Plagiarism is widely accepted in high schools. But it is explicitly against USF’s rules. Perhaps, though, some students do not understand exactly what plagiarism is. So I will explain.
Types of
Plagiarism
(1) Word-for-word. Many people assume they can copy a sentence from a
writer without including the words in quotation marks and giving a citation.
Wrong! Exactly replicating another’s words is plagiarism, even if it is
only a sentence—or even a long phrase. Of course someone might stumble on the
same sentence by chance, so it would be difficult to prove that someone has
plagiarized if they copied only a single sentence. But once someone has copied
several consecutive sentences, the case is closed.
(2) Rephrasing. “Aha,” someone might say, “if plagiarism is copying whole sentences word for word, I will not plagiarize if I rephrase the author.” Wrong! Merely changing a few words is still plagiarism. Consider the following:
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Original The problem, in its most general form, is this. As moral agents, we cannot play favorites--at least, not according to the conception of morality as impartiality. But as parents, we do play favorites. Parental love is partial through and through. And we think there is nothing wrong with this; in fact, we normally think there is something wrong with the parent who is not deeply partial where his own children are concerned. Therefore, it would seem, one or the other of these conceptions has to be modified or abandoned. |
“Revised” The general problem is that moral agents cannot play favorites, at least according to the principle of impartiality. Nonetheless, we parents do play favorites. Parental love is completely partial. We think this is morally acceptable. In fact, we think there is something objectionable about the parent who is not partial toward his own children. Therefore, it seems one of these conceptions must be modified or rejected |
This revised version is still plagiarism. Of course if the student had acknowledged that she was paraphrasing the author, and had given an appropriate citation (see below), then that would not be plagiarism. (3) Using someone’s ideas, even if not their words. If you use someone else’s ideas, even if not their words, and you do not give an appropriate citation, then you have plagiarized.
Why Shouldn’t I
Plagiarize?
1.
It undercuts the aims of
education. If you plagiarize you will
not learn the skills you should learn—you are merely copying someone else’s
words and ideas.
2.
It is theft.
And all theft is wrong, whether it is theft of an idea or an object.
3.
You harm other students.
By plagiarizing you make professors more suspicious of students. This
encourages them to make assignments that are plagiarism-proof rather than ones
that are educationally sound.
4.
You will get caught.
I am very good at spotting plagiarism, and tenacious at gathering evidence to
establish that a student plagiarized. Think about it a minute: if you
plagiarize from a good source—one that is likely to help your grade—the prof
will likely know (or can easily find) the source. And if your writing style
drastically changes from sentence to sentence or from paper to exam, then even a
causal observer will notice. To plagiarize well—to plagiarize in a way that is
likely to land you a decent grade and minimize the chance that you are
caught—you would have to know the material so well, that it would be easier—and
more educationally beneficial—to write the essay yourself.
Citations
If you use someone else’s explicit words or their ideas, you
should give an appropriate citation. That is, you should give: (a) title of
the article or book, (b) if an article, the title of book or journal in which it
appears, (c) date of publication, (d) if a book, the publisher and place of
publication, and (e) the page number on which the quotation or idea appears, or
(f) a proper (and workable) URL.
I am not concerned about the form of citation, although it may be
wise to use a standard form, e.g., MLA..
Penalty
If you plagiarize, you fail the course. If the plagiarism is
especially egregious, I will also turn you in to the dean’s office for academic
misconduct. No excuses. No exceptions.