Plagiarism Resources
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Definition: Plagiarism is the use of another person’s words, ideas, or facts as if they were your own, without giving credit to the original source.

Examples:
• You are plagiarizing when you use information from another source without including proper documentation (e.g. citations and a list of works cited or a bibliography).
• You are plagiarizing when you use more than three words in a sequence from someone else without giving credit to that source.
• You are plagiarizing when you turn in another student’s work as your own or allow someone else to copy your work; this work might include homework, tests, papers, or other assignments.
• You are plagiarizing when you copy materials from sources such as the Internet, books, or periodicals without introducing the material or using citations to show the beginning and end of the “borrowed” material.
(adapted from the OCTE pamphlet “What’s Plagiarism and How Can You Avoid It?”)

Guidelines for Avoiding Plagiarism:
• Indicate clearly when you use anything from another person’s work, even if only a phrase or a single key word, by using quotation marks.
• When summarizing or paraphrasing, distinguish clearly where the ideas of others end and your own comments begin.
• When using another person’s ideas, credit the author by name and identify the work in which you found the idea.
• Err on the side of caution by giving credit whenever you suspect you are using information, other than general knowledge, from a source.
• If you are unsure if you are plagiarizing, it is your responsibility to consult with your teacher regarding the work before the assignment is due.
(Adapted from Write for College, published by Write Source.)

If Plagiarism is Suspected:
• Students may be asked to defend or verify their work as their own in one of the following ways:
1. present notes, drafts, or works cited;
2. produce an on-demand work sample;
3. present an oral defense of work in question.

Penalties for Plagiarism:
If plagiarism is determined, one or more of the following penalties will result:
• You may receive a failing grade on the assignment/paper/test.
• You may be asked to resubmit the assignment/paper/test for partial credit at the discretion of the teacher.
• Parent(s)/guardian(s) will be contacted and informed of the occurrence of plagiarism and the resulting penalty.
• A Discipline Referral will be filed indicating the occurrence of plagiarism and the resulting penalty. Multiple referrals for plagiarism may result in a meeting between parent(s)/guardian(s) and teacher, counselor, and/or administrator.
• A second occurrence of plagiarism within a course may result in a failing grade for the quarter and/or semester.
• Plagiarism may be noted in a college recommendation.