Plagiarism Policy

POLICY ON PLAGIARISM

(As per HEC Guidelines)

 

1.                   Preamble

 

 

In the wake of fundamental improvements being introduced in the system of Higher Education in Pakistan, the credit, respect, recognition of research and scholarly publications, career development and financial gains are now linked with such original works accomplished without replicating the efforts of other researchers. It has therefore become necessary that the menace of plagiarism is highlighted and curbed through exemplary punitive actions. On the other hand, we must also guard against bogus or false complaints in order to prevent victimization which may make researchers and scholars shy away from research simply because of the fear of prosecution. A Plagiarism Policy has therefore become necessary to create awareness, define various forms in which Plagiarism exhibits itself, present a methodology of investigation, cater for punitive action proportional to the extent of the offence and even address the issue of false or spurious complaints.

 

2.                   Definition

According to the Concise Oxford Dictionary, Plagiarism is defined as "taking and using the thoughts, writings, and inventions of another person as one's own". This, or various similar definitions found in recognized publications / documents, are very broad and can be used to create awareness about Plagiarism but are not practical enough to apply in order to ascertain guilt or innocence in specific cases. In order to establish the violation of ethical norms, or academic or intellectual dishonesty resulting from Plagiarism and to take punitive actions in this regard, it is necessary that the variety of forms in which Plagiarism manifests itself are known. These include but are not limited to the following:

  • “Verbatim copying, near-verbatim copying, or purposely paraphrasing portions of another author's paper or unpublished report without citing the exact
  • Copying elements of another author's paper, such as equations or illustrations that are not common knowledge or copying or purposely paraphrasing sentences without citing the
  • Verbatim copying portions of another author's paper or from reports by citing but not clearly differentiating what text has been copied (e.g. not applying quotation marks correctly) and /or not citing the source correctly”
  • "The unacknowledged use of computer programs, mathematical / computer models / algorithms, computer software in all forms, macros, spreadsheets, web pages, databases, mathematical deviations and calculations, designs / models / displays of any sort, diagrams, graphs, tables, drawings, works of art of any sort, fine art pieces or artifacts, digital images, computer-aided design drawings, GIS files, photographs, maps, music / composition of any sort, posters, presentations and "
  • "Self-plagiarism, that is, the verbatim or near-verbatim re-use of significant portions of one's own copyrighted work without citing the original "

 

  1. Explanation from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia on the web describes and explains Plagiarism as "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. Unlike cases of forgery, in which the authenticity of the writing, document, or some other kind of object itself is in question, plagiarism is concerned with the issue of false

 

Within academia, plagiarism by students, professors, or researchers is considered academic dishonesty or academic fraud and offenders are subject to academic censure. In journalism, plagiarism is considered a breach of journalistic ethics, and reporters caught plagiarizing typically face disciplinary measures ranging from suspension to termination. While plagiarism in scholarship and journalism has a centuries-old history, the development of the Internet, where articles appear as electronic text, has made the physical act of copying the work of others much easier. Plagiarism is different from copyright infringement. While both terms may apply to a particular act, they emphasize different aspects of the transgression. Copyright infringement is a violation of the rights of the copyright holder, which involves the loss of income and artistic control of the material when it is used without the copyright holder's consent. On the other hand, plagiarism is concerned with the unearned increment to the plagiarizing author's reputation. In the academic world, plagiarism by students is a very serious academic offense which can result in punishments such as a failing grade on the particular assignment (typically at the high school level), or a failing grade for the course (typically at the college or university level). For cases of repeated plagiarism, or for cases where a student has Committed a severe type of plagiarism (e.g. copying an entire article and submitting it as his / her own work), a student may be suspended or expelled, and any academic degrees or awards may be revoked. For professors and researchers, who are required to act as role models for their students, plagiarism is a very serious offence, and is punishable by sanctions ranging from suspension to termination, along with the loss of credibility and integrity. Charges of plagiarism against students, faculty members and staff are typically heard by internal disciplinary committees, which students and faculty members have agreed to be bound by." Wikipedia also describes Self-plagiarism as "the re-use of significant, identical, or nearly identical portions of one‟s own work without acknowledging that one is doing so or without citing the original work. Typically, high public-interest texts are not a subject of self-plagiarism; however, the authors should not violate copyright where applicable. "Public-interest texts" include such material as social, professional, and cultural opinions usually published in newspapers and magazines."

