ACADEMIC DISHONESTY POLICIES




CHEATING ON EXAMS: Students who cheat on exams in my classes will receive a grade of "0" for that exam. The incident will be immediately reported to Judicial Affairs as per University policy. (See Student Handbook for a description of the procedures followed by Judicial Affairs.)

PLAGIARISM: Plagiarism is taking others' ideas and using them as one's own. For some assignments in your class, you may be asked to work together in groups. However, unless otherwise specified, papers and all other assignments are expected to be your own original work. Cases of plagiarism will result in a grade of "0" for that assignment.

You, of course, will write papers in which you wish to use the ideas of others. When writing papers and using the works of others as your sources, you have two choices:

Quote your source. This option is rarely used in APA style. If you choose to use it, in general, you must put the author's words in quotation marks and cite the author, year of publication, and page number at the end of the quotation. (See handout on Writing in APA Style or the APA Manual for correct quoting of others.) My general rule about quotations are that you should not use them unless the passage is so beautifully written that it brings tears to your eyes.

Paraphrasing. This is the most misunderstood option. Paraphrasing involves putting an author's ideas into one's own words, and citing the source of the idea. (See exercise below for some practice in identifying correct paraphrasing.) When you are writing, if you are unclear about whether you have appropriately paraphrased, please ask me to look over what you have written. I will be happy to help.

CITING SECONDARY SOURCES: Primary sources are those that you consult directly and secondary sources are those that are cited in the sources which you consult, but which you have not read. Be sure to indicate, in accordance with APA style, if a reference source is a primary or a secondary source. The use of such secondary sources should be kept at a minimum. (See handout on Writing in APA Style or the APA Manual for correctly citing secondary sources.)

DRYLABBING: Drylabbing is the process of fabricating or distorting observational or research data. If drylabbing occurs, this results in a grade of "0" for the course.

Exercise for Paraphrasing Text

Let's assume that you are in the process of writing a paper. In researching material for the topic about which you are writing, you locate the following relevant paragraph in a published source by Coon (1990):
 

If you have ever had your astrological chart done, you may have been impressed
with its seeming accuracy. Careful reading shows many such charts to be made up
of mostly flattering traits. Naturally, when your personality is described in desirable
terms, it is hard to deny that the description has the "ring of truth."
It would be legitimate to include this portion of text in your paper by enclosing it in quotation marks and adding the author's last name, year of publication, and page number at the end in parentheses. Let's assume that you don't want to do that (a wise decision). Instead you want to include the information from the Coon paragraph in your paper, but paraphrased (put in your own words).You are considering the rewritten versions shown below. How different does the rewritten, paraphrased version have to be so as not to be classified as a case of plagiarism?

Examine each rewritten paragraph carefully, compare it with the original version above, and determine whether, in your view, the rewritten version constitutes a case of plagiarism, the paragraph has been appropriately paraphrased, or you cannot tell. In making your decisions, assume that a correct citation appears in the rewritten version and in the paper's reference section.

Naturally, when your personality is described in desirable terms, it is hard to deny that the description has the "ring of truth." If you have ever had your astrological chart done, you may have been impressed with its seeming accuracy. Careful reading shows many such charts to be made up of mostly flattering traits.

If you have ever had your astrological chart done, you may have been impressed by how accurate it seemed. A careful reading indicates many such charts to be made up of mainly flattering traits. Of course, when your personality is described in desirable terms, it is hard to deny that the description has the "ring of truth."

If you have ever had your astrological chart done, you were probably impressed by how accurate it seemed. A careful reading indicates many such charts to be made up of mainly flattering traits. Of course, it is hard to deny that the description has the "ring of truth," when your personality is described in desirable terms.

According to Coon, if you have ever had your astrological chart done, you were probably impressed by how accurate it seemed. A careful reading indicates many such charts to be made up of mainly flattering traits. Of course, it is hard to deny that the description has the "ring of truth" when your personality is described in desirable terms.

According to Coon, individuals who have had their astrological chart profiled may have been swayed by their apparent precision. If you study these charts, however, you realize that they are primarily composed of complimentary attributes. Obviously, as Coon notes, when one is described with positive, laudable traits, it is difficult to argue against such a flattering portrait of oneself.

Individuals who have had their astrological chart profiled may have been swayed by their apparent precision. If you study these charts, however, you realize that they are primarily composed of complimentary attributes. Obviously, when one is described with positive , laudable traits, it is difficult to argue against such a flattering of oneself.

(Paragraphs 5 and 6 are properly paraphrased. Paragraphs 1­4 are plagiarized.) As the exercise illustrates, appropriate paraphrasing requires that the paragraph be completely rewritten in your own words. Always keep these guidelines in mind when writing papers.

(This exercise was adapted with permission from M. Roig, 1998.)

After you have read the Academic Dishonesty Policies and participated in the attached exercise, please ask any questions that you may have. Then sign the statement below and return it to me.

I have read the Academic Dishonesty Policies statement for this course and completed the attached paraphrasing exercise. I understand the policies and how to paraphrase. If questions arise later, I will clarify them with my instructor.
 

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Student                                                                                             Date
 
 
 

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