Library - Academic Integrity

What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism is the use of the ideas and words of others without clearly acknowledging the source of that information. 

At Northern Lights College plagiarism is defined as the "unacknowledged reproduction of information. It includes inadequately citing sources for information quoted, paraphrased, or summarized in assignments, wholesale copying of material written by others, and submitting work prepared by someone else as one's own. This improper use of material also applies to Internet sources."

Northern Lights College has adopted a formal Plagiarism policy

To avoid plagiarism, you must give credit whenever you use:

• another person's idea, opinion, or theory;
• any facts, statistics, graphs, drawings, or other information that is not considered "common knowledge";
• quotations of another person's actual spoken or written words; or
• paraphrasing of another person's spoken or written words.

General advice for using sources:

The best way to avoid plagiarism is to keep control of your argument. You should include ideas from other sources only when those ideas add weight to your argument. Keep the following suggestions in mind when you are using material from other sources:

• Select carefully. Quotations should give weight to your argument. In general, do not select quotations which only repeat points you have already made.
• Be sure to integrate all ideas from other sources into your own discussion. Introduce direct quotations with your own words. After quoting, explain the significance of quotations.
• Avoid quoting more than is needed. Most of the time, brief quotations suffice.
• Use direct quotations only when the author's wording is necessary or particularly effective. In some disciplines, direct quotations are discouraged. Check with your instructor.
• If you are using material cited by an author and you do not have the original source, introduce the quotation with a phrase such as "as is quoted in...."
• End citation alone is not sufficient for direct quotations; place all direct quotations within quotation marks. Be sure to copy quotations exactly as they appear.
• To avoid any unintentional failure to cite sources, include all citation information on note cards and in your first draft.
• At all times, stay in control of your argument and let your own voice speak for you.

• Bibliography of items on plagiarism in NLC libraries 
• Tutorial (U of Maryland)

A common pitfall: note-taking

Plagiarism often starts with the note-taking stage of the research process. If possible, have a clear question in mind before heading off to the library so you will not waste time taking extraneous notes. When taking notes, be sure to distinguish between paraphrases and direct quotations. When you are copying a direct quotation, be extremely precise. Note all the information you will need for the citation and copy the quotation exactly as it appears. Some writers use only direct quotations while note-taking so there is no confusion as to whether a note is a paraphrase or a direct quotation. Other writers color-code notes: one colour for paraphrases, another for quotations. To ensure that you are not copying wording or sentence structure when paraphrasing, you might find it helpful to put the source material aside. In summary, be consistent and conscious of whatever note-taking method you decide on.

A final note

Learning how to use the ideas of others to add weight to your ideas involves effort and a commitment to academic honesty. It is not always clear exactly when or how to use sources, and sometimes you will need advice. Since your instructors are most familiar with the expectations of their disciplines, they are the best people to ask or refer to one of the many handbooks of English available for your use.

Works Cited

Crews, Frederick and Ann Jessie VanSant. The Random House Handbook, 4th edition. New York: Random House, 1984.

Fowler, H. Ramsey and Jane Aaron. The Little, Brown Handbook. Glenview, Ill.: Scott, Foresman and Co., 1989.