 

  1. Aim: The aim of this policy is to apprise students, teachers, researchers and staffabout Plagiarism and how it can be avoided. It is also aimed at discouraging Plagiarism by regulating and authorizing punitive actions against those found guilty of the act of

 

  1. Applicability: The policy is applicable to students, teachers, researchers and staff of all institutions and organizations in Pakistan who are involved in writing or publishing their work. In this context a "Student" is a person who, on the date of submission of his / her paper / work is a registered student of any University or Degree Awarding Institution recognized by Higher Education Commission (HEC). Teachers and Researchers" include faculty members or equivalent of the University / Organization or/of a constituent or affiliated college or researchers of an organization and such other persons as may be declared to be so by regulations. “Staff” is any employee of an organization involved in writing and publishing his / her

Any person listing his CV on the website or any current publication or applying for any benefit on the basis of published or presented work that is plagiarized will be liable to be punished as per prescribed rules.

 

  1. Responsibility of the Institutions & Organizations: All institutions and organizations are responsible to apprise their students, teachers, researchers and staff of the definition,

 

implications and resulting punishments in case, after due investigation, they are found guilty of plagiarism. The institutions / organizations must acquaint their students, teachers, researchers and staff with this policy and ensure that they are fully aware that all authors are deemed to be individually and collectively responsible for the contents of papers published by Journals / Publishers etc. Hence, it is the responsibility of each author, including the coauthors, to ensure that papers submitted for publication should attain the highest ethical standards with respect to plagiarism. To facilitate the institutions / organizations in creating awareness about Plagiarism, a modified version of "Little Book of Plagiarism", a publication of Leeds Metropolitan University is appended as "Annexure" to this policy. Any University or Degree Awarding Institution which does not adopt and implement this policy will have its degree derecognized by HEC.

 

  1. Reporting: To inform HEC or respective Universities / Organizations of alleged plagiarism, a complaint is to be made by email, post, fax or other means to HEC Quality Assurance Division or respective Universities / Organizations. In case of lodging a complaint in the form of a letter, copy may be sent to HEC. The following information is to be provided:
  2. “Citation of the original paper or document or idea which was plagiarized, (paper title, author(s), publication title, month and year of publication if available and the journal, in which published, with details). If the original paper is unpublished (e.g. an institutional technical report, an on-line paper), the complainant is to provide as much information as possible to ensure authenticity of the
  3. The citation of the alleged plagiarizing paper (paper title, author(s), publication title, month and year of publication if available and the journal with details in which published). If the paper is unpublished (e.g. an institutional technical report, an on- line paper), the complainant is to provide as much information as possible to ensure proper
  4. Copies of both papers if
  5. Any other information that would help HEC or respective Universities / Organizations to efficiently resolve the ”
  6. Name, designation, organization, address, e-mail address and telephone number of the complainant.

 

  1. Investigation: Upon receipt of an allegation of Plagiarism, the HEC Quality Assurance Division will request the respective Vice Chancellor / Rector / Head of the Organization to carry out investigation. The complaints received through HEC or directly by a University / Organization will be dealt with by the Universities / Organizations according to the procedures given below. The Vice Chancellor / Rector / Head of the Organization will have the discretion of not taking any action on anonymous complaints. For investigation of Plagiarism cases, the Vice Chancellor / Rector / Head of Organization will have an obligation to:
  2. Constitute a “Plagiarism Standing Committee” consisting of 3 senior faculty members, a subject specialist in that particular field is to be coopted, a senior student (only if a student is being investigated upon) and a nominee of the HEC.The seniority of the members of “Plagiarism Standing Committee” should be of a level keeping in view the seniority of the individual being investigated upon and the nature and gravity of the
  3. Provide a guideline, prepared by HEC for the functioning of the "Plagiarism Standing Committee", to all members of the

 

  1. Provide clear terms of reference to the “Plagiarism Standing Committee” for their investigation.
  2. The members of the “Plagiarism Standing Committee” are to sign a confidentiality statement that during the investigation they will, under no circumstances, disclose any individual author's name, paper titles, referees, or any other personal or specific information concerning the plagiarism complaint under  investigation, nor  shall   they reveal the names of the committee
  3. Provide opportunity to the author / authors under investigation to justify the originality of their concepts and research work. Similar opportunity will also be provided to the author whose paper is deemed to have been Plagiarized and / or the complainant, to justify the
  4. Provide every opportunity to the “Plagiarism Standing Committee” to use all foreseeable means to investigate the plagiarism

