What is Plagiarism?

According to Briar Cliff University’s Student Handbook, plagiarism is “the representation of another's ideas, statements, or data as one's own. This includes copying, paraphrasing, or summarizing another's work without proper acknowledgment (footnotes, in-text credit, quotation marks, etc.)” (93). Plagiarism may be deliberate or accidental, but both forms are offenses that are punishable according to the student handbook. Thus, a student should avoid plagiarism in any form in her or his writing.

How to Avoid Plagiarism?

To avoid plagiarism, a student must acknowledge the ideas and experiences of others in her/his text by providing citations. Citations serve two purposes:

(1) tells readers and instructors where the information came from and

(2) gives credit to the individuals whose ideas, thoughts, experiences, and words appear in the text (Hacker 109).

A citation is necessary:

• when a direct quote is taken from a source,
• when a source is summarized or paraphrased, and
• when facts and ideas are taken from a source excluding common knowledge (Hacker, 109).

However, citations are not enough to protect a student from plagiarizing. Plagiarism also occurs with inaccurate quotations, summaries, and paraphrases. These incidences appear:

• when there is a failure to cite direct quotes or borrowed ideas,
• when “borrowed language” is not enclosed by quotation marks, and
• when a summary or a paraphrase is not in the student’s own words (Hacker 110).

For examples and further explanation of proper quoting, summarizing, and paraphrasing, please consult The Little, Brown Handbook (Chapter 36) or the manuals to the citation style being used.

Hacker, Diane. A Pocket Style Manual. 3rd ed. Boston: Bedford / St. Martin’s, 2000.

Student Handbook 2000-2001. Briar Cliff University. June 25, 2004, <http://www.
briarcliff.edu/handbook/HANDBOOK%2000-01.pdf>.