Chapter 2

Academic Honesty, Plagiarism and Writing from Sources

Your writing in English 1101 and 1102 should always begin with a topic that is pertinent to the assignment. We expect that you will have an inquiring mind and can write about a given topic with voice and passion. Of course, in many cases, you will need to add outside support in order to emphasize your own inquiry; you will need to include research to support the points that you are making throughout the essay. However, it is critical when including outside sources that you inform your readers that the support that you have included comes from a different source rather than your own impressions. This chapter addresses some of the ways in which you can avoid plagiarism, as well as the consequences if plagiarism occurs.

Introduction to Academic Integrity

Mary R. Lamb

Most academic writing you’ll do in college is writing from sources. That is, you read, discuss, and write about a variety of sources—scholarly essays, lab reports, statistical reports, fiction, film, websites, and textbooks. In First-Year Writing courses, you’ll learn many skills that will help you read multiple sources and write about and with them effectively and responsibly in essays. These complex skills aren’t fully learned in one or even two semesters, but English 1101 and 1102 will offer you a basic understanding of these processes for you to build on as you progress through the upper division courses in your major.

Anytime you write from sources, however, you run the risk of plagiarizing. Indeed, plagiarism is a serious academic (and possibly disciplinary) violation. (See the Student Code of Conduct for further information). Plagiarism is a form of academic dishonesty in which you present another’s ideas as your own.

Why is the academic community so bothered by plagiarism? First, we are committed to educating individual students, and when you plagiarize, you thwart your own education and forego your responsibilities as a writer. Second, you violate the ethical, academic standards of the academic community. These standards include the value of research and informed argument, open and honest debate and sharing of ideas, critical thinking about evidence, the careful presentation of research, and acknowledgment of the sources of ideas. Plagiarism, then, erodes the core of our work within an academic community.

For these reasons, most instructors respond both emotionally and professionally to plagiarism. We may feel defrauded, duped, insulted, or cheated. In addition, we may feel disappointed that you are cheating yourself out of learning and refusing to authentically enter academic conversations about ideas. Indeed, we recognize that you will not succeed in the university unless you’re willing to learn how to read a range of materials and write about them effectively and ethically. At the same time, English instructors are language experts, so we know that these complex skills are not easy to learn and must be learned over and over again in various contexts.

Therefore, English 1101 and 1102 instructors will devote class time to teaching you how to incorporate others’ ideas honestly and effectively. Class instruction will include reading critically, annotating texts and taking notes, reading rhetorically for context and strategies, locating print and digital sources, understanding various library databases, evaluating sources, using sources in essays in various ways, citing an array of sources, practicing introducing sources in your essay, and documenting sources effectively. Your essays will also be submitted to Turnitin.com, an online plagiarism detection service, either through class registration or when you submit essays to the D2L Assignment Folder, and your instructor will explain how to use these services to improve your writing.

Upholding Academic Integrity

Thus, as part of the Clayton State University academic community, you are also responsible for upholding academic standards and policies (including, but not limited to, avoiding plagiarism). Indeed, all Clayton State students must follow the “Student Code of Conduct” section of the online Student Handbook. Please read this to understand academic honesty, and ask your professors if you have any questions.

You can also avoid plagiarism by recognizing that writing-from-sources takes time, preparation, and time-management. You can also avoid plagiarism by considering the following:

• Developing effective reading and note-taking skills.
• Beginning assignments early and working with writing consultants and instructors on drafts.
• Learning to evaluate sources effectively.
• Attending every class and completing the assignments so you learn how to document correctly.
• Reading and studying EasyWriter chapters on “Conducting Research,” “Evaluating Sources and Taking Notes,” and “Integrating Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism,” and “MLA Style.”
• Asking your instructor for help when you’re confused.

Expectations in Writing from Sources

Students who fail to cite and/or document ethically and effectively in English 1101 and 1102 essays will not receive satisfactory grades. Successful essays, though, include careful citing, accurate documentation, reasonable coherence, and effective synthesis of various sources.