 

  1. The Plagiarism Standing Committee shall then conduct the investigation. Depending on the details of the claim, the investigation may include, but may not be limited to, any or all of the following steps:
  2. Manual and / or automated tests for content
  3. Determination of the extent and quantum of significant material
  4. Soliciting comments to the claim, from the Editor-in-Chief (of a journal) or Program Chair (of conference proceedings) and referees of either or both
  5. Consultation with legal
  6. Consult / contact witnesses and record statements there-of if so
  7. Consult / contact present and / or past employers of the

 

  1. The “Plagiarism Standing Committee” will submit its report with clear cut findings and recommendations to the Vice Chancellor / Rector / Head of the Organization within a specified period not exceeding sixty days. The Vice Chancellor / Rector / Head of the Organization will have the discretion to implement the recommendations after approval through the statutory process and take punitive action against the offender as per penalties prescribed under this policy or to forward the report to HEC or his / her parent organization for further action if outside their purview /

Penalties for Plagiarism

 

  1. Plagiarism is an intellectual crime. As such the penalties for plagiarism should not only take into account the severity and recurrence of the offence, but also the intellectual standing of the offender. This entails a gradual increase in punitive action with minimum punishment for a first time offence by a student who copies a home work assignment to a maximum punishment for a teacher/researcher/staff who attempts to present / publish, or actually presents / publishes plagiarized material; as his own, in a conference /

Therefore, the punishments for Plagiarism have been divided into two separate categories, i.e those for "Teachers, Researchers and Staff" and those for the "Students". The groups have already been defined in para 5 above.

  1. Penalties for Teachers, Researchers and Staff: When an act of plagiarism, as described earlier in paras 2 and 3, is found to have occurred, the "Plagiarism Standing Committee" in its recommendations, DEPENDING UPON THE SERIOUSNESS OF

 

THE PROVEN OFFENCE, will advise the Competent Authority of the Organization, to take any one or a combination of the following disciplinary action(s) against the teacher, researcher and / or staff found guilty of the offence:

(1)    Major Penalty:

In cases where most of the paper (or key results) have been exactly copied from any published work of other people without giving the reference to the original work, then (a) a major penalty of dismissal from service needs to be prescribed, along with (b) the offender may be “Black Listed” and may NOT be eligible for employment in any academic / research organization, and (c) the notification of “Black Listing” of the author(s) may be published in the print media or may be publicized on different websites at the discretion of the Vice-Chancellor / Rector / Head of the organization.

(2)    Moderate Penalty:

In case where some paragraphs including some key results have been copied without citation, then a moderate penalty involving any one or both of the following needs to be imposed

  • demotion to the next lower grade,
  • the notification of “Black Listing” of the author(s) which may be published in the print media or may be publicized on different websites at the discretion of the Vice- Chancellor / Rector / Head of the

(3)    Minor Penalty:

In case a few paragraphs have been copied from an external source without giving reference of that work, then minor penalties need to be prescribed for a specified period involving any one or more of the following:

  • warning
  • freezing of all research grant,
  • the promotions/annual increments of the offender may be stopped, for a specified period
  • HEC or the University / Organization may debar the offender from sponsorship of research funding, travel grant, supervision of Ph.D. students, scholarship, fellowship or any other funded program for a period as deemed appropriate by the “Plagiarism Standing Committee”.
  1. Students: When an act of plagiarism, as described earlier in paras 2 and 3, is found to have occurred, the "Plagiarism Standing Committee" in its recommendations, DEPENDING UPON THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE PROVEN OFFENCE, will advise the Vice Chancellor / Head of the Organization, to take any one or a combination of the following disciplinary action(s) against the student(s) found guilty of the offence:
    • In the case of thesis the responsibility of plagiarism will be of the student and not of the supervisor or members of the Supervisory
    • The offender may be expelled/ rusticated from the University and from joining any institution of Higher Education in Pakistan for a period as deemed appropriate by the "Plagiarism Standing Committee”. A notice may be circulated among all academic institutions and research organization to this
    • The offender may be relegated to a lower
    • The offender may be given a failure grade in the

