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What is Plagiarism?
Plagiarism is the act of taking and using the whole or any part of another person's work and presenting it as your own without proper acknowledgement.
Examples of ‘work' include text, writings, computer program, web page, on-line discussions, video, music, sound recording, image, photograph, technical drawing, invention, research findings, diagram, chart, artwork or design.
Plagiarism is a serious academic offence. Disciplinary action taken for students caught for plagiarism or for abetting plagiarism will depend on the severity and includes failing the subject, suspension and removal from the course.
... alternatively ...
"to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own:
use (a created production) without crediting the source"
"to commit literary theft : present as new and original
an idea or product derived from an existing source"
 As taken from: Merriam-Webster's collegiate dictionary. (10th ed.). (1993). Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster.
In other words, plagiarism is:
- cheating or
- academic theft
Any words, images or ideas (intellectual property) that you do not create yourself must be properly documented (or cited) if you use them in your assignment or report.
If you do not cite your sources, you are saying that the ideas, words or images used are all your own work. You cannot expect marks for someone else's hard work.
In addition, you cannot re-use an old assignment, even if it is your own, and resubmit for a new project or assignment.
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Common Misconceptions
Despite popular belief, listed below are things you MAY NOT do:
- You cannot use small portions of text from a web page in your assignment or project unless you cite the source.
- You cannot freely use images that you find on the Web even if you cannot find a source.
- You cannot use information from a verbal discussion in your assignment or project unless you quote the source.
- You cannot use information from a book in your assignment or project without citing the source even if you change the words a little.
- You cannot copy one tiny paragraph from a thick book into your assignment or project unless you cite it properly.
- You cannot cut and paste an image from the web into an assignment or project unless you cite the source.
- You cannot draw your own version of an existing image for your assignment or project unless you cite the source.
- You cannot submit one of your own past projects for a new assignment.
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It's Up to You!
Watch this video, by students from the Diploma in Moving Images, highlighting the perils of plagiarism. The basic message is that it's up to you not to cheat.
(Windows Media Player -- 9 mins )
Our thanks to the volunteers:
- Kong Rui Jia
- Mohamed Rizwan s/o Syed M
- Neeraj Pattani
- Nicholas Chia Peng Yang
- Shahul Hameed
- Yumi Pong Siow Sin
- Warren Tey Sing Liang
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How to Avoid Plagiarism
You can avoid plagiarism in your projects and assignments by always citing your sources in a reference list, using the APA Citation Style (6th ed.) or, if you are from the Engineering School, the IEEE Citation Style.
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Selected Resources for Students
Books
1. American Psychological Association. (2010). Concise rules of the APA style (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author. BF76.7 Con
2. Stern, L. (2007). What every student should know about avoiding plagiarism. New York: Pearson / Longman. PN167 Ste
Websites
1. APA Citation Style 6th edition. (2010). Retrieved from Red Deer College Library website: http://rdc.libguides.com/apa
2. Create an APA reference list. (2006). Retrieved from The Writing Center of the University of Wisconsin-Madison website: http://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/DocAPAReferences.html
3. IEEE transactions, journals and letters: Information for authors. (2006). Retrieved from http://www.ieee.org/portal/cms_docs/pubs/transactions/auinfo03.pdf
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Selected Resources for Staff
Websites
1. APA Citation Style 6th edition. (2010). Retrieved from Red Deer College Library website: http://rdc.libguides.com/apa - easy to read and well organised pages on the APA citation style, including examples.
2. Elliott, B. (2004). Plagiarism FAQ . Retrieved from http://www.bobbyelliott.com/Plagiarism.htm - comprehensive and easy to read information on all aspects of plagiarism.
3. Plagiarism.org . (2005). Retrieved from http://www.plagiarism.org/ - information about, and links to tools to help combat plagiarism - Turnitin and iThenticate; introduction to the current state of plagiarism; recent statistics; resources that include definitions and handouts that can be given to students.
Selected Journal articles 1998-2009
1. Berger, P. (2007). Our sacred honor. Education Week, 27(10), 25. Retrieved from http://www.ebscohost.com - thoughts about plagiarism among American students
2. Chanock, K. (2008). When students reference plagiarised material -- what can we learn (and what can we do) about their understanding of attribution? International Journal of Educational Integrity, 4(1), 3-15. Retrieved from http://www.ebscohost.com - what is "unwitting plagiarism" and how do we deal with it?
3. Howard, R., & Davies, L. (2009). Plagiarism in the Internet age. Educational Leadership, 66(6), 64-67. Retrieved from http://www.ebscohost.com - a discussion on how to deal with plagiarism in educational research
4. Mooney, P. (2006). Plagued by plagiarism. Chronicle of Higher Education, 52(37), 69-72. Retrieved from http://www.ebscohost.com - a bit about academic plagiarism in China
5. Segal, C. F. (2006). Copy this. Chronicle of Higher Education , 53(4), 54. Retrieved from http://www.ebscohost.com - a lecturer's personal experiences with plagiarism reveals that students are the same all over the world
6. Westacott, E. (2008). The future of plagiarism. Chronicle of Higher Education, 54(36, C3.Retrieved July 10, 2008, from Academic Search Premier. - what would two college teachers have to say about plagiarism in the year 2030?
Books 1999-2010
1. American Psychological Association. (2010). Concise rules of the APA style (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author. BF76.7 Con
2. Bowman, V. (2004). The plagiarism plague: A resource guide and CD-ROM tutorial for educators and librarians. New York: Neal-Schuman. PN167 Bow
3. Braxton, J. M., & Bayer, A. E. (Eds.). (2004). Addressing faculty and student classroom improprieties. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. LB1025.2 NDT
4. Buranen, L., & Roy, A. M. (Eds.). (1999). Perspectives on plagiarism and intellectual property in a postmodern world. Albany: State University of New York Press. PN167 Per
5. Duggan, F. (Ed.). (2006). Plagiarism: Prevention, practice and policy. Abingdon, Oxfordshire: Taylor and Francis. LB2300 AEH
6. Menager, R., & Paulos, L. (2009). Quick coach guide to avoiding plagiarism. Boston, MA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. PN167 Men
7. Posner, R. A. (2007). The little book of plagiarism. New York: Pantheon Books. PN176 Pos
8. Roberts, T. S. (Ed.). (2008). Student plagiarism in an online world: problems and solutions. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference. PN167 Stu
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