Plagiarism is Detectable
How violators WILL be caught:
- The quality of writing is inconsistent.
- Writing includes specialized vocabulary that is inconsistant with the student's level of knowledge.
- The paper cites references that are not included in the reference list (works cited).
- Anti-plagiarism software is readily available to instructors to make catching plagiarism cases easy.
- The reference list is incomplete.
Texas State Honor Code
According the the Texas State Honor Code:
WE ARE HONEST. We do our own work and are honest with one another in all matters. We understand how various acts of dishonesty, like plagiarizing, falsifying data, and giving or receiving assistance to which one is not entitled, conflict as much with academic achievement as with the values of honesty and integrity. Click here to read the entire Texas State Honor Code.
What is Plagiarism?
Plagiarism is a very serious offense.
Examples of Plagiarism Include:
- Using someone else's ideas or writings and presenting them as your own
- Using someone else's paper or paying someone to write your paper
- Restating someone else's ideas or writings too closely
- Not citing quotations
Who can help me with my References or Works Cited pages?
If you have specific questions about citing your sources, writing tips, or help with editing, you can go to the following places on campus for more assistance.
Student Learning Assistance Center (SLAC)
Get in-person tutoring at the Student Learning Assistance Center, or SLAC, located on the 4th floor of Alkek Library. Check the website for hours and availability.
SLAC also maintains good handout page for quick reference.
Texas State University Writing Center
The Writing Center is located on the first floor of ASB North. You can get help with all types of writing, including papers, essays, and resumes.
The Writing Center offers in-person and online tutoring (check their website for more information). You can also print out documentation handouts.
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Got a lot of resources to enter in your works cited list? Want to save time, energy, and stress? Try a citation manager software program.
RefWorks is a web-based citation manager available (for FREE!) to the campus community via the Library website. RefWorks will help you:
- Export information about your resources directly from databases or import information from other sources
- Organize your resources by class, assignment, or any other way you want
- Automatically generate works cited lists and bibliographies in a variety of styles
- And, if you're a real Refworks whiz, add formatted in-line citations to your paper while you write (using the Write-N-Cite tool)
Checklist for Avoiding Plagiarism
Are you using:
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Your own independent material |
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Common knowledge |
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Someone else's own independent material |
You must acknowledge someone else's material.
Quotations:
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Do all quotations exactly match their sources? Check! |
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Have you inserted quotation marks around quotations that are run into your text? |
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Have you shown omissions with ellipsis marks and additions with brackets? |
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Does every quotation have a source citation? |
Paraphrases and Summaries:
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Have you used your own words and sentence structures for every paraphrase and summary? If not, use quotation marks around the original author’s words. |
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Does every paraphrase and summary have a source citation? |
The Web:
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Have you obtained any necessary permission to use someone else’s material on your Web site? |
Source Citations:
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Have you acknowledged every use of someone else’s material in the place where you use it? |
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Does your list of works cited include all the sources you have used? |
Checklist content borrowed from: Fowler, Ramsey H. and Jane I. Aaron. The Little, Brown Handbook. New York:
Pearson Education, Inc., 2004. http://wps.ablongman.com/long_fowler_lbh_9/