Avoid plagiarism!!! In the present world where all information is just a click away, sometimes it is quite tempting to simply copy and paste some parts of what is written on websites, magazines/newspaper articles, books, etc. However, give-in to this temptation, you may find yourself bogged down with plagiarism – the academic vice that can negatively affect your course, not to mention your career.
In the course of your study as a student, it is essential to ensure that you have the right manner of citing your source in writing to avoid this dreadful sin. Accordingly, Malcolm’s work is considered academic dishonesty in the academic context as it entails presenting work that one did not create in the first place. If you borrow a phrase, an idea, or concept directly from someone else then give it the same unique twist and pass it off as your brilliance, then you are cheating your reader. Plagiarism can have severe consequences for instance; a student may have to resubmit an assignment, be suspended, or be expelled from school. The academic community frowns on plagiarism particularly in colleges as it undermines both the etiquette of scholarly work and students’ education.
Now that we have discussed the importance of acknowledging sources and avoiding plagiarism how do you implement the ideas and words of other writers in your writing? It is hidden in the concept of quotation. Quoting is a primary tool in the writing process that enables a writer to borrow the words of others to support the assertion being made convincingly. The major issue here is finding a balance – using just the right amount of quotation to back up your arguments and opinions without drowning out the writer/narrator’s voice/interpretation.
Quoting is one of the simplest forms of research strategies, yet it is also one of the most common examples of research. The basic mechanics of quoting are simple. So, any time you wish to quote a certain phrase or a particular sentence in a source verbatim, you must use quotation marks (“”) around this part of the text. This informs the reader that it is not the writer’s personal understanding or explanation of the matter.
Additionally, adding a direct reference to the author in the form of quoted signal phrases, such as ‘Clarke argues,’ or ‘As Clarke points out,’ also serves to indicate the speaker unambiguously. Some of the important framers include: “According to the author”, “In the view of the researcher” and “The writers opine that”. Other general and useful framers include “As the author said,” “as the researcher puts it,” and “The experts explain that.”
However, you do not need to quote too often, the excess will only make the work obvious and contrived. Quoting should not be done excessively simply because it gives a feeling that the material is not original work but made of someone’s words intermixed with another’s opinion. The sweet spot here is somewhere in between – to quote a piece of evidence to support one’s claims, but to do that when necessary and then supplement the interpretation of the quotes with the author’s ideas and interpretations. This indicates that you have done a good job in analyzing the works and that you have not relied solely on superficial information.
While speaking to a high-profile reporter like Brian Williams, you sometimes quote someone else with a lot of influence: Quote: It Does Matter. It enables them you seek advice from scholars and researchers who spend most of their prime years researching and writing on a variety of subjects that you are writing about. Using their words and input also shows the audience that you have captured their meaning while at the same time, proving the effort you have put in coming up with a sound approach.
In other words, quoting is not simply matter of formal compliance with standards: it is rather a key element of the writer’s argument that helps to establish his or her authority as a specialist in the given field. How? The way you integrate your ideas with the quoted material, you form a more powerful synthesis, differentiating you from mouths that would spew out what they did not write or research.
The next time you are out researching information on a subject and you get carried away by a certain ‘flow of words’ that you would like to quote, do not. Instead, spare your audience the misstep of indirectly giving voice to a vulgar sentiment and invest the effort to correctly source that language. Memorizing their types as well as practicing will put you on the right track, en route to submitting papers/essays which are full of quotes but are also exclusively yours.
Therefore, any quoted source in the body of the paper should be accompanied by a citation as well as a reference list provided at the end of the paper. This can be in the form of a ‘Works Cited’ or ‘Reference’ page depending on the citation style you’re using, be it APA, MLA, Chicago, etc. It is important to include full bibliographic citations for your sources because they will enable readers to locate original materials in case they are interested.
Quoting is, indeed, a tricky business and one that requires time, practice, and effort to perfect, but it is a skill that every writer must learn in order not to be guilty of plagiarism. In later drafts of your work, you may discover that you relax into the tactic and quote far too often. Well, it is okay I guess the main thing is that we should be trying our best to make sure we are providing attribution where it is needed. You replete these strategies in your writing and over time you will be in a position to estimate when direct quotation is more suitable as compared to employing paraphrasing or summarizing.
However, a nice solution is to have a habit of copying information from the source at once when a user has come across a passage that he or she will need to quote later. Instead, prepare citation details in advance to be ready to write when the information is needed. Some word processors also can contain citation management functions that will help to create references at the touch of a button.
Selection of material is another critical factor that warrants ultimate and effective quoting. It’s important to recognize that not every quote that comes across your desk will fit your argument to a tea. Once you have an outline, take the time to read through your sources thoroughly to find quotes that are relevant and insightful and help to bolster the thesis of the piece. It is also important to avoid using long and irrelevant quotes to make sure that your work does not get hindered or that the reader will be lost.
