Plagiarism is a very important topic when it comes to writing. While quoting and using the ideas of other authors and researchers is supported and even expected, using them without credit to the original author is unacceptable. Most simply plagairism is presenting the work of another as your own. That means using their words, ideas, research findings or conclusions, etc. However, the chances are that you are still at least slightly confused as to what it is and how to avoid it.
The following activity is designed to help you to answer those questions. Ideally you will come away from this assignment with all of the knowledge you could ever need on plagiarism, but truthfully you will gain a better understanding and the knowlege of how to find your answers. Right now minimize this page and open a Word document (the return for further instructions). This will be where you will create the notes from what you find in this scavenger hunt. Remember that you must use at least five sources and they must be cited in your notes. Try your best to cite them correctly and create a works cited page. You are still new at this and mistakes are inevitable, but doing your best here will not only help you to better learn the process, but it will give your instructor a better idea of how to help you. As you move through this scavenger hunt continually return to and create your answers in the Word docuemnt you just opened.
There is no way that teachers, students, or authors, could ever memorize all of the rules of writing. The key is to know what questions to ask and how to find the answers. This scavenger hunt will help you discover what is available on the Internet and how to use it to your best interest when writing. Please follow all directions clearly and completely. The focus here should not be to just get it done, but to learn all that you can on the topic. This is information that can be invaluable in more advanced writing classes, including college.
First, go to your favorite search engine and type in the word "plagiarism". See how much there is out there on the topic and skim through some of it. You will probably find the information to be pretty consistent. That is because while this is a big issue it really is pretty clear-cut. Now it's time to learn more about it. Let's begin by finding a definition for each of the following terms: plagiarism, copyright, fair use, public domain, and common knowledge. Be sure that you do not plagiarize your answers. Type all of your answers in the same Word document in an organized fashion.
Created by Gayle Taylor
Last Updated August 8, 2007