 

  • The offender may be fined an amount as deemed
  • The offender may be given a written warning if the offence is minor and is committed for the first
  • The degree of a student may be withdrawn if AT ANY TIME it isproven that he or she has presented Plagiarized work in his / her MS, MPhil or PhD dissertation if the extent of plagiarism comes under the category of major penalty as conveyed in Para 11(a-1).
  • The notification of the plagiarism by the author(s) may be published in the print media or may be publicized on different websites at the discretion of the Vice Chancellor / Rector / Head of the
  • HEC or the University / Organization may debar the offender from sponsorship of research funding, travel grant, scholarship, fellowship or any other funded program for a period as deemed appropriate by the "Plagiarism Standing Committee".
  • Any other penalty deemed fit by the “Plagiarism Standing Committee”.

c.      Co-Authors/Declarations:

  • Provided that a co-author has listed a paper in his/her resume and applied for a benefit forthwith, any co-author is deemed to be equally responsible for any plagiarism committed in a published paper presented to or published in a journal or presented at a
  • All Journals in Pakistan must require ALL authors to sign a declaration that the material presented in the creative work is not plagiarized (Sample Attached)

 

12.               Additional Actions Required

In addition to the above punishments, the following additional common actions must be taken if the offence of Plagiarism is established:

  1. If the plagiarized paper is accessible on the web page its access will be removed. The paper itself will be kept in the database for future research or legal
  2. The author(c) will be asked to write a formal letter of apology to the authors of the Original paper that was plagiarized, including an admission of plagiarism. Should the author(s) refuse to comply then additional punishments as deemed fit may be recommended by the "Plagiarism Standing
  3. If the paper is submitted but not published yet, the paper will be rejected by the Editor-in-Chief or the Program Chair without further revisions and without any further plagiarism investigation conducted. However, Warning may be issued to the author/ co-author.

 

  1. Appeal: As the penalties are severe, the affected person(s) will have the right to appeal to the Chairman HEC / Vice Chancellor / Rector / Head of the Organization for a review of the findings or may submit a mercy petition within 30 days from the date of notification. Such appeals / petitions will be disposed off within 60 days of receipt, by following the laid down procedures regarding such

 

  1. Penalty for Wrong Reporting / False Allegation: If the case of Plagiarism is not proved and it is confirmed that a false allegation was lodged, the Vice Chancellor / Rector / Head of the

 

Organization will inform the complainant‟s Organization and will recommend disciplinary action against the complainant, to be taken by his / her parent organization.

 

References

 

(Sample)

HIGHER EDUCATION COMMISSION OF PAKISTAN

(Monograph & Textbook Writing Scheme) Monograph / Textbook Proposal Submission Undertaking

 

Corresponding Author(s) name:                                                                         Corresponding Author(s) Address:                                                                                                    Title of Work:                                                                                                

The Higher Education Commission (Publisher) and the Monograph/Textbook Proposal Author (Authors if a multi authored Work) agree as the following:

  1. The Monograph/Book will contain the original Work of author(s).
  2. It will not violate copyright or intellectual property right of any person or
  3. It will not contain previously published material in whole or in part for which permission from the concerned parties has not been
  4. The author(s) recognize that if any material submitted for consideration to the HEC is found to be plagiarized, then the HEC may bar the author(s) from participating in all HEC Programs and public notice to the fact may be issued in print as well as electronic media. The HEC reserves the right to recover all amounts spent on evaluation/publication etc., and also may take any other action deemed necessary to serve as deterrence against
  5. The author(s) shall indemnify and hold the Publisher harmless against loss or expenses arising from breach of any such
  6. In consideration of the HEC‟s agreement to publish the Work, the author(s) hereby grants HEC a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to print, publish, reproduce or distribute the Work throughout the world by all means of expression, including electronic format. The author(s) further grants HEC the right to use the author‟s name in association with the Work in published form and in promotional
  7. The copyrights are duly reserved by Higher Education Commission of

All authors are requested to sign this form. If not signed by all authors, the corresponding author acknowledges thats/he is signing on behalf of all the authors and with their authorization. Faxed signatures and multiple forms are acceptable provided the corresponding author collates all the material and submits in one batch.

