How to Avoid Plagiarism - Research Paper Example

How to Avoid Plagiarism: Plagiarism is copying another work without accrediting the source. (Saurez and Martin, 2001). In the definition of plagiarism given here, the term “source” includes both published and unpublished works. (University of California, Davis, 2006). Avoiding plagiarism has been an ever growing concern in the writing industry as more and more publications add to the jargon of literature. This is essential in order to pay due regard to every individual that makes an addition to the body of literature. Without strict enforcement of plagiarism rules, people will gain credit for others’ works. This will demotivate potential writers to offer their services causing an unimaginable loss to the whole world. Ways to avoid plagiarism are mentioned below: Paraphrasing: Paraphrasing is the most effective and appreciated means of avoiding plagiarism. Although apparently, the act of paraphrasing portrays an individual as displaying little effort as he/she does little more than just rewriting the original text in his/her own words, yet the practice is beneficial in its own ways. First, the individual who paraphrases is sure to learn the whole meaning of the statement being paraphrased by heart as paraphrasing can not be done without conceiving the message each statement carries. When the students are asked to write essays on school and college level, their knowledge is enhanced about the topic even if they paraphrase given the aforementioned explanation. Secondly, it is an established fact that knowledge can not be created without referring to any present material. Knowledge can only be discovered making use of already existing material and evidences. Owing to this fact, there is no point denying the justification of paraphrasing because it allows an individual to refer to already existing material to prove his/her point in the flow of the argument that the paper makes. Paraphrasing is also effective in polishing the English speaking and writing skills of the students as they tend to search for appropriate words to replace the words of the original sentence with. Many students search for the synonyms of words in the copied sentence that adds to their vocabulary. Paraphrased lines are not identified as plagiarized by the plagiarism detecting softwares fundamentally because they do not belong to the material from present literature saved in their memory. Use of Quotation Marks: Quotation marks are readily used by students to avoid plagiarism. When quotation marks are used, the whole sentence must remain exactly as it appeared in the text from which it was copied. The copied sentence is enclosed in the quotation marks put in the start and the end of the sentence. Right next to the quotation mark at the end of the sentence, name/names of the author/authors, date of publication and often the page or paragraph number as dictated by the referencing style are mentioned in parenthesis. Use of quotation marks is accepted as a justified way of copying a sentence from a text as long as the author of original text is accredited. However, not many instructors appreciate the incorporation of directly quoted sentences in the text because of a number of reasons. First, it limits an individual’s capacity to completely understand the meaning projected by the original sentence as he/she does not have to exert searching for meanings of individual words so as to understand them for paraphrasing. Secondly, too much use of direct quotations makes an essay susceptible to be accused for plagiarism because the plagiarism detecting softwares impose certain limitations on the percentage of direct quotation in relation to the total number of words in an essay. In fact, direct quotations are not used unless “when the author has expressed something so well and so succinctly that you feel that the words cannot be bettered.” (University of Sterling, 2010, p. 6). Also, there are certain rules that need to be followed while quoting a sentence as such. If the number of words in a sentence exceeds a certain limit, the whole quotation needs to be indented, otherwise it will be counted as plagiarism despite being within the quotation marks. Time management: Time management is one of the most important factors that need to be taken care of in order to ensure, that no part of the paper is plagiarized. Many times, it so happens that an individual unintentionally plagiarizes because of shortage of time. As a person runs short of time, he/she tends to copy paste individual sentences from the original source, and only change or remove individual words that make part of the copied sentence. This increases an individual’s verisimilitude to leaving a group of words in the copied sentence unchanged as a result of which, they are detected by the plagiarism detecting softwares and the whole paper is deemed plagiarized. It is not uncommon for an individual to plagiarize when he/she gets under the pressure of the rapidly approaching deadline. It is therefore, very important to keep track of time so that one can paraphrase a copied sentence to the maximum possible extent and to his/her complete satisfaction. It is good to keep record of the sources one retrieves the information from. People use index cards, note books and laptops to keep record of their references before they use them. (Ellis-Christensen, 2010). In addition to the points mentioned above, there are certain other guidelines that need to be followed in order to avoid plagiarism. There are defined rules about writing the first, middle and last name of the author/authors of a text in each referencing style. A paper might be accused of plagiarism even if the mentioned sources do not comply with the standards set for the individual referencing styles. It is worth noting that all schools, colleges and universities lay their own criteria for plagiarism i.e. they specify a particular percentage up to which the plagiarism is acceptable. Plagiarism detecting softwares mention the results in the form of percentage up to which the paper is plagiarized. If that percentage of a paper is found to be below what is the acceptable percentage for a particular institution, it is deemed unplagiarized and vice versa. References: Ellis-Christensen, T. (2010, Sep. 9). “How Can I Avoid Plagiarism?” Conjecture Corporation. Retrieved from http://www.wisegeek.com/how-can-i-avoid-plagiarism.htm. Saurez, J. and Martin, A. (2001). “Internet Plagiarism: A Teachers Combat Guide.” Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education. 1(4). ISSN 1528-5804. University of Sterling. (2010, July). The little book of plagiarism: What it is and how to avoid it. 2nd Edition. Retrieved from http://www.quality.stir.ac.uk/documents/BookofPlagiarism.pdf. University of California, Davis. (2006). “Avoiding PLAGIARISM: Mastering the Art of Scholarship.” Office of Student Judicial Affairs. Retrieved from http://sja.ucdavis.edu/files/plagiarism.pdf. Read More