Slide 1

What is Plagiarism?

Theresa BellWriting centre coordinator, Royal Roads University Royal Roads University

Hello, and welcome to this presentation. My name is Theresa Bell, and Im the writing centre coordinator at Royal Roads University. My goal for this presentation is to help you to understand what plagiarism is, why you should avoid it, and what you need to cite in your academic work. If you have any questions regarding the content in this presentation, please contact the Writing Centre so that I can assist you. Youll find all the contact information for the Writing Centre on the last slide of this presentation.

Lets get started!Definition of plagiarismAt Royal Roads University:Plagiarism is the act of presenting the ideas or works of another as one's own. This applies to all materials, electronic or in print, including laboratory reports, seminar presentations, computer programs, research projects and results, postings online, in discussion groups, and statistical data. The use of such material either directly or indirectly without proper acknowledgment (i.e., footnotes or endnotes) is contrary to the norms of academic behaviour. (Royal Roads University, 2014, para. 6).Also,Intentional improper citation may constitute plagiarism such as not using quotation marks when required to indicate others work, not acknowledging significant concepts from others work even when you paraphrased it, and not actually looking at a source that you quote.(Royal Roads University, 2014, para. 12)Academic Integrity and Misconduct Policy

On this slide, Ive provided the two sections of RRUs Academic Integrity policy that pertain to plagiarism. The policy applies to all the work youll be doing as a student at RRU, both as an individual and as a team member. Please pause this video to give yourself time to read the text, and when youre ready, click play to resume the video. The key message of the sections is that plagiarism is using someone elses work or ideas and claiming it as your own.

To view the full policy, please click on Academic Integrity and Misconduct Policy.

Reference

Royal Roads University. (2014). Academic integrity and misconduct policy. Retrieved from http://policies.royalroads.ca/policies/academic-integrity-and-misconduct-policy

What actions could be considered plagiarism?

Quoting, Summarizing, and Paraphrasing

As you can see on this slide, there is a scale of what is considered plagiarism. On one end of the scale is deliberate plagiarism, such as buying a paper or intentionally using someone elses ideas without giving credit for them. On the other end of the scale is accidental plagiarism, such as using the source too closely when paraphrasing.

The actions on the far end of deliberate plagiarism are obvious; it would be difficult for a student to argue that he or she accidentally bought a paper. The examples of accidental plagiarism show the types of errors people make if theyre not paying close enough attention when theyre citing their sources. Please remember that accidental plagiarism may be considered deliberate plagiarism if a pattern of plagiarism develops in future works.

For more information about using other peoples ideas or work, please click on Quoting, Summarizing, and Paraphrasing.

Possible consequences of plagiarismInformal resolution between the professor and student (Royal Roads University, 2014, para. 1)

Informal resolution within the school or faculty involving the program head and school director (para. 2)

Formal resolution involving the dean, such as:a letter of reprimand;a reduction of grade;a probationary period;requiring the student to re-submit an assignment or exam;assigning a grade of F (Fail) for the course;requiring the student to withdraw from a course or program of study; or,recommending the student be suspended or expelled from the university. (para. 5)

Academic Integrity and Misconduct Procedures

Just as there is a range of actions that could be considered plagiarism, so too is there a range of consequences for plagiarism. This slide presents some of the possible consequences, but for a more comprehensive overview, please click on Academic Integrity and Misconduct Procedures at the bottom of the screen. If you need more time to read through the items on this slide, please pause the video, and then click play when youre ready to continue.

Reference

Royal Roads University. (2014). Academic integrity and misconduct procedures. Retrieved from http://policies.royalroads.ca/procedures/academic-integrity-and-misconduct-proceduresWhat do you need to cite?Not-so-common knowledgeContact the LibrariansHow to cite and reference a quotation from a quotation website in APA style?APA Style

Cite other peoples work or ideas Dont cite your original ideas or common knowledge

When a student submits an assignment, the professors assumption is that all the ideas or work in the assignment are the students original work unless the student has noted the source of the quoted or paraphrased text. Citations show readers which ideas came from other sources. If you have quoted or paraphrased another authors work or ideas in your text, please cite the author to give credit to that author for his or her ideas, as well as to show your reader where you retrieved the information.

If the information is your original idea or common knowledge, you dont need to provide a citation. Your original ideas havent been previously published somewhere else, so they dont need to be cited. Common knowledge refers to information that is easily observable or widely-known. For example, identifying Victoria as a city would be common knowledge; however, identifying Victoria as the capital city of British Columbia might only be common knowledge to Canadians. If youre trying to decide whether or not something is common knowledge, please think about your audience members and what theyre likely to know. Also, please consider if you knew the information before you started doing your research. If your knowledge is a result of your research, you probably need to cite it. When in doubt, please cite; over-citing is a much less serious problem than failing to cite. For more information, please click on Not-so-common-knowledge.

Students often question what they need to cite when theyre describing information they know because of their personal experiences. I recommend that students explain to the reader how they know the information, such as stating that the knowledge was gained through the authors experience in a particular job, so the reader understands the source of the information. If however, the author is going to expand the description from his or her personal experience and make a more generalized conclusion, the author needs to cite research that will support the generalized statement. For example, I cant state that everyone would have the same experience in a particular situation as I did, based solely on my experience. However, research will tell me if most people would have a similar experience, in which case I can make a broader claim and cite the research as evidence.

Another point to keep in mind when youre deciding what to cite is that peoples memories arent perfect, and our understanding of facts may shift and change over time. For example, you might not remember something accurately if you learned it 10 years ago because your memory of it has changed over time to accommodate new information and understanding. If youre relying on memory to provide facts in your essay, please check a reliable source to verify the information, and then cite that source. If you need help with finding a source, please contact the Librarians.

Finally, if youd like to use a famous saying or quotation in your work, please check a reliable source to make sure the quotation is correct. The well-known quotation be the change you want to see in the world is often attributed to Mahatma Gandhi, yet he never actually said it. If you visit a website that collects quotations, hell be given credit for the quotation, but again, he wasnt the author of that saying. An academic author is expected to make sure that the facts presented in a work are correct, which means that authors need to investigate their information to ensure it is correct, versus relying on assumptions. Please make sure that youre referring to reliable sources for your information, and in the case of famous quotations, refer to a fact-checked source. Then, cite that source in your text. For more information on providing citations to well-known quotations, please see How to cite and reference a quotation from a quotation website in APA style?. If you need help with finding a source to check your information, please click on Contact the librarians. For more information on how to create citations, please visit APA Style.http://library.royalroads.ca/writing-centre http://writeanswers.royalroads.ca (250) 391-2600, ext. 4353Toll free in North America: 1-800-788-8028

Contact the Writing Centre

This slide brings us to the end of my presentation. If you have any questions about the content of this video or any other matter relating to academic writing, please contact the Writing Centre so that I can assist you. On this screen, Ive provided the URL for the Writing Centres homepage, and youll find all the contact information on that page. Also, Ive given you the URL for WriteAnswers, and you can use the WriteAnswers contact form to get in touch. If you would prefer to connect by phone, Ive provided the direct phone number for the Writing Centre, as well as the universitys toll free number. If you live in North America, you can call that number and ask for the Writing Centre, and theyll put you through to me. If you live outside of North America and you would like to set up a time to chat by phone, please send me a message through WriteAnswers and let me know what times would work well for you, and Ill call you so that RRU pays for the call. Finally, if you would like to provide anonymous feedback about this presentation, please click on the Feedback? image to access the online feedback form.

I hope you found this presentation helpful, and do get in touch if I can assist you. Bye for now!6