Avoiding Plagiarism: Finding Credible Sources and Paraphrasing Information

Overview of Discussion

Discussion Overview Plagiarism is often thought of only in the context of academic institutions, but there are many reported situations outside of the classroom where individuals use ideas from other people without giving proper credit. While in school, the consequences may be reflected in a student's grade. Outside of school, the consequences may tarnish a professional's reputation and potentially bring legal action. This week's reading and learning activities included resources to help you avoid plagiarism, and this discussion will give you an opportunity to practice those skills. For another helpful overview of plagiarism, review the TED Talks Punishable Perils of Plagiarism. For this week's discussion, you will find a credible source that either presents a rival perspective to your argument for change or will help you address a rival hypothesis that you identified in the Unit 4 Assignment. Then, you will share a key passage from the source that is relevant to the rival hypothesis and paraphrase that information using a signal phrase and in-text citation. Respond to the following prompts in at least two well-developed paragraphs (not including the copied-and-pasted material from your secondary source): Identify the rival hypothesis you need to address in your essay. Describe the rival source you found and why you selected that source. What makes this a credible source? Copy and paste a 1–5 sentence passage from the source and label it as the "Original Passage." Paraphrase the short passage you shared in a way that you might use the idea in your essay (for example, refute the rival hypothesis). Be sure to use in-text citations with any sentences paraphrasing ideas from the source, e.g., (Doe, 2013) or According to Jane Doe (2013). Remember from your reading that an effective paraphrase sets up the information and explains it in a way that connects it to your argument (Krause, 2007). Ask an open-ended question related to how you can effectively address the disagreement in your argument or related to paraphrasing and using sources. At the end of your post, provide a complete Reference page citation in APA style for the source. NOTE: You can begin working on a references page for your upcoming assignments by tracking the key elements of each source: Author's name Publication date Title of source Publication information URL Academic Writer can help you identify the type of source you have and create a properly formatted citation in APA style. REFERENCE THE READING: Refer to and credit the unit reading concepts to help validate your ideas and give you practice with using and crediting source information. When you refer to concepts from the unit's reading, be sure to use a signal phrase like "According to . . . [name of reading]." If you are directly quoting the Reading or another source, be sure to use quotation marks and cite the source using proper APA in-text citations and full references. See the Purdue Global Writing Center's Using Sources for resources on APA citation formatting. WRITING EXPECTATIONS: All discussion posts and responses to peers should be written in complete sentences using Standard English. Before posting, proofread for grammar, spelling, and word-choice issues. Be sure to respond fully to every aspect of the discussion.