Plagiarism vs

Paraphrasing
Avoiding Plagiarism
What are we doing today?

•Learning the difference between plagiarism vs.

paraphrasing & quoting
•Learning how to incorporate MLA Citations:
Websites (review), Books, Reference, Periodical,
Interview
What is Plagiarism?

“…Taking and passing off as one’s own

someone else’s work or ideas (from Latin
plagiārius, kidnapper, literary thief).”
~ Macmillan Dictionary

ANY TIME YOU USE SOMEONE

ELSE'S IDEA, cite it.
 But first…
Let’s play a game
of telephone!
Take the sentence I provide for you, put it
in your own words, and expand the idea.
Already knew that? But…
Did you know this was plagiarism too?
• Keeping any of the same vocabulary without quotations, even if
cited
• Keeping the original order of ideas or sentence structure without
quotations, even if cited (no cutting and pasting and using
synonyms)
• Not using ANY of your own ideas (entire paper is cited)
• Parenthetical citations do not lead to the right source
• Inaccurately paraphrasing or misrepresenting the authors intentions
 What’s The Big Deal?
If you plagiarize:

In the “Real World,” if you plagiarize, you may…

• Be expelled from college the first time
• Lose your job
• Lose recommendations to another college or job
• Be sued by the person whose idea you “borrowed”
 Avoiding Plagiarism
1. When presenting a fact that is NOT common knowledge,
always cite the source.
• Example: You may have already known that most people prefer
Coca-Cola to Pepsi; however, you didn’t already know that 76%
of the population prefer Coca-Cola to Pepsi.
2. When writing about an idea, identify whose idea it
is by citing the source.
3. When using someone else’s exact words, use quotation
marks, and cite the source.
4. When paraphrasing, use completely ORIGINAL wording,
and cite the source.
What is paraphrasing?

•A restatement of a text in your own words,

often for purposes of clarity.
Paraphrasing 101
• Read and absorb information from a credible source.
• STOP after each paragraph and ask yourself, “What did I just read?”
• Think about the most important ideas from the readings.
• What do people really need/want to know?
• Take notes and make a list of the main facts.
• Write ONLY things that relate to your topic.
• DON’T use full sentences.
• Construct a sentence, in your own words, using the information
collected; then, cite the source.
• Rule of thumb: You may NOT use more than three consecutive
words from a source.
Still struggling? Then …

• Put the source away

• Write about what you read in your own words.
• Pretend you’re explaining to a friend.
• DON’T put anything in your paper that you don’t
understand.
Then CITE YOUR SOURCES!
• Author and page #:
(Martinez 5)
• For websites, sometimes you don’t have a page number:
(Martinez)
• Sometimes you don’t have an author either! Use the page or article
title:
(“Pollution”)
It looks like this:
Americans throw away too much trash. For
example, we created 245 million tons of trash in
2006 (Parks 7). Our trash includes things like
paper and food scraps that could be recycled or
composted instead.
 What if I want to use a quotation from a book or
website?
• Put “quotation marks…” around the author’s words in your
paper.
• And put a parenthetical (in-text) citation after it like this:
“In 2006, about 245 million tons of
trash were produced in the United
States” (Parks 7).
 Then Introduce & Explain your evidence
in your own words:
Americans create too much waste each year.
According to the book Garbage and Recycling, “In
2006, about 245 million tons of trash were produced in
the United States” (Parks 7). If we keep producing so
many tons of trash each year, we will run out of space
in landfills, the places where we dump our garbage.
 “Citing your sources” has 2 parts:
Works Cited
A page at the
Bily, Cynthia A. The Impact of E-Waste. Chicago:
Greenhaven Press, 2009. Print. end of your
Mayo, Katie. Personal interview. 16 Oct. 2012.
paper listing
“Pollution.” The World Book Encyclopedia. 3rd ed.
2003. Print. each source
you used…
• and Parenthetical citations inside the essay: The author
and page number (OR the page title if no author) right
after the fact or quote:

