When the date of publication is unknown, use s.a. (Latin for sine anno = without
year)
* When the place of publication is unknown, use s.l. (Latin for sine loco = without
place)
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* When the name of the publisher is unknown, use s.n. (Latin for sine nomine =
without name)
* Omissions from titles are indicated by three ellipsis points (…)
* Refer to the item in dictionaries and encyclopedias instead of the volume or page.
Use s.v. (Latin for sub verbo = under the word)
The above is taken from : McCabe, R. 2008. English Studies, University of Limpopo, ENGL 131
Workbook. Sovenga: University of Limpopo Press.
2. MLA SYSTEM
Every scholarly discipline has a preferred format or style for citing sources. A widely accepted
method used in the humanities is the MLA documentation style..
Please remember to check with your unit co-ordinator or tutor before submitting your assignments,
as their style preference may vary from the guidelines presented here.
There are two components to referencing: in-text citations in your paper and the reference list at
the end of your paper.
The in-text citation:
Are brief and only provide as much information as is necessary to identify the source as it appears
in the Reference List/Bibliography. This generally means the author's name and the page
reference.
In-text citation of a book (the same format applies for a journal article)
If the author's name is mentioned in the text, only the page number appears in the citation.
Reference list entry for a book
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Reference list entry for a journal
The above is taken from : html//guides.is.uwa.edu.au/mla
What Happens if I Plagiarize?
Most universities are very strict about plagiarism. If you're caught, you can be suspended or worse. At
the very least, you're probably going to fail the assignment.
The English Studies Unit of the Department of Languages will follow the following procedures.
DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURES:
UNDERGRADUATES – FIRST AND SECOND YEARS
If the assignment has been plagiarized in any way:
1. The assignment you have plagiarized will be returned to you, with comments
only. No mark will be given.
2. (a) If it is a first offence you will be given the opportunity to rewrite the
assignment using your own words and ideas, citing where necessary.
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(b)In the case of a first offence the second attempt will be marked and a mark,
not greater than 50% will be awarded.
3. If the assignment has been plagiarized in any way and should the plagiarism
be a second offence, the assignment will be returned unmarked and no mark
will be awarded. No second chance will be granted.
THIRD YEARS AND POSTGRADUATES
If the assignment has been plagiarized in any way:
1. The assignment you have plagiarized will be returned to you, with comments
only. No mark will be given.
2. (a) If it is a first offence you will be given the opportunity to rewrite the
assignment using your own words and ideas, citing where necessary.
(b)In the case of a first offence the second attempt will be marked and a mark,
not higher than 50% will be awarded.
3. If the assignment has been plagiarized in any way and should the plagiarism
be a second offence THE STUDENT WILL HAVE TO APPEAR BEFORE THE
UNIT DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE.
The disciplinary committee will be made up of: the HOD, 2 staff members and a
class representative.
The disciplinary committee will, after interviewing both the student and the staff
member involved, decide on appropriate action to be taken.
Sources used for this guide.
www.kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/plagiarism.html#
www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml
www.plagiarism.org
McCabe, R. 2008. English Studies, University of Limpopo, ENGL 131 Workbook. Sovenga: University
of Limpopo Press.
www.uwa.edu.au.guides.is/mla
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PLAGIARISM DECLARATION
1. I know that plagiarism means taking and using ideas, writings, works or inventions of
another as if they were my own. I know that plagiarism not only includes verbatim
copying, but also the extensive use of another person’s ideas without proper
acknowledgement (which includes the proper use of quotation marks). I know that
plagiarism covers this sort of use of material found in textual sources and from the
internet.
2. I understand that my research must be accurately referenced. I have followed the rules
and conventions regarding referencing, citation and the use of quotations as set out in
the Departmental Guide.
3. This assignment is my own work, or my group’s own unique group assignment. I
acknowledge that copying someone else’ assignment in whole or part is wrong, and
that submitting identical work to others constitutes a form of plagiarism.
4. I have not allowed, nor will I in the future allow, anyone to copy my work with the
intention of passing it off as his or her own work.
5. I acknowledge and understand that plagiarism is wrong. I accept that it is a criminal
offence and that it incurs disciplinary measures.
6. I pledge to avoid plagiarism in all its forms and will be willing to subject to discipline
should I be found guilty of this crime.
Signed: _____________________________ Date: ________________________
Adapted from Writing English with Style by Dianne Shober, published by Van Schaik
in 2010.
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