Plagiarism

After reading the first article on plagiarism, all I can say is "Yikes!" Plagiarism is a serious act. I did not know that paraphrasing without a footnote was considered plagiarism. As the author of the first article mentioned, it is getting easier and easier to plagiarize... but it is also getting easier for professors to spot/confirm plagiarism. The reasoning behind the statement is that the internet makes everything much easier to search/find and being already on the computer makes it easier to copy and paste. As for professors, typing in key words to google will give an idea whether the student copied or not. The author also points out that just because you did not plagiarize, that means you are getting an "A"; you have to add or build upon what was written in the text.

Luckily, the articles provided some helpful tips on avoiding plagiarism. A great suggestion from the first article was to ask your professor for an extension, because chances are if you have time, you will not plagiarize. With spare time comes the ability to check your work, which is what the second article says writers should do. The second article says that double-checking makes your work more reliable. In addition to providing tips, both articles give examples of different types of plagiarism with reasons why they are considered plagiarism. All in all, one must be very careful when writing and making sure sources are given credit. Some great resources to check out here on campus if you are unsure about your paper are CLAS, a librarian, and your professor.