Recognizing & Avoiding Plagiarism: Home

As college students, most of you probably already know that plagiarism, simply put, is the act of taking someone else’s words or ideas and presenting them as your own. Most of you would agree that this is fundamentally wrong. This tutorial is not based on the idea that student plagiarism is the norm or so common that a tutorial is necessary to curb the practice. Nor is it based on some preconception that students don’t know what plagiarism is or lack of trust in the academic integrity of our students.

On the contrary, plagiarism is not always a black and white issue. Whether intentional or unintentional, there are many forms of plagiarism. Some types of plagiarism, such as cutting and pasting information from the Internet without proper citation or purchasing a paper online are obviously intentional and blatant forms of plagiarism. However, there are less intentional forms of plagiarism such as failure to understand proper citation procedures or misunderstandings over what is meant by “common knowledge.” Even graduate students are sometimes confused over what exactly constitutes plagiarism.

The abundance and ease of accessing online information has led to a rise in the erroneous notion among many that words and ideas, freely accessible on the Internet, belong to anyone for the taking. On the other hand, it is also true that we live in a very litigious society and we are constantly bombarded with stories in the news, locally and nationally, about students, teachers, journalists, researchers, writers, and other professionals whose careers have been ruined due to accusations of plagiarism.

The purpose of this tutorial is to teach you how to recognize plagiarism in all its forms, to provide solutions on how to avoid plagiarism, and to familiarize you with the College of Education & Professional Studies’ Honesty Policy. Developing and adhering to a strong code of academic honesty and integrity will serve as a valuable asset during your college career and as you represent Jacksonville State University in the future roles you will lead.

After you have completed each part (see tabs above) of the tutorial, proceed to the “Plagiarism Quiz" tab.

This completed quiz serves as an acknowledgement that, as students in the College of Education & Professional Studies, we are all on the same page about what constitutes plagiarism. It is also a reminder that, if at any time during your college career, you have questions regarding plagiarism and how to avoid it, you are aware that your professors and the reference librarians at the Houston Cole Library are here to provide you with assistance.

In this tutorial, you will learn:

Part I: What is plagiarism? What is meant by "intellectual property," and why "academic integrity" is so important.

Part II: How to recognize different types of plagiarism and what is meant by intentional vs. unintentional plagiarism.

Part III. Tips for avoiding plagiarism.

Part IV: The College of Education & Professional Studies' Honesty Policy policy.