 

Author Signature:                            Name:                              Date:                             

 

Author Signature:                            Name:                              Date:                             

 

Publisher Signature:                        Name:                              Date:                             

 

Annex I

 

 

The little book of Plagiarism-Leeds Metropolitan University, UK

 

This short booklet is designed to help students of National Defence University, Pakistan to understand what plagiarism is and how to avoid it.

 

Benefits for student

  • Learn how to include proper citations in order to avoid the appearance of plagiarism
  • Improve project planning to avoid the temptation of overt plagiarism

 

THE LITTLE BOOK OF PLAGIARISM:

What it is and how to avoid it

 

What is Plagiarism?

Everyone knows that plagiarism is something to be avoided, but not everyone is sure precisely what it is. This short booklet is designed to help students to understand more fully what plagiarism is, and equally important, how to avoid it.

Plagiarism is a specific form of cheating which is almost wholly found in respect of course assignments completed by students independently.

The University has a definition of plagiarism:

The substantial, unacknowledged incorporation into a student‟s work of material derived from the work (published or unpublished) of another. “Work” includes internet sources.

Examples of plagiarism include, but are not limited to:

  1. Using published work without referencing(the most common)
  2. copying coursework essays
  3. collaborating with any other person when the work is supposed to be individual
  4. taking another person‟s computer file/program
  5. submitting another person‟s work as one‟s own
  6. the use of unacknowledged material published on the web
  7. purchase of model assignments from whatever sources
  8. copying another student‟s results
  9. falsifying result

 

The University has a definition of plagiarism:

Chambers Dictionary defines a plagiarist as a kind of thief – “one who steals the thoughts or writings of others and gives them out as his [sic] own”. When this is also used for gain – in the University to gain credits for a module or modules – then an additional dimension of dishonesty is added.

As the examples above show, plagiarism can take many forms. There are grey areas e.g. when is discussion with fellow students good practice and when does it become collusion? There are also degrees of plagiarism, from, for example, copying the whole of the assignment, to copying only part of it; or paraphrasing much of a source rather than copying the actual words used.

 

The key element of a submitted assignment is that (unless it is assessed as a group project) it should be your own work entirely. How can you tell? Try testing yourself against this declaration signed by students when they submit their assignments.

"I certify that this is my own work. The work has not, in whole or in part, been presented elsewhere for assessment. Where material has been used from other sources it has been properly acknowledged. If this statement is untrue I acknowledge that I will have committed an assessment offence.”

 

The rest of this short booklet gives you more information on plagiarism and how to avoid it.

 

Why Shouldn’t I plagiarize?

There are many reasons why students plagiarize, for example:

  • not being fully aware of what plagiarism is
  • short-term panic response when an assignment is due and time is short
  • feeling a desperate need not to be seen as a failure and so copying to try to ensure “success”
  • different academic traditions.

Sometime ,of course plagiarism is determined and deliberate attempt to gain the credits for the course without doing the work

 

Whatever the reason, though, plagiarism is nevertheless cheating. It is not only cheating the University but, probably more importantly for your fellow students, it is cheating them. But there are more reasons that the negative ones (cheating others, unfairness, and possibly discovery and disciplinary action) for not plagiarising. Essentially, plagiarism is also cheating yourself and letting yourself down.

The Students Union at Leeds Met is whole-heartedly against the practice of plagiarism. It is well aware of the injustice of some students sitting up all night, possibly after working during the day, to complete an assignment; while others decide simply to try to download the answers from the internet. One makes a massive effort; the other makes no effort at all.

 

Positive Reasons for Not Plagiarizing

Pride in Your Work

Students should be able to take pride in their work and in the achievements they have attained. There is considerable satisfaction in knowing that the work you have submitted is your own, and the marks obtained reflect your own effort. There can be little real satisfaction in knowing that your mark (however good) was because you were a good cheat, rather than a good student.

 

Real Level of Attainment

It is possible that someone might plagiarize widely and not be discovered throughout their University career. But they will not really have learned anything. The discovery that their apparent attainment does not match their real abilities will then become apparent when they find a job. In the end this could lead to dismissal and the termination of a career.

