Preventing Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty Tutorial

Preventing Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty

Welcome to MTC Library's tutorial on preventing plagiarism.

In this guide, you will find information regarding:

• What plagiarism is
• How to recognize different kinds of plagiarism
• Several techniques for avoiding plagiarism
• The consequences of plagiarism
• How to avoid plagiarism by doing the following:
  • Citing sources correctly
  • Recognizing common knowledge
  • Writing good paraphrases
  • Writing good summaries
  • Taking careful notes

Introduction: Understanding and Avoiding Plagiarism

All writers use words and concepts from outside sources. For example, authors often repurpose plot designs read in another book. Research and academic writing is similar in that they often heavily utilize existing writing on the topic that they are researching.

The importance of citing the sources where words and ideas were borrowed from is a significant difference between academic writing and other genres of writing. No one demands a poet to cite the origin of his or her words and metaphors. However, in academic writing, it is imperative that the author unmistakably recognizes the source of words and concepts.