What is Plagiarism?
Plagiarism is the act of using or presenting someone else’s work, ideas, or words as your own, without giving proper credit or attribution to the original source. It is a form of intellectual dishonesty and a violation of ethical and academic standards.
This act can take many forms, including copying and pasting text from a source without citation, paraphrasing someone else’s ideas without giving credit, or using someone else’s images or multimedia content without permission. It can occur in academic writing, journalism, creative writing, and many other types of content.
Plagiarism is considered a serious offense and can result in consequences such as legal action, loss of reputation, and academic penalties, such as failing a course or being expelled from a program.
So, how do you avoid plagiarizing?
Acknowledge your sources
You don’t know everything and you aren’t expected to. You should always acknowledge the sources for the information you want to share. Not only does it give the reader a chance to get more information about this topic but it also shows that your work is reputable and not something you made up!
Paraphrase correctly
Paraphrasing correctly ensures that you are able to express the information without accidentally misrepresenting the information. You want what you have written to reflect the original meaning of the source but also be unique to your writing and suited for your purpose.
Quote correctly
Quote correctly by using quotation marks for every direct use of another person’s words. Be sure to double-check your work to ensure there are no missed punctuation marks! Include a reference at the end of your text adhering to the style guide you’re working with.
Keep track of your sources
Keep track of your sources when making notes for your assignments. Bookmark or save information that will need to be cited later, this also helps you to not Paraphrase incorrectly.
Cite your sources
Every time you quote or paraphrase you must include an in-text or footnote citation which further corresponds to a full reference in the reference list or bibliography at the end of your paper. Make sure your sources are credible and backed by evidence, not opinion.
Use a plagiarism checker
Lastly run your work through a plagiarism checker, just to be sure.
Sources
https://www.grammarly.com/…/5-most-effective-methods…/
https://www.scribbr.com/plagiarism/how-to-avoid-plagiarism/
https://www.ucd.ie/…/elearning/plagiarism/story_html5.html
