Research @ Reynolds Libraries

Plagiarism is using another person’s ideas or words without clearly acknowledging or citing the source of that information. You must give credit whenever you use:

• Another person's idea, opinion, or theory.
• Direct quotes from another person's actual spoken or written words.
• Paraphrasing of another person's spoken or written words.
• Any piece of information this is not common knowledge (e.g., fact, figure, statistic, chart)
• Multimedia created by another person (e.g., photo, drawing, film clip, music, etc.)

The primary reason to cite your sources is to avoid plagiarism and give proper credit to the original author or creator.  Other reasons for citing your sources:

• Enables a reader to locate the sources you cited.
• Demonstrates the accuracy and reliability of your information.
• Shows the amount of research you’ve done.
• Strengthens your work by lending outside support to your ideas.

• Make sure to place direct quotes from another person in quotation marks. This is especially important to remember when you are taking notes from any source you use. Make sure to copy the words exactly as they appear in the source.

• When you paraphrase, be sure you are not just changing or rearranging a few words. Carefully read over the text you want to paraphrase.  Write out the idea in your own words. Check your paraphrase against the original text to make sure you have not accidentally used the same phrases or words.

• Make sure to include complete and correct citations in your works cited list.

• Make sure to follow the guidelines and rules for the citation style specified by your instructor (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago).

• In the beginning of a sentence containing a quote or paraphrase of another’s work, make it clear that it is someone else’s idea  (e.g., According to Smith . . . )

• Make sure to include in-text citations within your paper for any information taken from another person’s work. A typical in-text citation includes the author's last name and the page number of the source. The in-text citation is inserted at the end of the sentence containing a quote or paraphrase of another’s work - example: (Jones, 127). Check with your instructor or a librarian for other in-text citation examples.

• Start your research early.

• Take and keep accurate notes: of the sources you use. Distinguish between your ideas and other’s ideas and direct quotes.

• Document your sources immediately: As you gather sources during your research, make sure to record all the information you need to cite your sources accurately and completely (e.g., authors, titles, URL addresses, etc.). Check with your instructor or a librarian to see what citation information is required for the citation style you will be using (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago)

• Books: When using the library catalog to find books, email yourself or print out the catalog records of any books you may use for your paper.  Catalog records provide brief information on books including the author/s, title, publisher, and publication date. You can also photocopy the title and copyright pages from any book you use for your paper. Note the page numbers you need to cite.

• Journal, Magazine, & Newspaper Articles: Keep an online or paper copy of the articles you will use for your paper. If you are using a library database, email yourself the article along with the APA or MLA citation. You will need to include the database information in your citation. The information you need to include from the database will depend on the format style specified by your instructor. Many library databases have a citation tool that automatically generates a citation in the format you specify. These citation tools are a good starting point for formatting your references but you may still need to “tweak” them according to your instructor’s specifications. 

• Websites: Keep an online or paper copy of the web pages you use for your paper. Make sure to record the URL address of the exact page on the website that is used.

Citing: Also called documenting or referencing. The recording of information (e.g., author, title, publisher, publication date, page numbers, database name, URL address, etc.) from a source (e.g., book, magazine article, web site) which allows an instructor or anyone to identify and locate a source. By citing your sources, you are also giving proper credit to those sources. This information is then formatted to a citation style (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago) specified by your instructor and inserted into your essay.

Common knowledge: Facts or ideas that are well know by many people and that can be found in numerous sources (e.g., Barack Obama was the first African American president of the United States). Common knowledge does not need to be cited.

Doctrine of fair use: Allows copyrighted works to be used for purposes such as criticism, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research. Section 107 of the Copyright Law describes factors to consider in deciding when fair use applies: Purpose of use; Nature of the copyrighted work; Amount of the work used relative to the copyrighted work as a whole; and effect of use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

Parenthetical Citation: Also known as In-text Citation. An abbreviated form of a full citation that is enclosed in parentheses in the body of a paper or work. It points the reader to the full citation in a Works Cited or Reference list at the end of a paper. Parenthetical citations in APA or MLA format typically include an author's name or an abbreviated form of the title as well as the page number/s of the work you are citing. The year of publication is also needed for APA. If the author or title is mentioned within the sentence, then only a page number/s and year (if APA) is needed in the parenthetical citation. See 7c - Citing Sources for examples of parenthetical citations. Also referred to as an in-text citation.

Paraphrasing: Using someone's ideas and putting them into your own words. This is probably the skill you will use most when incorporating sources into your writing. Although you use your own words to paraphrase, you must still cite the source of the information (e.g., Using an excerpt from Barack Obama’s January 2009 inaugural address and putting it in your own words).

Public domain: Refers to works that are not protected by copyright and are publicly available. They may be used by anyone, anywhere, anytime without permission, license or royalty payment. A work may enter the public domain because: the term of copyright protection has expired; copyright has been abandoned; or a work created by the U.S. Government.

Quotation: Also called a quote or direct quote. Using someone's exact words. When you use a direct quote, place the passage in quotation marks and cite the source according to the citation style specified by your instructor (e.g., Using a direct excerpt from Barack Obama’s January 2009 inaugural address).

Signal Phrase: A phrase, clause, or sentence that introduces a quotation, paraphrase, or summary. Common signal phrase verbs include the following: argue, claim, comment, emphasize, illustrate, imply, note, point out, report, suggest  and write. Example signal phrases: "Smith suggests that. . ." and "Smith argues that. . ."

Summarizing: Using someone's main ideas and putting them into your own words. Summaries are significantly shorter than the original and take a broad overview of the source material.

Reynolds Writing Studio - https://www.reynolds.edu/writing-studio/default.html

Reynolds Community College Writing Studio tutors will work with students on any type of writing at any stage of the writing process including brainstorming for ideas, beginning drafts, revising drafts, or polishing finished drafts.

Drop in during studio hours:

You don’t need an appointment to visit us during studio hours. Studio hours are specifically designed to support you in a less formal atmosphere. We want our Writing Studio to be a place where you can feel comfortable working on your writing tasks, while knowing that we’re here for feedback, to answer questions, and to just talk through your assignment if you need it .

To access our studio hours, please follow these steps:

1. When you are ready to enter in the studio hours, fill out a Session Goal Form (You will first need to login to your My Reynolds to access the form).
2. Once you’ve completed the form, you will receive a confirmation with the Zoom link.
3. Simply click on the link and jump into the Writing Studio Zoom Room.
4. Before you jump in, please take a few minutes to read the Preparing for your consultation page.

Avoiding Plagiarism Handout

Avoiding Plagiarism Worksheet