 

UK Academic Traditions

It is important to recognize that plagiarism as described here is what is understood in UK Academic Institutions. Rules which may apply anywhere else are simply not relevant here. So, it is not valid to offer as a reason for plagiarism traditions which may operate elsewhere. Check the details of the next section to ensure that you are fully aware of what constitutes plagiarism in the UK so that you don‟t end up unwittingly being found to have plagiarized and therefore unable to be awarded any credits for your module or modules. If in doubt – ask your tutor before you submit the assignment!

 

Plagiarism in Practice – what is it?

Plagiarism takes many forms. Some of the more common are identified here.

  1. Copying from a single source

 

This is where the student uses one of the following as the basis for the whole or a substantial part of the assignment

  • a published book
  • a published article
  • the internet
  • an essay from an essay bank
  • a piece of work previously submitted by another student for the same or a similar assignment
    • copying from a text which is about to be submitted for the same assignment (see also Collusion below)

 

Note that this list is comprised of both published and unpublished sources. The first three are published, the second three are not. Plagiarism therefore is not copying from published sources only. It can also arise from the copying of unpublished sources like essays.

Where substantial copying takes place the words, arrangement of material and ideas are those of the source, not the student, and the work rarely answers the questions set. Where plagiarism is of this nature and extent it is very difficult to see how it could have been accidental, (especially if the text were derived from an essay bank or previous submission) and therefore it is viewed very seriously indeed. This kind of plagiarism is also increasingly detectable with modern software.

 

  1. Copying from several sources

This is similar to the above, except that more than one source is used. A student obtains (say) 4 sources of information, and copies a sentence or group of sentences from A, then one from B, one from C and one from D and so on.

This is an example of plagiarism where a student might genuinely have thought that they were not doing anything wrong. The sources used might well have been cited in the bibliography, the essay might answer the question set, the organisation of the material may well be the student‟s own. However, this is still plagiarism.

Why? The reason is that although the structure and composition is the student‟s own work, the words are not. Rules of academic presentation require that whenever a direct quote from a source is used, this should be cited.

In this type of plagiarism no quotations are given in the text and thus the work is being dishonest about who actually wrote what. Further, the student‟s only contribution is cutting and pasting, which is not what the assignment was designed to assess, and there is no demonstration by the student concerned of the required skills of analysis, interpretation, judgment or opinion.

Unacceptable Excuses

  1. “The sources in question put it better than I could.” No –you are expected to use the sources constructively and demonstrate that you have understood them and been able to use them effectively in the
  2. “I did use several sources and cited ” No – you did not use several

 

sources, you copied from them, and did not use inverted commas to show that it was their words and not yours.

 

  1. Paraphrasing

This is putting someone else‟s views into your own words, and this is one of the grey areas in plagiarism. To a certain extent any essay or assignment which relies on reading a series of texts as the basis of assignments will contain a significant amount of paraphrasing. There are two key things to remember in this case to ensure that it cannot be thought to be plagiarism:

  • Do not use only one source
  • Acknowledge all sources used
  • Take care when taking

 

  1. Collusion

This can occur when students work together, and it is very important to distinguish when this is required, and when it has to end.

Some assignments require students to work together as part of a group project. Where the group as a whole gets the mark then it is joint work throughout and the group co-operation is part of what is being assessed.

Some group projects, though, require students to work together at the planning stage, but then to submit individual assignments. Here the co-operation has to end at the point where you begin to compile your own individual submission, which must be your own work from this stage onwards.

A grey area is when students discuss their work together. A line needs to be drawn between legitimate discussions of the current assignment with student colleagues, especially where you share a house, and collusion. Where students share a house they

The important thing to remember is that (except on group projects where the group as a whole gets the mark) whilst general discussion of the issues involved, or approaches to be taken, is acceptable, the final submission must be your own individual effort. Discussion before the assignment is undertaken is one thing, discussion, correction and improvement during it is quite another and might lead to the suspicion of copying.

Also, remember that if you allow a fellow student to copy your work you will be considered as guilty of collusion as the actual copyist, and will be subject to the same penalties under the University Regulations.

 

 

Refuse of Programming code

In industry reuse of code is to be encouraged and both Web sites and books will provide numerous examples of code BUT you should realize that part of the purpose of doing a programming coursework is for you to develop your own skills. If most of your code comes from other sources then you will not be awarded a very high mark and also you will have learn very little.

