Plagiarism

1. Plagiarism What is it?

2. “J.K. Rowling accused of plagiarizing from 1987 children's wizard book” http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article7031718.ece February 18, 2010 in The Sunday Times

3. Harvard student plagiarizes novel:How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild and Got a Life Kaavya Viswanathan, the Harvard sophomore accused of plagiarizing parts of her recently published chick-lit novel, acknowledged yesterday that she had borrowed language from another writer's books, but called the copying "unintentional and unconscious." "Recently, I was very surprised and upset to learn that there are similarities between some passages in my novel, 'How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild and Got a Life,' and passages in these books," she said.

4. A recently-published novel by Harvard undergraduate Kaavya Viswanathan ’08, “How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild, and Got a Life,” contains several passages that are strikingly similar to two books by Megan F. McCafferty—the 2001 novel Sloppy Firstsand the 2003 novel Second Helpings. At one point, Opal Mehta contains a 14-word passage that appears verbatim in McCafferty’s book Sloppy Firsts. In that example, McCafferty writes on page 6 of her first novel: “Sabrina was the brainy Angel. Yet another example of how every girl had to be one or the other: Pretty or smart. Guess which one I got. You’ll see where it’s gotten me.” Viswanathan writes on page 39 of her novel: “Moneypenny was the brainy female character. Yet another example of how every girl had to be one or the other: smart or pretty. I had long resigned myself to category one, and as long as it got me to Harvard, I was happy. Except, it hadn’t gotten me to Harvard. Clearly, it was time to switch to category two.” The italics appear in the originals. - April 23, 2006 Tate Publishing Student’s Novel Faces Plagiarism ControversyBook by KaavyaViswanathan ’08 contains similarities to earlier author’s works

5. “Columbia University Valedictorian Plagiarizes Patton Oswalt” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=va-ZsysRPdI&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OqBMTMb3dE Brian Corman "It has come to our attention that a portion of our Valedictorian's remarks at this year's School of General Studies Class Day was taken from a comedy routine by Patton Oswalt. As an institution of higher learning that places a core value on respect for the works of others, we were surprised and disappointed to have learned of this matter today. Columbia University and the School of General Studies do not condone or permit the use of someone else's work without proper citation. The student speaker has appropriately issued an apology to his classmates and to Mr. Oswalt for failing to provide such attribution.“ May 25, 2010 on ABC new/technology and May 26, 2010 on You Tube

6. Author, 17, Says It’s ‘Mixing,’ Not Plagiarism Deef Pirmasens, the blogger who discovered the passages taken from “Strobo,” said that he could understand a few words or phrases seeping into the work through inspiration, but that he quickly noticed that there were too many for it to be a coincidence. “To take an entire page from an author, as Helene Hegemann admitted to doing, with only slight changes and without asking the author, I consider that illegitimate,” Mr. Pirmasens said. - February 11, 2010 in The New York Times

7. Based on these examples, write a definition for plagiarism.

8. How does your definition compare? pla·gia·rism 1. the unauthorized use or close imitation of the language and thoughts of another author and the representation of them as one's own original work. 2. something used and represented in this manner. - Dictionary.com

9. So how do you avoid plagiarizing??1. Learn how to summarize, paraphrase, and quote information that you want to use.2. Give credit (author’s name, website title, date) to the sources you use. 3. Recognize the value in developing your own ideas.

10. What is a summary? - It is written entirely in your own words and writing style. - It sums up the key ideas of the original passage with big broad ideas. - It is approximately ¼ the length of the original passage.

11. Here is an example: Original source: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/563/03/ -Taken from Purdue’s online website: OWL

12. Example summary: Roger Sipher makes his case for getting rid of compulsory-attendance laws in primary and secondary schools with six arguments. These fall into three groups—first that education is for those who want to learn and by including those that don't want to learn, everyone suffers. Second, that grades would be reflective of effort and elementary school teachers wouldn't feel compelled to pass failing students. Third, that schools would both save money and save face with the elimination of compulsory-attendance laws (Page #).

13. What is a paraphrase? Paraphrasing is much more difficult to do. It is written with your own words and in your own writing style. It is specific to the original passage in that it incorporates all the details and ideas. It is about ¾ the length of the original passage. You give credit (author’s name, website, etc.) to the original source.

14. Original passage:The twenties were the years when drinking was against the law, and the law was a bad joke because everyone knew of a local bar where liquor could be had. They were the years when organized crime ruled the cities, and the police seemed powerless to do anything against it. Classical music was forgotten while jazz spread throughout the land, and men like Bix Beiderbecke, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie became the heroes of the young. The flapper was born in the twenties, and with her bobbed hair and short skirts, she symbolized, perhaps more than anyone or anything else, America's break with the past. From Kathleen Yancey, English 102 Supplemental Guide (1989): 25.-Taken from Purdue’s online website: OWL

15. Acceptable paraphrase: During the twenties lawlessness and social nonconformity prevailed. In cities organized crime flourished without police interference, and in spite of nationwide prohibition of liquor sales, anyone who wished to buy a drink knew where to get one. Musicians like Louis Armstrong become favorites, particularly among young people, as many turned away from highly respectable classical music to jazz. One of the best examples of the anti-traditional trend was the proliferation of young "flappers," women who rebelled against custom by cutting off their hair and shortening their skirts (Yancey 25).

16. How do I quote properly? When using an authors EXACT words, make sure to put “ “ marks around the words AND give the author credit (his/her name, website, etc.)

17. Homework Read the following article and in a 7-8 sentences summarize the article: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/02/education/02cheat.html?_r=1