Plagiarism (An Introduction)

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Plagiarism(An Introduction)

• For Centennial High School Students and Teachers
• by
• Mrs. Mirka
• (Teacher Librarian)
• 2006

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Plagiarism
I found your speech to be good and
original. However, the part that was original was
not good and the part that was good was not
original. Samuel
Johnson 1707- 1784
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What is plagiarism?

• (And why you should care!)

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Definition

• Plagiarism is using the words, ideas, images,
  sounds, or the creative expression of others
  without giving them credit, and then saying that
  it is your own

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The Importance of Being Ethical
Not giving credit for your sources islike
robbing the authors of payment for their original
work and robbing them of the recognition they
deserve for their work You are also lying to
your reader by claiming other peoples work as
your own
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How serious is the problem?

• McAbe, in his study of almost 4,500 students at
  25 schools suggests,
• cheating is . . . a significant problem in high
• school - 74 of the respondents admitted to one
  or
• more instances of serious test cheating and 72
• admitted to serious cheating on written
• assignments. Over half of the students admitted
• they have engaged in some level of plagiarism
• on written assignments using the Internet
• (p.1)

http//www.newu.uci.edu/archive/1998-1999/fall/981
012/np-981012-cheating.jpg
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Students, if

• you have copied and pasted text or pictures from
  the Internet without listing the source in your
  references
• you are using another students or your parents
  work and claiming it as your own, even with their
  permission.
• you are quoting a source without using quotation
  marks even if you do cite it
• you are citing sources you didnt use
• you are getting a research paper, story poem or
  article off the Internet
• you are turning in the same paper for more than
  one class without the permission of both
  teachers, (this is called self-plagiarism)

You Have Plagiarized!
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Excuses
Everyone does it!
Its okay if I dont get caught!
I was too busy to write that paper! (Job, big
game, too much homework!)
This assignment was BORING!
Ive got to get into ??? U.!
My teachers expect too much!
My parents expect As!
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Think about it!

• When you copy you cheat yourself. You limit your
  own learning.
• The consequences are not worth the risks!
• It is only right to give credit to authors whose
  ideas you use
• Citing gives authority to the information you
  present your teacher is impressed because it
  shows you have done your research
• Citing makes it possible for your readers to
  locate your source
• Education is not an us vs. them game! Its
  about learning to learn!
• Cheating is unethical behavior

Is your academic reputation valuable to you?
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Real life consequences
Kaaya Viswanathan's novel How Opal Mehta Got
Wild, Got Kissed and Got a LifePicture Joe
Raedle/Getty Images
Kaavya Viswanathan, a gifted Harvard student,
came to public attention when her debut novel was
reveled to have been plagiarized
Consequences Promising young author with a
500,000.00 book deal and a movie deal with
Stephen Spielberg loses all!
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Real life
The Chiffons, one of the most definitive girl
groups of the 60s. Album cover Amazon.com
http//www.wilsonsalmanac.com/images2/harrison_g2.
jpg
George Harrison unintentionally copied portions
of his hit My Sweet Lord from the song Hes
so fine by the Chiffons
Consequences George had to pay 587,000.00 to
settle the court case filed against him
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Real life
Photo from WashingtonSpeakersBureau, 2005
Boston Globe Journalist Mike Barnicle was found
to have plagiarized a number of his newspaper
articles
Consequences Mike Barnicle, considered a top
journalist, was fired from his job at the Boston
Globe
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Possible school consequences

• 0 on the assignment
• Parent notification
• Referral to administrators
• Suspension or dismissal from school courses,
  activities--sports and extracurricular
• Note on student record
• Loss of reputation among the school community

Is it worth the risk?
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Is this important?

• What if
• Your architect cheated his way through math
  class. Will your new home be safe?
• Your lawyer paid for a copy of the bar exam to
  study. Will the contract she wrote for you stand
  up in court?
• The accountant who does your taxes hired someone
  to write his papers and paid a stand-in to take
  his major tests? Does he know enough to complete
  your tax forms properly?
• (Lathrop Foss, 2000, p.87)

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Thank you

• This is the end of the slide presentation