Three ways to avoid plagiarism

Plagiarism is the deliberate copying of the work of somebody else and presenting such work as one’s own work. It is the use of someone else’s work without acknowledging the source of the material being used and one can plagiarize from many different sources including published essays, books, and even journals. Many institutions of higher education do not allow plagiarism especially among their students and if caught, these students face very severe punishments such as suspension or expulsion from the institution. These institutions tend to clearly define plagiarism in their regulations in a bid to ensure that there is no misunderstanding about it among the staff and the students within the institutions (Aziz, J, Hashim, F, & Razak, N A,2012). In many institutions of higher learning, plagiarism is considered to be very immoral because their purpose is to produce a high caliber of students whose work is original. However, when students plagiarize the work of others, then they damage the reputation of these institutions and they further damage their own credibility as scholars, hence the severe punishments which are given to these students if caught. In this paper, we shall discuss several ways through which students and other scholars can be able to avoid plagiarism, both accidental plagiarism and intentional plagiarism. The following issues in relation to the avoidance of plagiarism shall be discussed: the need to acknowledge every piece of information that is neither one’s personal work nor common knowledge; the need for students to take accurate notes and keep precise records; the need for students to avoid taking shortcuts when writing their papers; and finally, the need for students to avoid leaving most of their work until the last minute because this has been found to be the leading cause of plagiarism.

One of the most important ways for students to avoid plagiarism is the acknowledgement of the sources which are neither their personal work nor is it common knowledge and this includes opinions, arguments, and speculations as well as facts, details, figures, and statistics. This will enable these students to better defend the arguments they make in their papers or in other works and will further increase the credibility of their work. The acknowledgement of sources will also enable those who read and study the work of these students to determine the influences that shaped their eventual opinion concerning the subjects they are discussing in their work. Furthermore, the recognition of their sources and the credibility which their work will gain from it will ensure that future students use them as sources, whether firsthand or secondhand, and this will help build and further their reputation as respected scholars. When using the exact words of the author of their sources, students should use quotation marks to show that these are not their own words. Paraphrasing the sentences or an entire paragraph from a source is also a useful tool in avoiding plagiarism because the student writes according to his own understanding of the source’s work, so long as the source is acknowledged (Badke, W, 2007)..

Another way for students to avoid plagiarism is the need for them to take accurate notes and keep precise records. Students should indicate in their notes whether they are directly quoting, whether they are paraphrasing, or whether they are summarizing a source. Students should also make sure that they know the difference between quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing sources in order to avoid confusion when writing their papers. Knowing the difference between these types of writing styles and source acknowledgement will enable students not only to get ideas from their sources but it will also be a way of learning about what different schools have to say about a particular subject. Students should also learn that to consult their instructors whenever they are in doubt of whether they are documenting their sources correctly because not knowing is never an adequate defense when one is accused of plagiarism (Kiehl, Ermalynn M, 2006).

Students should ensure that the do not take shortcuts when writing their work because this is a major cause of plagiarism. Writing hurriedly prevents the student from thinking clearly because his thoughts have not been well organized. This leads the student into the temptation of copying other people’s work in a bid to finish their own work without including or stating any of the sources which they have used in their writing. It is often very difficult for a student to clearly state their sources because of their hurrying through their work and randomly using sources without even taking note of who they are quoting. Many students end up committing plagiarism without even realizing that they are doing it and this tends to land many of them into trouble form their instructors and from their learning institutions. Students should learn to undertake all their assigned work in time so that they are able to take and quote accurate notes and sources to ensure the credibility of their work. They should not wait until the last minute to do their work because quoting sources accurately would seem to be a waste of time for them because they will be in a hurry to complete their work. It would seem to be a waste of time to quote sources when writing but then a lot more time will be spent by the student when attempting to defend himself or herself from allegations of plagiarism leveled against them (East, J, 2010).

In conclusion, the best way for students to avoid plagiarism is by taking their time to do their work so that they can take accurate notes as well as make proper citation of sources to ensure that their work is credible. Plagiarism is a moral crime which should not be encouraged among students because this would mean the loss of the credibility of the learning process. Therefore, it would be best if strict measures were taken against those who commit plagiarism and to ensure that it is no longer committed. Students should be given lessons concerning plagiarism from the very beginning of their academic career and should be made aware of the gravity of committing plagiarism and its consequences.