Plagiarism Workshop

Plagiarism Workshop

What is Academic Dishonesty?

At the Polytechnic Institute of NYU:

• Academic dishonesty is an act of fraud, including:

• Misrepresentation

• Deceit

• Falsification

• Trickery of any kind

• It also includes:

• Forgery and falsification of University academic documents

• Intentionally impeding or damaging academic work of others

• Assisting other students in acts of dishonesty

Examples of Academic Dishonesty

Cheating

Example: Copying another student's answers on a test

Fabrication

Example: Creating false experiment results

Facilitating academic dishonesty

Example: Helping someone else cheat, fabricate or plagiarize

Plagiarism

According to Polytechnic Institute of NYU: "Intentionally or knowingly representing the words or ideas of another as one's own in any academic exercise; failure to attribute direct quotation, paraphrase, or borrowed facts or information" (Code of Conduct, 2005, p. 21)

Unauthorized Collaboration

Example: Working in groups on an assignment when it is not allowed

Consequences of Plagiarism

In the United States:

1. Plagiarism is more than "copying" or " borrowing" someone else's words or ideas

2. Under US Law it is an act of Fraud

3. All original ideas are protected by copyright laws, therefore using another's work is not just dishonest it is illegal

At Polytechnic Institute of NYU:

1. You can be Suspended or Expulsed from the university for academically dishonest behavior including plagiarism

2. If you are an international student, this means loosing your F-1 Visa and your status in the United States

Examples of Plagiarism

1. Turning in someone else's work as your own

2. Copying words or ideas from someone else without giving credit

3. Failing to put a quotation in quotation marks

4. Giving incorrect information about the source of a quotation

5. Changing words but copying the sentence structure of a source without giving credit

6. Copying so many words or ideas from a source that it makes up the majority of your work, whether you give credit or not

How to Avoid Plagiarism

According to Frick (2005), you must give credit when:

1. You use another person's ideas, opinions, or theories

2. You use facts, statistics, graphics, drawings, music, etc., or any other type of information that does not comprise common knowledge

3. You use quotations from another person's spoken or written word

4. You Paraphrase another person's spoken or written word

Frick, T. (2005). How to recognize plagiarism. Retrieved on June 23, 2009 from http://www.indiana.edu/~istd/overview.html

How to Give Credit

In-Text Citations

1. Direct Quotations*

Use direct quotations when using material (including words, sentences, data, etc.) word-for-word from an original source

2. Paraphrasing*

Use paraphrasing when using another person’s ideas, thoughts, opinions, finidngs or theories

Paraphrasing is constructing a sentence or sentences written in your own words, but that come from another author's ideas, thoughts, opinions, findings or theories

*The majority of your paper cannot consist of direct quotations and paraphrasing. You need to express your own ideas and opinions in your work.

References

Any source cited in your work needs to appear on your Reference Sheet or Bibliography

Style Guides

There are varying Style Guides that dictate how to Cite and Reference a work:

1. Popular ones are: MLA, APA and Chicago

2. You are responsible for asking your Professor which Style Guide to use before turning in any assignments

3. You can access style guides on the web (refer to the Resources page at the end of this workshop) or at the NYU-Poly Library

Examples of In-text Citations using Direct Quotations

1. According to Frick (1991), "... the first technology was the primitive modes of communication used by prehistoric people before the development of spoken language" (p. 10).

2. On page 10, Frick (1991) states that “... the first technology was the primitive modes of communication used by prehistoric people before the development of spoken language.”

3. It is believed that “... the first technology was the primitive modes of communication used by prehistoric people before the development of spoken language” (Frick, 1991, p. 10).

All of the examples above demonstrate the correct use of quotation marks for an in-text citation as outinled in the APA Style Guide. What you will notice is that there are a few ways to properly use quotation marks. No matter how you structure your sentence, you must always include: the quotation marks, the author or authors last name(s), the year the work was published/copyrighted and the page number.

Examples of In-text Citations using Paraphrasing

1. According to Gredler (2001), the same factors apply to developing complex skills in a classroom setting as to developing complex skills in any setting.

2. The same factors apply to developing complex skills in a classroom setting as to developing complex skills in any setting (Gredler, 2001).

All of the examples above demonstrate the correct use of paraphrasing for an in-text citation as outinled in the APA Style Guide. Take note that when paraphrasing there may be more than one author you would like to cite or a work may be published by multiple authors. In these cases, follow the Style Guide. Though, no matter how you structure your sentence, when paraphrasing you must always include: the author or authors last name and the year the work was published/copyrighted.

Examples of References

1. Gredler, M. E. (2001). Learning and instruction: Theory into practice (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

2. Frick, T. (1991). Restructuring education through technology. Bloomington, IN: Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation.

The above examples demonstrate how a work would be listed on a Reference page in accordance with the APA Style Guide. The above examples are how books are to be referenced, but there exists guidelines for an array of sources including websites.

How to Get More Help

1. Your Professors

2. The Polytechnic Writing Center at the PTC - JAB room 373

3. The NYU-Poly Library - Dibner Building 3rd Floor

4. The Graduate Center - RH room 102

5. Check your NYU-Poly student email account for Workshop announcements

Resources

Polytechnic Institute Code of Conduct

http://www.poly.edu/doc/PolytechnicCodeofConduct2005.pdf

Polytechnic Institute of NYU Library

http://www.poly.edu/research/library/research/style

http://www.poly.edu/research/library/find/reference/writing