It however you choose to make use of other people‟s code then in order to avoid an accusation of plagiarism, you must annotate your listing identifying the lines of code which are not your own. You must clearly state their source e.g. name of author, page in the book that you have taken the code from, web page address. Failing to reference work taken from the other sources is a plagiarism offence and will be dealt with as such.

Note that you will be awarded more marks for the code you write yourself, then the code you use from others. Obviously if you copy the entire program form someone else(and reference the work)you will be awarded zero as you have not made a contribution to your coursework  solution.

 

Use of Multimedia

It is your responsibility to credit all such material appropriately. You should be aware that copyright material must not be published (for example on a website)unless you have permission from the owner of the copyright.

 

Plagiarism – how do I avoid it?

The following good practice guidelines will help you to avoid plagiarism.

 

  1. Use of Quotations

Remember that if you use the exact words in your source these should appear in quotation marks and be referenced by the book or article and the page on which the quote appears. Never use direct quotation from any source unless quotation marks are used and full references are given.

Try to use quotations sparingly. Use them only when the author has expressed something so well and so succinctly that you feel that the words cannot be bettered. If you do this you will probably reduce the number of your quotations and be aware of when you are quoting.

 

  1. Making Notes

 

During note taking it is possible subconsciously to use the language of your source. Try to be aware of this when you are making notes. To avoid it, try not to make notes as you read, but read first, consider what the author has said, and then make notes. If you do this you will copy less of the text.

 

  1. Paraphrasing

Remember here to attribute the broad ideas or content to the author in question. You will probably carry over some of their language, but as long as you are making it clear which sources you are using, and not attempting to pass it off as your own work then this should not arouse suspicion of plagiarism.

The more sources you look at, the less likely it is that you will seem to be repeating without acknowledgement the content of one of them. And if you take care when you are taking notes (see above) you will also reduce the chance of unacknowledged paraphrasing

 

  1. Cite all sources used

You should cite all the sources you have used. Always cite any web sources used. If they have contributed to the completion of your assignment they are required to be listed just as much as printed books or articles.

If you only cite some, and the lecturer recognizes an extract from another source which has not been included in the bibliography, then you can expect that he or she will look very closely at the assignment in question.

Absence of source citation can very easily be seen as an attempt to prevent the lecturer possibly comparing your assignment text with that of the actual text used to check for the degree of similarity. If there is considerable similarity (either direct copying or paraphrasing) and you have not cited the work in question, then you might have some difficulty in convincing your lecturer that this was not done to try to conceal the plagiarism which has been identified.

Also, it is not good practice to pad out a bibliography with lots of titles which you have not read. Try to keep to those which you have actually consulted. A short list of well-used sources is much better than a long list of sources which you have never looked at.

 

How do I know when to include a reference in my work?

When you are writing an essay or completing a similar kind of assignment it is not always necessary to include a reference to everything you say. If that were so, your work would be more references than substance. When you give a reference is partly a matter of judgment, and conventions will vary from one discipline to another.

This example from an English history assignment gives a good indication of when you would and would not give a source reference. The sentence “The Battle of Hastings was fought in the south of England in 1066” would not need references to where you obtained the information, because it is very well known and is not contentious.

However, if you then wish to discuss the various opinions of historians on the conduct and outcome of that battle, then you should reference the source e.g. „Spring considers that the Norman tactics were misguided but ultimately successful (Spring, 1998) while Summer has long argued that it was only the exhaustion of the Anglo-Saxon forces which permitted the Norman victory  (Summer,  1992).‟  You  might  then  continue;  „A  more  modern  view  has  recently  been expressed by Winter (2002) which regards both these

 

views as too simplistic and I want to consider her ideas in more detail here‟. Note here, the way that you have moved from simply stating what scholars might think about this battle, to how you are going to consider and deal with their views. In this part of the essay it will then be clear to what extent you have relied on the information and views in this particular source, and which views are your own.

 

 Your Lecturer‟s Views

It is a common assumption that your lecturer wants you to repeat his or her views in your assignment, especially if these have been published in a book or article. Try to remember that this is not the case. All lecturers want you to use the sources suggested in the reading list (including their own if relevant), but they want you to use them constructively to answer the question, or complete the assignment. They do not want you simply to repeat the views contained in their own works.