Plagiarism Policy for First-Year Writing

Inaccurate Citation: Mechanics and Format

Students are expected to cite both written (print and electronic), oral, and visual sources consulted in essays and presentations. All borrowed ideas— both direct quotations and paraphrasing from another’s work—require accurate citation and direct quotations require quotation marks. Students should learn and use correct format for block quotes, quotations, and in- text parenthetical documentation. Source material should be introduced fully, and all borrowed ideas should be cited; Works Cited pages should be formatted correctly. Drafts of essays with inaccurate citation, mechanical citation problems, and/or minor Works Cited inaccuracies will require mandatory revisions; final essays with these problems will receive a letter grade deduction.

Insufficient Citation: Patchwriting and Derivative Essays

Students should fully introduce and cite borrowed material. Cutting and pasting passages from your source into your own essay without citation and turning in the essay as your own is plagiarism, as is directly quoting without using quotation marks. Undocumented paraphrasing is plagiarism: fully cite the source of your ideas. In addition, students are expected to paraphrase and summarize using their own stylistic features, not the source’s, to avoid patchwriting (also called stylistic plagiarism). If your summary is too close to the original in a draft, keep working to synthesize it fully. In addition, students are expected to develop their own framework for their essays rather than borrowing their source’s argument wholesale (even if acknowledged). Drafts with several examples of insufficient citation, essays that fail to develop original arguments, essays lacking a Works Cited page, or essays that exhibit patchwriting will earn a lowered grade and will require mandatory revision. Final essays will receive a 0 for the assignment for failure to meet the minimum requirements of essays in English 1101 or 1102, and students will face disciplinary action as per the CSU Office of Student Affairs and Community Standards.

False Submissions, Ghostwriting, or Fraud

Students are expected to write their own original essays for each assignment, from development of ideas and research to revision. Plagiarized essays include essays written by someone else (i.e. acquired or bought through the Internet, an organization, friends, family members, or another student); essays in which much of the material is cut-and-pasted from sources without correct documentation; and essays submitted by the student for another course/assignment. If such a essay is submitted for a rough draft, the student will receive a 0 for the draft and will be required to do a mandatory revision and/or new rough draft before submitting a final essay. If students turn in such essays as final essays, the student will receive an F for the course and face disciplinary action as per the CSU Office of Student Affairs and Community Standards.

Please note: Your essay submission, either face-to-face or online, is the version that counts, and you are responsible for making sure this is the correct version. Review your electronic and hard copies carefully.

If you have any doubt about whether or not you are plagiarizing, talk with your professor before submitting your essay.

Process for Handling Academic Misconduct

• If you believe another student has cheated (including plagiarism), inform your instructor immediately.
• If your instructor believes you have cheated (including plagiarism), the instructor will research the matter further, gather evidence, and contact you to discuss the issue.
• The instructor will meet with you to explain the penalty for plagiarizing. If both parties wish, this discussion may include either Dr. Parrott, Director of First-Year Writing, or Dr. Lamb, English Department Chair, who will act as a facilitator.
• During the meeting, the instructor will provide you with:
  • Specification of Charges Form
  • Students’ Rights and Responsibilities Form
  • Student Code of Conduct Chart
  • Evidence of your plagiarism
• If you agree to the charges and for the instructor to adjudicate the charge, you sign the form, “Academic Misconduct: Request for Instructor to Adjudicate.” The instructor completes the form, assigns the penalty, and submits copies of the form (along with the “Specification of Charges Form”) to you. The instructor then submits copies of all the forms, along with copies of the evidence, to the Office of Student Conduct, 250 University Center, and keeps a copy. Even if the instructor wishes to adjudicate, he or she will contact Student Affairs to see if this is the student’s first offense.
• If you do not agree to allow the instructor to adjudicate and/or if you deny the allegation and no agreement can be reached, then the instructor refers the case to the Office of Student Affairs/ Student Conduct, 250 University Center.
  

Academic Misconduct forms are available from Student Conduct and the First-Year Writing websites.