A guide for QUT students on how to avoid plagiarism and how to observe principles of academic honesty.
- A Definition of Plagiarism
- Your Responsibilities
- QUT Policy on Plagiarism
- Books on How to Avoid Plagiarism
- Videos on How to Avoid Plagiarism
- Subject Headings
- Web Search Tools
- Web Sites
Plagiarism Defined
Plagiarism is the presentation of the work, idea or creation of another person as though it is your own. Plagiarism is failure to acknowledge the use of ideas or work of other authors when quoting directly, paraphrasing or citing their work in support of your own.
Plagiarism means that ideas, not your own are used in an assignment without proper reference to their source. In short, plagiarism is presenting someone else’s work as if you created and wrote it yourself.
Plagiarism may take a number of forms, including:
- Copying or paraphrasing another assignment in its entirety;
- Copying or paraphrasing another assignment in part;
- Copying or paraphrasing entire passages from a book or journal;
- Copying or paraphrasing entire passages from a book or journal but changing a few details;
- Cutting and pasting an entire document from a website ;
- Cutting and pasting an entire document from a website, while changing a few details ;
- Using phrases or expressions by an author without acknowledgement.
QUT Student's Responsibility to Avoid Plagiarism
Your primary responsibility in submitting assignments is to present your own, original work for assessment. At the same time you are encouraged to use journal articles, books and other references to develop your ideas, and to substantiate your arguments / opinions.
Resolving this apparent contradiction
Using someone else's idea is not cheating, provided you:
1. Acknowledge the source of that idea, as an in-text reference in the body of your assignment, and;
2. List the full reference in a bibliography at the end of the assignment.
QUT Policy on Plagiarism
Plagiarism is cheating and is regarded as grounds for failure, suspension and expulsion. Students need to read and understand the following..
QUT Manual of Policies and Procedures (MoPP) Policy C/9.3 “Procedures for Academic Dishonesty”
QUT Student Rule # 29 “Academic Dishonesty”
Books on How to Avoid Plagiarism
| Call # | Title/description |
|---|---|
025.324 |
Doing honest work in college : how to prepare citations, avoid plagiarism, and achieve real academic success (2004) Charles Lipson Lipson outlines three core principles of academic honesty and explores how these principles inform all aspects of college work. He discusses plagiarism in detail, outlining an ingenious note-taking system and offering guidelines for quoting and paraphrasing. Careful attention is paid to online research, including the perils of "dragging and dropping" text without proper citation. These chapters include numerous tips, all highlighted for students, on how to work honestly and study effectively. The book gives an account of citation styles in the humanities, social sciences, and physical and biological sciences, as well as in pre-professional studies. Filled with examples, these chapters show students exactly how to cite books, journals, edited volumes, Web sites, online publications. By communicating the basic principles of academic honesty and exploring these principles in action, Doing Honest Work in College promotes genuine learning and academic success. |
808 202 /2 |
The Plagiarism book : a student's manual 2nd ed. (2001) |
808 |
Elements of research : the student's guide to avoiding plagiarism in the information age (2003) The Internet has magnified the epidemic of both deliberate and unintentional digital plagiarism. Before the Internet, cheating took time! Now the Internet now makes it easy to find relevant sources in seconds. This book teaches students how to recognize plagiarism pitfalls and to become expert in ethical Internet research. |
808.02 407 |
Using sources effectively : strengthening your writing and avoiding plagiarism (2002) Targets the two most prominent problems in current researched writing: unintentional plagiarism and the ineffective use of research source material. This book addresses these issues in a positive way. This book is designed to help every student who uses research in writing, from a short essay with a few sources to a full-scale major research paper. Focusing on practical and effective strategies for incorporating sources, the book will teach you how to:
|
808.027 143 |
Avoiding plagiarism : a guide for ESL students (2002) Tania Pattison Academic Skills Centre, Trent University, Ontario, Canada |
808.0420285 28 /2 |
Writing online : a student's guide to the Internet and World Wide Web 2nd ed. (2002) |
Videos on How to Avoid Plagiarism
| Location | Title/description |
|---|---|
| 378.1702812 31 /C V8 | Referencing (1995) Open Learning Agency of Australia Discusses the appropriate use of referencing , as opposed to plagiarism. Reference formats and systems are explained, and when to use them. |
808 194 |
Plagiarism : It's a Crime (2003) Huntsville, TX : Absalom Productions (USA) {22 mins.} Audience level: Senior high; 1st year university undergraduates. Includes a definition of plagiarism and consequences, reasons why people plagiarize, types |
Subject Headings
LCSH - Library of Congress Subject Headings
Search the library catalogue using the controlled vocabulary Library of Congress Subject Headings LCSH. You can consult LCSH (the five big red volumes) kept at the Help Desk. Here are examples of relevant subject searches, using LCSH terms:
Web Search Tools
Some recommended subject gateways / Internet directories and search engines (with sample search strategies).
| Web search tool | Description |
|---|---|
| Google (search engine) | Advanced keyword search using Google (limited to U.K. academic sites). Plagiarism |
| ANZWERS (search engine) now powered by Google |
Boolean search using ANZWERS, employing wildcard truncation for plural variants. Plagiarism |
| GOeureka (search engine) powered by looksmart |
Boolean search for alternate phrases using GOeureka "Avoiding plagiarism" OR "How to avoid plagiarism" |
Web Sites
| Web site | Description |
|---|---|
|
An online tutorial for Queensland University of Technology students. |
Honest practice is at the core of academic integrity. Access restriction: QUT community only. |
| Using Sources | Lisa Trivedi and Sharon Williams, Hamilton College Writing Center |
Plagiarism and cyber-plagiarism: A guide to selected resources on the Web by Patience Simmonds |
C&RL News, June 2003 Vol. 64 No. 6 American Library Association (ALA) |
| Student Resources on Academic Integrity and Plagiarism | Texas A&M University Libraries |
| Ted Frick, Indiana University, School of Education | |
| Helping Students Avoid Plagiarism | University of Maryland University College (UMUC) |
| Synthesis : using the work of others | University of Maine at Farmington Writing Center / Mantor Library Anti-Plagiarism Website |
Avoiding plagiarism (2003)
|
Hong Kong Baptist University Electronic book. Each chapter downloadable in PDF format |