 

The Textbook

If a lecturer recommends a textbook, then obviously he or she wants you to read it. But, as above, they do not want you to copy it out when completing an assignment. Once again, the idea is to use the information constructively. You want to show that you have understood the issues and concepts involved, but in order to show that you have understood them, there has to be clear input from you. This cannot be there if you simply copy out the text of the textbook, however good this is.

If it helps you to avoid doing this – remember that your lecturer will have read the textbook and will therefore be very likely to spot direct copying.

 

Collusion

To avoid suspicion of collusion you are advised to do the following:

  • have any discussions and sharing of ideas before you start completing the assignment
  • do not ask to look at anyone else‟s assignment and do not show yours to anyone else if they ask to see it
  • remember that if sequence, style and content are very similar between

two pieces of work it will lead the lecturer to wonder whether there has been collusion;

  • remember that there are now electronic devices available to test for linguistic similarity between two pieces of

 

Copying from the Web or purchasing essays

There is only one simple piece of advice here – do not do this. You may know some fellow student who has done so and “got away with it”. However, remember, that such a student may not have similar “success” next time, and that even if he or she has been successful in passing off work which is not their own, it does not mean that you will be. Students who have been found to have downloaded or purchased work will not only automatically fail that module or modules, but will also seriously risk their career in the University being terminated by being required to withdraw from their course.

 

Conclusions

 

Plagiarism – identification

In this booklet we have tried to identify how students may plagiarize without being fully aware that they are doing so. In doing so we have also given you some indications of how lecturers might recognize that the work is not your own.

 

Electronic Detection

There are now various and increasingly sophisticated electronic aids to assist lecturers who may be in doubt about the originality of work submitted. These include programmes which look at linguistic similarities and others which can identify when essays have been bought from websites.

Essentially however clever web-packages or essay purchase schemes may be, there will be software which is able to detect it – and in such a case it is hard to imagine any acceptable explanation.

 

Penalties

Regrettably, however, plagiarism does occur. The University does have penalties for students who plagiarize and it will use them. The relevant regulations and procedures will be used to investigate the suspicion of plagiarism and if plagiarism is held to have taken place, various penalties can be imposed, up to requiring a student to withdraw from the University.

 

Normal CMS Penalties for Plagiarism

Type of Offence                                                    Penalty

 

First minor offence e.g. unreferenced material, joint submission

Authors who let others have copies of their work

 

Coursework mark is set to Zero Coursework marks is set to Zero

 

Second offences will be referred to a panel           Referred   to   Assessment   Offences Panel-

student may be asked to leave the university

 

If more than one offence occurs at the same time

First major offence e.g. plagiarism bulk of project

 

All courses(not components)are set to Zereo

 

Referred   to   Assessment    Offence   Panel student may be asked to leave the university

 

 

We hope that this short booklet has assisted you both to identify what you should not do and helped you towards good practice which would avert the risk of plagiarism.

 

The Best Approach

The best approach is to ensure that you have not plagiarized in the first place. The advice contained in this booklet will help you to do this.

If you feel in doubt, look again at the declaration at the start of the booklet. If you think you have not quite met the requirements of this kind of declaration – look at your work again before you submit it, and make sure that it is wholly your own work. If you still feel in doubt – ask your tutor before you submit the assignment.

 

If you follow this advice should be able to avoid any risk of the work being thought of as plagiarized and you will be able to take pride in achievements which have been produced by your effort alone.

Various detection programmes will be in use in the University from 2003, and on some modules all assignments will be automatically checked against one or more of these programmes.

 

Glossary

Here are some key terms, which are explained in Quote, Unquote .

Citing               Formally recognising in your text the source or sources from which you obtained the information. An example has already been given in this booklet on p. 7:

„Spring considers that the Norman tactics were misguided but ultimately successful (Spring, 1998) while Summer has long argued that it was only the exhaustion of the Anglo-Saxon forces which permitted the Norman victory (Summer, 1992).‟

Citation           This is the act of quoting. It means the passage or words which you have directly taken from a source and reproduced in your text. The source of the quote should always be given with it.

Bibliography This is literally a list of books, but it now means a list of all the sources which you have used in completing the assignment, including electronic sources. Quote, Unquote gives examples of h