Burrowing owls are an endangered species because of

their habitat. “Burrowing owls live in underground dens
that are easily threatened by construction projects”
(Miller 55). Even if construction crews don’t hurt the
owls, the birds may still become too afraid to lay eggs.
Burrowing owl populations have gone down by 45% in
the last ten years (“Threatened Bird Statistics”).
Construction companies need to look for burrowing owls
before they start working on a new project.
…in MLA format
• We all have to use the
same format to write
papers & list our sources
at the end of the paper
• MLA Handbook = a set of
rules to do this
• Why?
Plagiarism or Paraphrasing?
Original text: "Reality TV claims to feature ordinary people doing ordinary things.
As a genre, the show The Biggest Loser, minimizes the distance between the
audience and the actors through its emphasis on everyday life so that the viewer is
invited to recognize the participant as belonging to her or his own habitus” (“The
Reality Bizz”).

Answer: The aim of reality TV is to show what truly goes on in the lives of everyday
people, the show The Biggest Loser, minimizes the distance between the audience
and the actors (“The Reality Bizz”).
Plagiarism or Paraphrasing?
Original text: "Reality TV claims to feature ordinary people doing ordinary things.
As a genre, the show The Biggest Loser, minimizes the distance between the
audience and the actors through its emphasis on everyday life so that the viewer
is invited to recognize the participant as belonging to her or his own habitus”
(“The Reality Bizz”).

Answer: The aim of reality TV is to show what truly goes on in the lives of everyday
people, the show The Biggest Loser, minimizes the distance between the
audience and the actors (“The Reality Bizz”).
Plagiarism or Paraphrasing?
Original text: “Since the 1990s, educators have been battling an
increase in hand-held technological devices in the classroom. It
is disruptive and distracting to the learning environment, in
most cases, and it has become difficult to manage” (“Digital
Divide”).

Answer: Although technology can be an asset to the world

around us, it can also be a hindrance, especially in the
classroom. Teachers have had to compete with iPhones, iPads,
and hand-held gaming devices since their emergence in the
1990s (“Digital Divide”).
Instructions

We will read the following lines from various

sources and paraphrase.

Note: Try your best to absorb what is being

read. I will remove it from the screen and ask
you to paraphrase based off what you
remember!
MLA Citation:
Smith, Joe M. “Teen Pregnancy in America." School News. 2 Feb.
2011: 21.

1. “Twenty-five percent of
adolescents who have one baby
have a second baby within two
years of the first baby's birth.”
MLA Citation:
“Homeless in America." WebMD. WebMD, 25 September 2014.
Web. 6 July 2015.

2. A local newspaper claims that

75% of all homeless people do not
like homeless shelters and prefer to
live as they live now.
MLA Citation:
“Technology Today." Reader’s Digest, 11 December 2010. Web. 5
August 2015.

3.However, college students today

are the first groups of students to
need the Internet for most of their
schoolwork.
 MLA Citation:
Lane, Jerry. “Teen Internet Craze." School News. 2 Mar. 2011: 7.

4.Researchers have found a strong

association between computer and
Internet use in adolescents and
engagement in multiple-risk behaviors
(MRB), including illicit drug use,
drunkenness, and unprotected sex.
MLA Citation:
Garcia, Amber. “The Golden Era of Technology." School News. 2
Mar. 2010: 27.

5.The 1970s was one of tech's golden eras,

marking the dawn of personal computing and
video games.
From gadgets like the first digital watch to the
classic Atari 2600 game system, there was no
better time to hit up the arcade or plop down on
the couch for a friendly round of Pong.
MLA Citation:
Reed, Jerry. “How Much is Too Much?" School News. 2 Mar. 2005: 31.
6. Dylan William, a professor of educational assessment at the University
of London, studies testing. "At the age of 16, almost every child in
England will take probably about 15 or 20 substantial examinations,"
William says. They are all part of one test. And how well kids do helps
determine whether they finish high school. Not college. High school.
Talk about high-stakes testing. For those who do well and go on, they get
two more years of high school. And each of those years ends with
another big round of tests, saving the worst for last. "And your grades on
those examinations will determine which universities you're offered
places at," William says. As Testing Season Opens In Schools, Some
Ask: How Much Is Too Much? Unlike in the U.S., grade-point average
won't save an English student who has a bad test day. GPA just doesn't
matter.